Acercamientos pioneros al flamenco

Abstract

Of uncertain origins, flamenco music burst into force in the last quarter of the 19th century. He soon attracted the attention of scholars and folklorists such as Machado y Álvarez, author of the famous Colección de cantes flamencos. Although timidly, the first musical approaches to flamenco were also produced, starring, among others, Gevaert, Eslava, Guillermo Morphy, Pedrell, Mitjana, Laparra or Falla. With some exceptions, most of them deal with generic issues, such as the difficulty of fixing flamenco melodies on the stave; the presumed origins of this artistic manifestation; its denomination or the possible etymologies of the term flamenco. His theories and conjectures reveal an interest, even relative, in this artistic manifestation, at that time considered by many, without convincing arguments, the result, among others, of the Arab influence or of the Eastern or Byzantine in Spanish popular music.