Alec is originally from Boston, Massachusetts. In Sevilla he attended the Fundación Cristina Hereen for 5 years. He is currently teaching, learning, and accompanying flamenco classes in schools around Seville, for example at Artes Escénicas Rebollar or Academia Manuel Betanzos.
According to you, flamenco it’s a vehicle for creativity where you can clearly notice everybody’s personality.
Yes, absolutely. Everyone in flamenco express themselves in a personal way, just like everyone has their own speaking voice. There are rules and structures that must be respected of course, but being unique is almost unavoidable!
Sevilla plays a really important part in the training of a flamenco student.
Nowhere else in the world is like Sevilla: there are many important aspects of flamenco that you can’t access anywhere else. We have to be ready to have our expectations of flamenco to be challenged. Before coming here, many of us have our own idea of what flamenco is because we watch videos on YouTube and hear stories. Your idea of flamenco changes when you are physically around it everyday. You get a new appreciation for it when you are exposed to the parts that are not so glamorous, like studying for hours every day, and working very hard.
How did you feel when you moved to Seville?
Adapting to a new culture was difficult. You have to take time to understand the way the people relate to each other, and be open-minded when making friends. Flamenco is very connected to Andalusian culture, and socializing/integrating with people from Andalusia is essential to understanding it.
As you told me, it doesn’t get boring for a flamenco guitarist (for a flamenco student, I would say)
There are just so many aspects to it; technique, repertoire, singing accompaniment, dance accompaniment, history… There isn’t enough time to study and do all of them! And when you are all done, you have just to listen to it from people singing at the bar down the street, or find old recordings on YouTube. Flamenco has evolved so much, and there is too much to listen to in one lifetime.
Can you remember your first performance? How was it?
A very important moment for me was my first performance without rehearsing. Just me, one singer and one dancer. We met 5 minutes before going on stage and just went over the styles we were going to perform. “Gabriel will dance Soleá and Tientos and Fernando will sing Malagueña y Alegría" (G.Aragú and F.Caballo). Of course, there were many moments that made me think I had to go home and study all this stuff better. But being able to do it successfully in the first place was something that I was so proud of.
By the way I think that even if you do something a thousand times, it is always important to keep learning.
Thanks, Alec! And good luck for your amazing path in the flamenco world.
Let’s stay up to date with Alec’s creations:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alecwheelies/
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