Soleá

Soleá (plural: soleares) is one of the most basic forms or palos of flamenco music, probably originating around Cádiz or Seville in Andalusia, the most southern region of Spain. It is normally accompanied by one guitar only, in the key of E Phrygian, although it is also often heard in A phrygian as well.

thumb|300px|right|Paco de Lucía performing a soleá

Lyrics
When singers sing soleá, as with most palos, they normally choose different verses, with different melodies, and combine them according to the inspiration of the moment, or according to a preset plan. Even if the singer has a set plan, he often alters it on the spur of the moment. These verses differ from one another in subject matter.

The content of the lyrics is generally serious in nature, as appropriate to the solemn air of the music. They often have a sententious tone and convey a feeling of intimate pain. Sometimes despair, more typical of seguiriya, can also appear. However, it is difficult to generalize; sometimes a less serious verse can turn up in the middle of other serious ones, and irony is frequent.

The verse of the soleá has three or four lines. In four-line verses, the second and fourth line are in assonant rhyme, while the first and second are free. In three-line stanzas, the assonance is between the first and the third. Some examples:

This type of verse is the cuarteta romanceada, one of the oldest and most frequent in Spanish poetry, and is derived from the medieval "romance" poetic form, a type of traditional epic poetry that has survived in both learned and popular literature to this day.

The melody of a soleá can require repeating some lines, altering their logical order, or cutting the lines, sometimes even in the middle of words, for example, a verse like:

Can be rendered in song as:

Musical analysis
Soleá is one of the flamenco palos with the highest number of traditional songs, and it is particularly appreciated by knowledgeable artists and audiences. It is very demanding for singers, as they have to strive to be creative and, at the same time, respectful of the tradition, and they have to succeed in finding a good balance between melody and rhythm, both extremely difficult. It demands great vocal faculties, and the singer should achieve a balance between passion and restraint.

The melody of a soleá verse usually stays within a limited range (usually not more than a 5th). Its difficulty lies in the use of melisma and microtones, which demand great agility in the voice. It is usual to start a series of soleares with a more restrained verse in the low register, while continuing with more and more demanding styles. The series is quite often finished with a verse in a much more vivid tempo in a major scale.

Meter (compás)
The compás of the soleá is one of the most widely used in flamenco. Other palos have derived their compás from the soleá, including bulerías por soleá, the palos in the cantiñas group, like alegrías, romeras, mirabrás, caracoles or, to a certain extent, bulerías. It consists of 12 beats. However, the distribution of strong and weak beats totally differs from the 12 beat meters used in classical music. Instead, it could be described as a combination of triple and duple beat bars, so it's a polymetric form. However, strong beats are at the end of each bar, instead of at the beginning (as it would be normally in Western music). The basic "skeleton" of the soleá rhythm, thus, follows this pattern:



(Each number represents a beat. Blue squares mean weak beats, while big brown dots are strong beats. In some soleá styles the guitarist hits the body of the guitar with his ring finger on the brown beats)

Nevertheless, this is just an underlying structure, like a foundation, which is in fact not really heard in the palmas ("clapping hands"), in the guitar, or in a dancer's feet. It is like a kind of grid where flamenco artists creatively draw the rhythm, which can have infinite variations. In real life one might hear lots of patterns, from very simple to really intricate, depending on the mood the artist wants to convey, or the purpose of the song (to be sung on its own or to support a dancer). In a real performance or recording, one might hear palmas performed as in the examples below. The first is a very common, simple pattern:



Notice that palmas are often (though by no means always) silent during beats 4 to 6, even if beat number 6 is accented. This is especially true when no dancing takes place; the main interest lies in the singing (or playing) and too much percussion can draw attention away from the music. These beats, though, are often struck when there is dance, or when performing other palos in the same meter as with alegrías or bulería por soleá. However, these are not to be taken as hard-and-fast rules, but just as general guidelines.

A more complex example.



The small orange squares should be played extremely softly. Notice the wide use of syncopation.

The above are just two examples among the infinite variety of variations. The patterns can be alternated and combined in multiple ways. When there are two or more people playing palmas, one of them usually plays a base pattern, emphasizing the regular beats, while another plays more fancy patterns, more syncopated.

Unlike bulerías por soleá or cantiñas, which are always played with a regular beat, the soleá is also often played rubato, that is, slowing down and speeding up the tempo to enrich its expressive quality, in which case palmas and any other percussion are avoided. Of course regular tempo is also frequent, and it is mandatory when it is played and sung to accompany a dancer.

Harmonic structure
Soléa develops in Phrygian mode. To simplify, we could say it is traditionally played in E Phrygian (often also in A Phrygian). To adapt to the pitch of the singer, guitarists can use a capo, so that they can play in other keys preserving the traditional chord positions. Modern guitarists, though, often play soleá using other chord positions or even changing the tuning of the guitar to experiment with new sounds, especially in solo instrumental pieces.

