Introduction to Flamenco Compás - Tutorial by Kai Narezo

Kai Narezo gives this introduction to flamenco compás and the various meanings of the word compás and what this means in the context of the various 12-beat Palos (styles). The introduction to flamenco compás concepts presented here are useful in understanding the various 12-beat flamenco styles. It takes a little getting used to, but once you understand how it works you can start to understand what you're playing and listening to.
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[@paulmartingurnett2168]

The most useful information I have had . Thankyou . It needs commitment and always commitment pays off. Not boring but challenging.

[@garcitodelascuerdas6417]

Kai, thanks for that man. I've been struggling to get this right for a long time, now I've finally got the count. Trying to figure it out by listening to soleá recordings is extremely difficult because they elaborate so much, so to have it stripped right down to the bare bones is heaven sent. It answers all my questions, but without speaking a word. Excellent.

[@violetlight8138]

You are an excellent teacher and as soon as I get the cash I am so signing up for your onlne lessons.

[@MontagueLord]

Excellent and super-clear explanation. Wish you had your own channel for progressive lessons. Good flamenco teachers like yourself are like diamonds in a sea. Very difficult to find.

[@CDanielAubuchon]

KAI! Wow your lessons. *chefs kiss*

[@jeremyhickersonsalem]

fascinating, I'm a newcomer -- this opens a whole world to me. Didn't realize there were all these forms.

[@RobbySchechter]

What an amazingly articulate, concise, and poignant explanation. This is the goods, delivered in under 13 minutes. Thank you so much Kai for making these. Greatly appreciated!

[@kaysonterrance6000]

sorry to be off topic but does someone know a method to get back into an instagram account?? I somehow lost my login password. I would love any tips you can offer me

[@fisherjunior6903]

@Kayson Terrance Instablaster ;)

[@kaysonterrance6000]

@Fisher Junior thanks for your reply. I got to the site thru google and I'm trying it out now. Seems to take a while so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.

[@kaysonterrance6000]

@Fisher Junior it worked and I now got access to my account again. Im so happy:D Thank you so much you saved my account!

[@fisherjunior6903]

@Kayson Terrance No problem :D

[@FrancisGrant1]

That was one of the best explained tutorials on compás I've seen! Thanks!

[@FlamencoExplained]

Francis Grant Thanks for the kind words - so glad you liked it!

[@_TheOleRazzleDazzle_]

I’m very pleased to see this explained so well. I’ve tried to learn just from watching and listening. And reading old books about flamenco. Bravo

[@FlamencoExplained]

Thanks Thomas - glad it's helpful! -Kai

[@ThePandaGuitar]

Man, Flamenco is one confusing style but I love it! Thank you so much for the help!

[@myaseminsar]

This is priceless, thank you!!

[@waelkadi4557]

thank you

[@markchristopher4165]

This is fantastic

[@beastlybombers]

Thank you Kai. Could you illustrate or show in chart format the different flamenco styles and rhythms. It is a very confusing form of music. The Spanish must be very intelligent to have made it.

[@boiteobscure]

the tutorials which I found on these channel are all excellent. I can really get lots of practical tips and useful informations, that I can try and apply immediately. very good stuff, not only for guitar players.thanks a lot for sharing your flamenco-secrets with the community.

[@ealingschoolofdrums3692]

Thanks for clarifying with an example of why the 12 is not the downbeat. I teach young people Drums, and have spent years explaining why the 1 (downbeat) is so important, as it is a reference for tension and release, supporting the Melody and Harmony. It seems Flamenco has many of these references. Thank you Kai, I have work to do :-)

[@RedboneBlueObelisk]

Mille grazie. Fantastico!

[@virgilalvarado7187]

Me encanto tu modo de explicacion

[@ongoingawakening4257]

“If you ever hear me say the word always, I mean most of the time, and if I say never, I mean usually not”. Yep. That’s flamenco for you. It’s one confusing language. But as a dancer not raised in a flamenco family, I’m determined to learn.

[@commentfreely5443]

as month python said 'ole biscuit barrel'

[@emanhacker]

Ongoing Awakening 💃 💃💃💃💃💃olayyy

[@53gitaar]

Good lesson 5:10 till 5:13 is very important

[@samconomo3726]

loved it,good teacher thanks so much,sam

[@FlamencoExplained]

Happy to help you understand! You're welcome!

[@RJRonquillo]

So glad I found the channel! Kai, this brings back memories - I definitely need a refresher course lol. Gonna binge watch your channel and check out the website now.

[@FlamencoExplained]

R.J. Ronquillo Thanks man! And yeah, let me know what you think of the site

[@marcgib2000]

merci beaucoup .

[@FlamencoExplained]

You're welcome!

[@timsmith3802]

So helpful. .cheers

[@FlamencoExplained]

Glad it was helpful!

[@andersonbros6249]

@@FlamencoExplained do you private lessons

[@FlamencoExplained]

@@andersonbros6249 Yes, I do. Email me at [e-mail] and we can discuss.

[@7T9U8R]

Studied a bit of flamenco years ago with Rita Triana in El Paso, but fell in love and instantly was in and part of the music. Why????? does this count some how reach deep into one's soul?? It's like one merges into it and floats and suddenly reach into the stars with the beat and the movement?

[@FlamencoExplained]

Yup - that's about right!

[@el_aleman]

Make that two of us !!

