The Flamenco Guitar - Dedos De Platino
Jul 5th, 2007 by skanson.com
“Dedos De Platino” means fingers of platinum. This solo Flamenco guitar selection is a great example of the raw emotion of the style. Flamenco is one of the great European nonacademic musical forms. More than simply a type of folk music, flamenco embodies a complex musical and cultural tradition. Although considered part of the culture of Spain in general, flamenco is really specifically a product and part of the culture of one region in Spain - Andalusia. Flamenco lacked the prestige of art
forms among the middle and higher classes, but many of the songs in flamenco still reflect the spirit of desperation, struggle, hope, and pride of the simple lower class people. Musically it is also very interesting. Disregarding the rules of Western classical music whereas only the major and minor modes have remained, flamenco uses the Phrygian mode or ‘flamenco mode’ most commonly charactarized by a flatted 2nd scale degree. This mode leads to interesting harmonic findings, with unusual unresolved dissonances. Examples of this are the use of minor 9th chords for the tonic. The aural result is one of tremendous power, passion, and freedom.
A turning point in flamenco appears to have come about with a change of instruments. In the late 18th Century the favored guitar became the 6 string single-coursed guitar which replaced the double-coursed 5 string guitar in popularity. It is the 6 string guitar to which flamenco music is inextricably tied.
“For a Scandinavian kid growing up in Northern Minnesota, I sometimes do not
understand where the Spanish influence in my music comes from, but it is definitely there and I like it!” - Darren Curtis Skanson
