The essential difference between cante jondo and flamenco is that the origin of the former must be sought in the primitive musical systems of India, that is, in the first manifestations of song, while the latter, a consequence of the first, cannot be said to acquire its definitive form until the eighteenth century. Estébanez Calderón, in his lovely Escenas andaluzas, notes that the cana is the primitive stem of these songs, which preserve their Arab and Moorish affiliation, and observes, with his characteristic perspicacity, that the word caña is little different from gannia, which is Arabic for ‘song’. Relatively recent texts suggest to him that during the first third of the nineteenth century, they occupied the place we now grant to the siguiriya. The great master Manuel de Falla, true glory of Spain, and soul of this festival, believes that the caña and the playera, which have all but vanished, show in their primitive style the same mode of composition as the siguiriya and its brethren, and that not so long ago they were simple variants of such songs. Those called malagueñas, granadinas, rondeñas, peteneras etc., should be considered as merely offshoots of those mentioned, since they differ from them in their architecture as much as their rhythm. The name cante jondo is given to a category of Andalucian song, of which the perfect and genuine prototype is the Gipsy siguiriya, from which derive other songs preserved by the people, such as polos, martinetes, carceleras, and soleares.
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On reading the notice of this festival every man of sense, uninformed on the matter, must ask: ‘What then is this cante jondo?’īefore proceeding we should draw an essential distinction between cante jondo and flamenco singing, an essential distinction based on antiquity, structure and spirit. To confuse the patriotic and idealistic idea of this festival with the lamentable vision of the cantaor with his tapping stick and caricatured wailing about cemeteries indicates a total lack of comprehension, and a total misunderstanding of what is intended. The time has come then for the voices of Spanish musicians, poets and artists to merge, driven by an instinct for preservation, to mark and exalt the limpid beauties and suggestiveness of such singing.
Jondo definition professional#
It cannot be that the most moving and profound songs of our mysterious soul should be maligned as mean and debauched it cannot be that they wish to fasten that thread which links us to the impenetrable Orient to the neck of the drunkard’s guitar it cannot be that they seek to stain the most diamantine of our songs with the clouded wine of the professional scoundrel. You have all heard of cante jondo, and indeed have a more or less precise idea of it…yet it is almost certain that for those of you who are not initiated into its historical and artistic transcendence it evokes a certain immorality, the atmosphere of taverns, rowdiness, the ethos of the café dance floor, a ridiculous sobbing, something typically Spanish, in fact – yet we must suppress this feeling for the sake of Andalusia, our millennial spirit and our individual hearts. It is a noble work of patriotism that we are trying to realize a work of salvation, a work of friendship and of love. Gentlemen, the musical soul of the race is in grave danger! The artistic riches of a whole people are on their way to oblivion! It seems that each day which passes another leaf falls from the wondrous tree of Andalusian lyric, old men carry to the grave the priceless treasures of past generations, and an avalanche, gross and stupid, of cheap music obscures the delightful popular culture of all Spain.
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The group of enthusiastic friends and intellectuals who support the idea of this festival are sounding no less than an alarm. You are gathered together tonight, in the salon of the Centro Artístico, to hear my humble, yet sincere words, and I wish them to be luminous and profound, so as to convince you of the marvellous artistic truth contained in primitive Andalusian song, that which is called deep song, cante jondo. (A lecture given in Granada, 19th February 1922)
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Where the original works are not in the public domain, any required permissions should also be sought from the representatives of the Lorca estate, Casanovas & Lynch Agencia Literaria. Please note that Federico García Lorca's original, Spanish works may not be in the public domain in all jurisdictions, notably the United States of America. This work may be freely reproduced, stored and transmitted, electronically or otherwise, for any non-commercial purpose. Kline © Copyright 2008, All Rights Reserved. At the height of the Tower of Comares in the Alhambra. ( Importancia histórica y artística del primitivo canto Andaluz llamado ‘Cante Jondo’ 1922)