⚠️The Golden Triangle of Flamenco

When one mentions the “Golden Triangle of Flamenco,” it refers to where most people believe the cante jondo (deep song of flamenco) originated. The flamenco triangle is between the cities of Cádiz, Jerez de la Frontera and Triana in Sevilla.

But there is another trio in flamenco- the basic elements that make up flamenco- cante (song), toque (guitar) and baile (dance).

However, I want to propose another trio, triangle, trinity (and any other grouping of 3’s). And these are what all dancers need to be able to dance flamenco with certainty and passion and confidence.

Of course, you need technique like a strong core, articulate feet, fluid arms and solid turns. But what comes before that are CORAJE (courage), CORAZON (heart), and COMPAS (rhythm).

CORAJE (courage)
Especially if you’re starting flamenco as an adult, you need ALOT of courage. The courage to start something new. The courage to make mistakes. The courage to take up space and stand up and be seen. This last point is so important because flamenco is all about being expressive, open and raw. And it takes courage to dig in deep and share that!

CORAZON (heart)
Our ultimate goal as dancers is to be able to dance with aire, achieve the state of duende, dance with expressiveness and confidence. THIS is dancing with your heart. We must connect with our heart and remember why we love this art form so much. Remember how it stirs our soul. Dancing from the heart starts with getting in touch with how we want to FEEL while dancing and how we want to feel about ourselves as dancers. Then it extends to the aire or the attitude of the particular palo (rhythm) we’re dancing.

COMPAS (rhythm)
The compás is EVERTHING in flamenco. Without having the rhythm, the beat, the actual heartbeat of flamenco in our bodies– there is no dancing, just flailing.

So, we start with those three elements AND we learn how to DANCE, DANCE, DANCE with our entire MIND, BODY & SOUL, because we know that flamenco isn’t just learning a bunch of steps!

xoxoxox

Rina