Whether good or bad, Flamenco is Flamenco

I went to the iconic Flamenco dancer Farruquito's classes for two years when I lived in Seville.  He started to give regular classes at Flamencos por el Mundo school in January 2013 and I went to his first class out of curiosity because I always knew that he was an amazing dancer.  He was getting busier with his tours and performances, but whenever he was teaching and I was in Seville, I went to his classes.  He is the first grandson of the legendary bailaor El Farruco, and he inherited everything about baile flamenco from his grandfather.  Farruquito is obviously one of the finest Flamenco dancers alive, or should I say the best, as the most people would agree.  He was also a fabulous teacher that could teach both in dance and theory of Flamenco.  I loved listening to what he talked as much as his pasos he taught us in class.  I loved his ideas, views and what he knew about Flamenco.  Somehow I understood and agreed on everything he said.  It made sense to me.  

One of my most favorite videos of Farruquito´s dance.  He must have been about 20 years old.

One of the things he said in class and has stayed in my mind to this day is when he talked about cuatro pasos (I will talk about this sometime later), and Flamenco malo or Flamenco bueno.  He said that whether something is good or bad, Flamenco is Flamenco.  He said that someone can dance Flamenco badly, but you would still call it Flamenco if it is done in the way that it should be.

Later, in an interview with The New York Times, he said, “The concept [of Flamenco] is simple..Musicians play and [a dancer] dances, everyone improvising in the moment. It’s Flamenco the way it’s always been done… except that no one is doing it that way anymore.”  

I instantly knew what he was talking about and could relate it to my thoughts when he said this in class. For example, I love Israel Galván. I think he is a genius and an amazing dancer, and I go see his shows. Many people who like so-called Flamenco puro do not like him because they do not think his dance is Flamenco. On the other hand, when I go see him, I don't watch his work as Flamenco. I still love it. I see his dance as his own invention based on his career as a Flamenco dancer, inspirations, values and ideas around Flamenco. But he is still extraordinary and I enjoy watching him very much. It does not have to be Flamenco for me to love something artistically brilliant. However, when his shows are sold as "Flamenco", I have a trouble and feel that we need a clear definition of Flamenco and distinction between what Flamenco NATURALLY is, and inventions by artists or others that make something outside Flamenco, because the danger that we all know is that something named "Flamenco" sells. As a consequence, it causes negative effects such as misunderstanding, misconception, or confusion.

When I listened to Farruquito talking about the distinction of what is Flamenco and what is not, it stuck in my mind.  I have thought about it over years, and gradually, It helped me determine what I wanted to dance and the path I wanted to go through; I might not be the most amazing bailaora on the earth, but I still want to dance Flamenco and be a bailaora in the real sense.  This is not an easy thing even just to say.  Dancing Flamenco in the real sense is the hardest thing I ever tried in my life.  Farruquito´s words also helped me clarify the confusions that many people might be experiencing.  It is not about being good or bad, or simple or complicated.  Whether Flamenco or not is defined by the nature of what you do.