Fandango

early in the 18th century.

Origins

Because of the meter of its lyrics and their rhythmic scansion, most scholars consider the fandango to have stemmed from the "jota". Some philologists have tried to link it to the ancient Roman erotic dance known as the "cordax" (called "iconici motus" by the poet Horace and the playwright Plautus). The satires of Juvenal make specific mention of the "testarum crepitus" (clicking of castanets). In its earlier Greek expression, finger cymbals were used. Though these hypothetical links enjoy little evidence, they suggest a rich, ancient background.

Character

After his appointment in 1757 to the Spanish court at El Escorial as "maestro de capilla", Padre Antonio Soler composed a brilliant fandango. Soler's fandango has been called "an example of eighteenth century minimalism" by the harpsichordist David Schrader since it is constructed over a constant harmonic pattern. Soler's brilliant piece increases in velocity and intensity toward the end, much like Maurice Ravel's celebrated "Bolero" The Italian composer Luigi Boccherini subsequently introduced an idealized, slow fandango in the classical European tradition to the Spanish court. During the 18th century, fandango display dances spread along the Iberian peninsula and notably became a major flamenco variety.

panish dance

The current 3/4 pattern of the fandango, its distinct descending chord progression (A minor/G major/F major/E major), lyrics with octosyllabic verses and the use of castanets are well-documented from the 18th century.

The "fandangos grandes" (big fandangos) are normally danced by couples, which start out slowly with gradually increasing tempo. Many varieties are derived from this one.

The "fandanguillos" (little fandangos) are livelier, more festive derivations of fandangos. Some regions of Spain have developed their own style of fandangos, such as Huelva "(fandangos de Huelva)" and Málaga "(fandangos de Málaga", or "Verdiales)". Northern areas such as the Principality of Asturias, the Basque Country and Castile have preserved a more relaxed performance.

In the Philippines, which was a Spanish colony for over 300 years, the fandango lives on in the dance called Pandango sa Ilaw (Fandango with Lights) where instead of castanets, the dancers carry glasses with candles inside and swirl it over their heads or sometimes while kept inside handkerchiefs.

Portuguese dance

Fandango is one of the main folk dances in Portugal. The choreography is quite simple: on its more frequent setting two male dancers face each other, dancing and tap-dancing one at each time, showing which one has the most lightness and repertoire of feet changes in the tap-dancing. The dancers can be boy and girl, boy and boy (most frequent) or rarely two girls. While one of the dancers dances, the other just "goes along". Afterwards, they "both drag their feet for a while" until the other one takes his turn. They stay there, disputing, seeing which one of them makes the feet transitions more eye-catching.

The fandango do Ribatejo refers specifically the form of fandango practiced in Ribatejo, Portugal.

Figurative meaning

As a result of the extravagant features of the dance, the word "fandango" is used as a synonym for 'a quarrel', 'a big fuss' or 'a brilliant exploit.'

References in popular culture

*Queen's song "Bohemian Rhapsody" contains the line, "Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the fandango?"
*Bob Dylan's song "Romance In Durango" contains the line "Soon you will be dancing the fandango".
*Pain of Salvation's song "Fandango" contains the line "Trapped in fandango".
*Procol Harum's song "Whiter Shade of Pale" contains the line "We skipped the light fandango".
*ZZ Top's 1975 album titled "Fandango!"
*In the NES game "Ironman Stewart's Super Off Road", there is a billboard on the qualifying race track that says "Fandango".
*The PC adventure game "Grim Fandango" includes the word in the title, depicting the grim "dancing and twisting" of the plot.
*Fandango (1985 film)
* DJ Quik's song "Fandango" on his 2005 album Trauma.
*The Exies bonus track "Supernatural" off the Inertia cd, with the line "Come on, come on, let's do the fandango"
*In Gibraltar, the phrase "Very good" is often expressed as "Very good, Fandango".
*The title of a long-running quiz show on TNN (now Spike TV), hosted by Bill Anderson.
*LucasArts computer game Grim Fandango released in 1998. The game is noted for its extensive use of Dia de los Muertos imagery.
*Absolute Radio presenter Iain Lee refers to his partner by the name 'Fandango'.

External links

* [http://www.flora-albaicin.com Flamenco Institute Flora Albaicín] . Flamenco dance company and academy (the oldest and biggest of its kind in the world).
*http://www.esflamenco.com/palos/enfandango.html