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Duquende y Faiz ali Faiz
“Qawwali Flamenco”
Friday, 10th november. 2030h. Muziekgebouw aan het
IJ, Amsterdam.
Complete
Program
Text: Estela Zatania
Duquende’s group. Cante:
Duquende,
Mara Rey. Guitar: Chicuelo.
Dance: Manuel Gutiérrez. Percussion: Isaac el Rubio.
Qawwali Faiz Ali Faiz ensemble.
It was fusion the organization wanted, so that’s
just what they got. And they knew exactly how to get right
down to the heart of it with a sensational exhibition of
two once-related cultures, reunited to create glorious music
that has no homeland other than the universal one of all
humans. It wasn’t flamenco we saw last night, nor
flamenco modified by “qawwali”, the passionate
sufi music of the Punjab, nor do I have references to determine
whether it was even qawwali. These experiments work best
when we shed all labels and just drink in the overwhelming
sensory message, which is the function of all music. It’s
commercial interests that push classification of musical
genres to insure the fidelity of specific sectors and kinds
of fans. All I can do is report on what went on in the spacious
auditorium of the Muziekgebouw, sweeping everyone away with
the sheer beauty and force of the voices and music.
Not since Segundo Falcón’s “Tierra de
nadie” a few years ago, where North African musicians
and others from Rajasthan, India jammed with flamenco, has
there been such a happy marriage of diverse musical traditions.
Someone once said that music from the same era, even if
coming from different cultures, always shares more similarities
than music of a single genre throughout history. Maybe that
was it. A pungent atmosphere and life experiences that existed
at one time left their indelible mark on societies that
were eventually separated physically, but not spiritually.
Ensemble de Qawwali Faiz Ali Faiz
Once-related cultures, reunited
to create glorious music that has no homeland other than
the universal one of all humans
Without any doubt the high level of talent had a lot to
do with it. Good old Duquende, the first and last Camaron
follower, we’re not going to discover anything new
about him at this point. The big surprise for the uninitiated
was Faiz ali Faiz, heir to a musical tradition of seven
generations in his own family, nothing to envy in José
Mercé. A man dedicated to conserving the roots and
interpreting his updated music, always glancing back over
his shoulder to take a reading on the past – the same
words we always use to describe the best kind of flamenco
evolution. This man’s spectacular voice is literally
irresistible from the first moment, and some people are
so taken aback, they don’t even know how to react.
Nervous giggles seem to indicate “my God, what is
this we’re hearing?” Exotic, beautiful, moving,
technically brilliant, flexible and versatile – no
wonder he is a major star in his home country. Listening
to his voice it’s easy to glimpse the dawn of cante,
no professor is needed to explain the routes of the gypsy
exodus from India over the centuries, it’s all right
there in Faiz ali Faiz.
Like beaming down to a parallel
world where everything is familiar but strangely altered
The recital is divided into three parts. First, the Spaniards,
with the voices of Duquende and Mara Rey and the guitar
of Chicuelo to interpret mining cante, bulerías,
tangos songs and siguiriyas with the dancing of Manuel Gutiérrez
ending with the now legendary “Dicen de mí”
of Camarón as sung by Duquende. They surrender the
stage to the Pakistani musicians who sit on the floor of
a carpeted platform, 8 men plus Faiz ali Faiz, two playing
the harmonium, one percussionist and the rest, palmas and
chorus, just like in flamenco. Suddenly I feel abysmally
ignorant and hate myself for knowing nothing about this
lush music and its culture. Is Faiz the Camarón of
his country? The Mairena, the Caracol?
He begins with a wordless ‘salida’ to warm
up, employs diabolical tongue-twisting at some points, as
well as other common flamenco techniques. I feel a superficial
curiosity to know what he’s singing about, but the
lesson learned is that all verse is overshadowed by the
interpretation and the music. The rhythms of qawwali seem
simpler than those of flamenco, but the melodies and vocal
techniques are far more complex. I wonder if they get together
and sing for fun the way we flamencos do...
Duquende (photo: Victor López)
The pieces are very long for Western audiences, around
20 to 30 minutes or more each one. Spectacular effects are
achieved with apparently dissonant notes obsessively repeated
and held. A dancer I want to believe is authentic does turns,
armwork and heelwork without shoes. It’s like beaming
down to a parallel world where everything is familiar but
strangely altered. The similarities and differences compared
to flamenco act as a control gauge to see which flamenco
elements are Andalusian, which are Spanish, which are universal...
It’s easy to glimpse the
dawn of cante, no professor is needed to explain the routes
of the gypsy exodus from India over the centuries.
Inevitably, the third part brings all the musicians together
for a musical orgy where the groups take turns, the voices
of Mara Rey and Faiz ali Faiz fall in the same register
and intertwine, everyone joins in on everyone else’s
choruses and for the spectacular finale, the Spanish bailaor
and the Indian dancer do tanguillos together, with each
one staying perfectly in character. It’s a powerful
moment, impressively beautiful, no one fails to react. The
audience cheers in non-stop delight and the collective area
of gooseflesh throughout the large auditorium reaches record
levels, triggering a lengthy standing ovation.
In this country people don’t applaud to the compás
of bulerías like in Spain, but rather stomp loudly
on the wooden floor. The entire structure shimmies and shakes
with the thunder of one thousand five-hundred feet, causing
Duquende and Faiz ali Faiz to engage in a friendly facing-off
with unaccompanied voices. The magic continues to the last
drop with overlapping melodies: “Y si no es verdad,
que Dios me mande a mí la muerte, si es que me la
quiere mandar”.
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