Growing out of African American communities in New Orleans around the turn of the 20th century, jazz is recognized as a quintessentially American art. Flamenco is the sound of southern Spain, bringing a romantic aesthetic that often extends to the eponymous dance style it birthed. But when brought together, the results can be harmonious.
Rarely can so much talent be brought together on one stage.
We all remember Miles Davis’ Essays on Spain and Chick Corea’s Spain but there’s a whole other world of so-called “flamenco jazz” out there that lives unrecorded, often inside quaint, tiny rooms (in caves, quite literally). There and in other cool clubs, nightly musical experiments are taking place, where flamenco palos mix with other jazz influences.
They open paths for improvisation and creating spontaneous moods and energies.
