Song of the Outcasts: An Introduction to Flamenco [Hardcover]

March 2003, Jerez de la Frontera, Cadiz, Andalucia.

This was the date and the venue for the VII Festival de Jerez and for my first pilgrimage as a student of flamenco guitar to this beautiful little city of orange and jasmine trees, to sit outside the cafes in the sun in March drinking coffee, to see as many as three flamenco performances in a night, and then on to the penas, to witness genuine flamenco Jerez-style in a preferred intimate venue, and to drink copious amounts of delicious local fino, the inevitable consequence of which was to be late for guitar classes the next day and for El Carbonero to laugh and to tell us we were becoming Spanish.

After another wonderful performance (this time Belen Maya and Mayte Martin) at the Teatre Villamarta, I heard a friendly yet authoritative English accent behind me and the voice was discussing the regional characteristics of female dancers, or bailoras. I considered that to gain this knowledge firsthand, one would first have to put in some serious study, ie invest a considerable amount of time in lingering over fino, talking to flamencos. The owner of the voice turned out to be one Robin Totton, and I wondered how I might bleed him of a little of his knowledge. The answer was soon to be found. I heard about the book not though his self-promotion but through a poster in the Centro Andaluz de Flamenco, an important research centre of flamenco. Bearing in mind there are very few books in the English language discussing flamenco with any genuine firsthand knowledge, and bearing in mind I had heard this guy talk (I unashamedly eavesdropped, in other words), I was confident that he knew his stuff and I took a note of the ISBN and determined to track it down once I returned home.

Song of the Outcasts is described as an ‘introduction to flamenco’ – which is a bit like describing a Secondary Education as a ‘taster session’. It serves well as an introduction, but there is a wealth of essential information to young(ish) confirmed aficionados (or obsessionados) like me. It is a book to be revisited, until the different song forms, or palos, start to become familiar. Or if you already know your Peteneras from your Martinetes then you can allow the book to take you further in your flamenco journey, that you can understand the heritage of this wonderful and beautiful art.

The book sets the foundations with a historical, cultural and ethnic analysis of the original evolution of flamenco (why, what, where, who?) and then takes us through the various song forms, through the voice of the cantaores, the singers, who remain of fundamental importance. Then we are given analysis of the dance and of the accompaniment of the guitar. To help us who know little about flamenco, or indeed those of us who should know better, we get an compilation CD which we are advised to listen to as he guides us through the harmonic and rhythmic characteristics of each palo, and helps us to understand the origin and the emotional intent, with some translated examples of the lyrics.

Robin Totton is a thoroughly entertaining and informative author. I would enthusiastically recommend this book to anyone with a genuine desire to expand their appreciation of Spanish and Andalucian culture. I would in particular recommend it as indispensable to students of flamenco.

A big warm thank you Robin, and see you in Jerez next year!