Fall Flamenco Completo tour complete!

Fall Flamenco Completo tour complete!

Posted by admin - December 3rd, 2010

Just finished the Flamenco Completo tour with Ulrika Frank where we gave workshops in Atlanta, GA, Vienna, VA, and Pittsburgh, PA.  Also in Pittsburgh, we performed for a Fundraiser for Flamenco Documentary that Marija Temo is featured in.  What a wonderful sharing experience this was!  See my facebook for some photos.

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Taylor Guitar Blog

Posted by admin - November 10th, 2010

Check out Bob Taylor’s Official Taylor Guitar Blog.
Marija Temo recently returned from the Taylor Guitar Factory invited by Bob Taylor to be a part of his latest venture in learning to build a classical guitar. It was thrilling to watch he and his team build a classical guitar as well as apply Bob Taylor’s NT guitar neck to them.  Pepe Romero Jr. was the luthier to help guide in the building process.  Marija Temo and Pepe Romero Sr. played and checked out the different types of classical guitars built that week.  Writer’s from Acousic Guitar Magazine also showed up and Marija was videod by them performing a few numbers.  It was a wonderful week.  Bob Taylor wrote about the experience and made some beautiful comments about Marija in his Taylor Guitar Blog.  Also, check out some photos that will be posted soon on Marija’s Facebook Fan Page.

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Comment from Deb Barker, GE Executive

Posted by admin - November 10th, 2010

Comment from Deb Barker, GE Executive, about Marija Temo, which is currently posted under the GE/Taylor Guitar YouTube clip

“Hi, this is Deb Barker. There’s been a lot of curiosity about me and my body double in the GE Capital/Taylor commercial. Marija Temo is phenomenal Flamenco player, and she was delighted to help us by capturing your imagination in that awesome riff (same technology as Avatar used to transpose my head on her body). Marija and I are hearing the commercial has inspired people to play – What’s better than that? Please keep supporting the Music industry, they need you – Peace!”

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Marija just landed a national commercial for Taylor Guitars/GE Capital!

Posted by admin - November 10th, 2010

Marija just landed a national commercial for Taylor Guitars/GE Capital!

Here is the YouTube posting: Taylor Guitar TV Commercial – GE Capital Distribution Finance & Sales Finance

Marija is playing the guitar music throughout the entire commercial. Some of the music she composed and arranged.

“It was an absolute blast, amazing adventure, and a wonderful challenge! I am very grateful for the opportunity and experience.” Read More »

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Atlanta, GA, Interview Frank/Temo workshop, April 2008

Posted by admin - April 24th, 2008

Atlanta interview Frank/Temo workshop April 2008

Piecing it together
Ulrika Frank and Marija Temo teach workshop students to “listen, react, and respond.”
By Cristina Bermudez for jaleole.com

Solving the Flamenco Puzzle is set for April 24-26 in Atlanta. For more information, visit jaleole.com’s events page.

In preparation for the upcoming communication workshop “Solving the Flamenco Puzzle,” which will be led by Perla Flamenca founder Ulrika Frank and world-renowned guitarist Marija Temo, I asked these two artists a few questions about what is needed in order to be well-rounded and clear when communicating within a cuadro. By communicating, of course, I do not mean verbally, but rather, quite the opposite: how is it that a dancer, guitarist, and singer can sense and be sure of what the other will do without saying a single word? Here are the answers from all 3 perspectives. Marija fills us in from a guitarist’s and singer’s point of view while Ulrika speaks from the dancer’s side.

CRISTINA: What are the basic steps that lead a dancer to be able to communicate with her musicians? Theoretically, what does she/he need in order to communicate well?

MARIJA: From a guitarist and singer’s perspective, the essentials that are needed include: having a good grasp of the compás and the different rhythmic variations that occur within a certain palo; being able to clearly identify and see how the compás and rhythmic variations are being accented through the dancer’s body movements and footwork; and anticipating and clearly seeing the structure provided by the dancer — for example, llamada for the singer, letra, escobilla, and llamada to finish.

For a guitarist to feel inspired and want to create or apply certain falsetas, and for a singer to sing a different type of letra that can be sung more climactically or sensitively or maybe extended in certain ways, the dancer needs to be able to listen, follow, and interpret (through body movement and steps) the musical interpretation of the guitar and cante. This comes from listening to and analyzing letras and guitar falsetas with regard to musical structure.

ULRIKA: The basic elements that a dancer needs to be able to communicate with his/her musicians are knowledge and awareness, which means that any achieved theoretical skills have to be put into practice at classes or workshops with a significant amount of loyalty, so the dancer constantly is aware of all participants. To be able to have an open communication — a kind of flowing flamenco conversation — is not only about expressing yourself; it is more about listening than replying, which is especially important when you’re learning…and you never cease to learn!

CRISTINA: What are some of the misconceptions about dancing to live music (some common misconceptions being that one should start out by learning with CDs, then progress to live music; that only advanced dancers can dance to live music, etc.)?

ULRIKA: Anyone can dance to any flamenco music! It all depends on what level you want to achieve. The more advanced you become, the more you learn that there are certain keys you have to pay attention to. That is when we go to classes and workshops, hopefully with live accompaniment and well-educated teachers. To start out by learning with CDs is not the best way to learn about the structure of the music, but in many cases, it is the only way, since there are fewer musicians than dancers. What is important, however, is to find a good mentor to guide you if you are learning to CDs, so you know what to listen for.

MARIJA: When dancers are performing choreographies live that have been set to specific recordings, they should be advised not to expect musicians to perform a letra or falseta exactly as it is on the recording, meaning every accent, the exact amount of compáses, etc. In general, the dancer should always be able to follow the musician’s way of performing the material or to welcome the musician’s contribution of his/her own falseta or letra.

CRISTINA: What are the key aspects of good communication between baile, cante, and toque (full cuadro communication), and how will you go about teaching these at the upcoming workshop?

ULRIKA: How to learn the ability to converse flamenco (to express, listen, act, and react while you are dancing, which may differ, depending on what music you are listening to, live or recorded) is what the “Solving the Flamenco Puzzle” workshop is all about. By knowing the basic structure of the choreography — the verses, the music, and, of course, the technique — you learn how to dance with self-confidence. The goal is to be able to dance your choreography to any singer, guitarist, or other musicians, and to be able to follow as well as lead.

MARIJA: Listen, react, and respond. The goal is interpretation — to be able to focus not on the steps, not on the chord progression, not on the letra, but on how to perform them by reacting to what you hear.

This workshop centers on how to listen to and interpret a letra of cante. A letra of soleá, with its variations in structure and melody, will be presented. Dancers will learn choreography options for the different musical and structural ways the letra can be sung, guitarists will learn the chordal and rhythmic accompaniment for the letra while accompanying the dancers, and singers will learn the form of the letra and its variations, with attention placed on accentuations, key pitches, and dynamic contrasts in order to convey how the singing is to be accompanied and interpreted by the dancers and guitarists.

This workshop is highly unique not only in the topic to be presented, but also in its approach. Ulrika and Marija have collaborated to provide a unified workshop experience for everyone (guitarists, dancers, and singers) to have the opportunity to work together through the choreography options presented by Ulrika and the musical options presented by Marija.

Enjoy the workshop and above all remember the essence of flamenco: being confident in who you are and what you are trying to express. Only then will you be open to the journey.

Solving the Flamenco Puzzle is set for April 24-26 in Atlanta. For more information, visit jaleole.com’s events page.

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