The typical flamenco progression A minor, G, F, E (called Andalusian progression) is heard several times during the development of the song. A usual progression with a four-line stanza (played in E Phrygian) is the following:


 * first line: E7, Am,
 * transition to 2nd line: Am, G, (or F, G)
 * 2nd line: F, E
 * 3rd line: G7, C (or C7)
 * 4th line: Am, G, F, E, F, E

And a usual progression with a three-line stanza:
 * first line: E7, Am
 * 2nd line: G7, C
 * 3rd line: Am, G, F, E, F, E

The guitar in the soleá
Soleá guitar style is easily identified by its meter and Phrygian mode, but also by a series of characteristic strumming and phrases which are heard several times, called llamadas, with multiple variations, along a song or solo piece. A modern guitarist, when playing soleá, will combine longer musical fragments called falsetas with these characteristic strumming and phrases, which are used to mark the beginning and end of the falsetas and to show the singer (if there is one) that the falseta is over and he can start singing.

When a guitarist plays in the key of E, he is said to play "por arriba" ("up"), while, if he plays in A phrygian, he is said to play "por medio" ("in the middle"). The reason for this is that most flamenco singers and guitarists do not usually have any formal musical training: they cannot identify the key, but only the position of the fingers.

Soleá guitar playing is extremely rich in techniques and rhythmic play. This has made it a favorite among solo concert guitarists. Among the guitarists that have excelled in this palo for solo concert are Ramón Montoya, Carlos Montoya (nephew of Ramón), Sabicas, Paco de Lucía, Gerardo Núñez, and Rafael Riqueni.

History
The origins of this palo, as it happens in fact with most palos, is very much in the dark, and has been subject to much unproved speculation. In spite of being one of the most prestigious palos, the soleá is considered to be relatively new compared to tonás and seguiriyas. The earliest known mention of them, referred to as soledades, is that of Spanish poet Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, in 1862. The existence of them prior to 1850 is often stated, but has never been proved. Folklorist Demófilo assured, as early as 1879, that they derived from the coplas de jaleo, a kind festive song style in a very lively rhythm, apparently very popular in the mid-19th century. These facts contradict other views according to which the soleá would be the origin of the rest of palos and was from the beginning a serious and solemn style. In their primitive stages, soléa, as well as jaleo, seem to have been linked to Gypsy environments in several towns of the provinces of Cádiz and Seville.

The golden age of the soleá is considered to be the last quarter of the 19th century, at the time when the café cantante ("music café") was the preferential venue for flamenco artists. Most of the soleá melodies we know have been attributed to singers who were active at that time. With the turn of the century, other palos like those belonging to the group cantes libres] like [[malagueña, tarantas, or cartageneras took the supremacy. At the times of the Ópera Flamenca, it was further displace by fandangos, popular songs fashioned to the bulerías rhythm and "cantes de ida y vuelta" like the guajiras.

During the 50s-70s, at the time of the neo-traditionalism of Antonio Mairena and his school, the style went back into favor, becoming, together with seguiriyas and tonás one of the most valued by flamenco artists, critics and public. The soleá went again into disfavor after the birth of New Flamenco. Followers of Camarón de la Isla and his school tend to pay less attention to traditional, "hard" styles, and favor other more festive palos like bulerías or tangos, which are easier to mix with pop and commercial music influences.

Main soleá styles
Soleá "styles" (or rather, we should say "melodies") are traditionally classified under their geographical origin and then by the singer they have been attributed to. These facts are not to be taken as absolute truths. Many times, these attributions rely solely on the oral tradition and the beliefs of singers and the flamenco environment, but rarely on evidence. Even when we know for sure that those singers had an important role in any of these melodies, it cannot be assured that he they "created" it. Maybe they just made it popular, or at most developed it.

Soleares from Alcalá
Although the most recent among the traditional styles, some of the Alcalá ones are the most widely sung. The most famous singer of this area, to whom several styles have been attributed, is Joaquín el de La Paula. His four-line style, sung in the low registers and very restrained, is very often used as an introductory stanza to other more high-pitched ones.

Soleares from Triana
Triana is a quarter in Seville. The styles of this area are usually more melodic and musical. They are very difficult to classify, owing to their large number of styles and variations. Most attributions to a particular singer are also doubtful.


 * "La Andonda". Very little is known of this Gypsy singer. Some styles of soleá have been attributed to her, but there is no proof that they actually have anything to do with her.
 * Styles of Ramón El Ollero. Several styles are attributed to him.
 * Styles of El Zurraque. El Zurraque is an area in Triana, where potters used to have their workshops. For this reason, these styles are often called soleares alfareras ("potters' soleares").
 * Soleares from Córdoba. They are supposed to derive from the styles of Ramón El Ollero. They were carried to Córdoba by a singer called Onofre, and are often known as "Soleares de Onofre".

Soleares from Cádiz

 * By Enrique el Mellizo (1848-1906). Several styles have been attributed to this singer, one of the most influential in the evolution of flamenco singing for his contributions to several palos. Other frequent styles include those of Paquirri.

Soleares from Jerez
They are considered to be mostly variations from other local styles. However, those by Frijones (probably born in 1846) have original quality.

Soleares from Lebrija
The most famous are those by singer Juaniquí, of whom there is little reliable information.

Soleares from Utrera
All styles from Utrera are attributed to La Serneta (1837-1910), a singer born in Jerez, who went to live in Utrera when she was young.