[@pleasepermitmetospeakohgre1504]

This video is very helpful as the whole numbers thing is starting to make a little more sense to me. I've never known which song is the best to begin with to get a grasp of compas. In my research of books publications etc most seemed to point to Soleà as the best place to start, and some Sevillanas and Tangos. Then I read that Siguiriyas is the hardest to master so I left it alone but, now I've made better progress, am focused on that now as it seems very challenging. So a typical compas is Bb(b5)/D, Bb (b5)/C, Bb (b5), A... Your explanation has made me realise that the tension chord *Bb* is at the beginning of the compas rather than the resolution chord *A* as in some of the others. Am I on the right track? Referring back to best songs to begin with I recently read in an instruction book that Bulerias is best to start with as it makes all the different compasses easier to understand? It's confusing because I'd left that style alone too because they say it's the hardest to execute and it displays your skill and virtuosity as a player?

[@stratmister009]

Thank you so much for explaining what seems to make no sense explained by so many others, this brings much needed sanity to my study of this art form. Only thing that would make it better would be to point out at what point in compas guitarist should tap on the sound board.

[@FlamencoExplained]

stratmister So glad this helped! The golpes (when you tap) are specific to the various styles and I do get into that in the various videos that are specific to each style. Because this is an overview I didn’t want to get into that here. If you have any specific questions you can email us at [e-mail]

[@stratmister009]

@@FlamencoExplained also I am wondering if watching a dancer might help underscore the accents; but so far I have not found a useful video, there's like a thousand guitar tutorials on the tube, but not very many dance clips.

[@FlamencoExplained]

It could help, but not necessarily. The most important part is understanding the underlying structure of the compas in the first place. Dancers and guitarists will all syncopate quite a bit, and that will be confusing until you begin to feel the compas. The more you play it the better you'll feel it, and then it will start to make sense when you watch any flamenco musician (including dancers). It takes some work but it's totally worth it!

[@johnoconnell5875]

Grea tlesson

[@PeterKolta]

Greatgreat material! And you sound awesome! I know that sound is in your hands but what make is yur instrument? Probably a Peter Tsorba..

[@FlamencoExplained]

Peter Kolta That one’s a 1986 Manuel Reyes. Cheers, Kai

[@PeterKolta]

@@FlamencoExplained Amazing sound. Thank you.

[@refpo]

Nice sounding cedar top. Headstock’s in shadow, who is the maker?

[@FlamencoExplained]

That’s a 1986 Reyes. Cheers, Kai

[@RJohannNewton1]

Could you recommend some good strings? Thanks.

[@FlamencoExplained]

I'm a big fan of the La Bella 2001 sets. Cheers, Kai

[@paulmartingurnett2168]

In Bagpipe play ,as you must know, the rhythm is spoken as pibroch and in Indian drum playing there is a spoken transmission of the rhythm. There is no counting as the bars can't be standardised. What do you think of this methode? It is more visceral and less cerebral. I cannot count rhythm as I have to feel it. What's your take on this?

[@FlamencoExplained]

I'm not actually familiar with the world of bagpipe, but there are lots of methods for feeling and/or counting and any of them can work well. In the end, of course, you want to feel the music and not have to count. The trick - and the reason that counting can be helpful - is to make sure you're learning it and feeling it right. Having a system for that is super helpful, so whatever works is the way to go. There's no formal system of spoken rhythm for flamenco, so it's really about singing and/or counting the rhythms. For those new to flamenco, counting is usually necessary as the rhythms are just unfamiliar at first and so it's hard to trust what you're feeling in the beginning. Cheers, kai

[@blindstagehand]

5:03 is it like a clock?: 12 is zero, just before one, like the first note is on fret zero and it's octave at note 12. C is 0 and/or 12, Cd is 1, B is 11. A Compas of 12 beats is aligned to a Tridecahave of 12 notes, so you can create rythms like chords or arpegios. 0 3 10 12 == E G D E

[@FlamencoExplained]

Yeah, some people like to think of the clock analogy for the compás. I'm not sure I quite understand the rest of your question...

[@nikhiliyer9371]

Do people learn flamenco style directly or they start with playing guitar for 5 years and then learn flamenco style. There is a lot of dexterity and moving shapes, modes and other aspects involved, which I feel a player may be comfortable after playing the instrument for 4-5 years

[@dinokitten]

I had some music experience but zero guitar experience, and I just started with Flamenco because it was what I wanted to learn and gave me the most inspiration. It has been hard but rewarding. Kai was/is my teacher, which is why I am replying to you! The saying "if there's a will there's a way" is true for this also.

[@FlamencoExplained]

NIKHIL IYER There is absolutely no reason not to dive into flamenco! Almost every great flamenco player started out playing flamenco :) You can definitely learn your basics while learning flamenco, so just dive in!

[@Order4627]

Great lesson and extremely informative. I can take something away from this.

[@FlamencoExplained]

Thanks!

[@JoseLeon-sc3kb]

Can the 12 be like a pickup note?

[@FlamencoExplained]

Hey Jose, I'm not sure I'd think of it that way. The 12 is its own beat, and generally a pickup is a note (or notes) that leads to a downbeat. I'd recommend listening a lot and seeing when things start on 1 and when they start on 12 so you can feel how they're different. Once you feel them you're just giving them names (12 and 1) so you can talk about what you're feeling in the music. Cheers, Kai

[@JoseLeon-sc3kb]

@@FlamencoExplained thank you for answering my question

[@FlamencoExplained]

You're welcome!

[@td4yd154]

Video starts at 1:54

[@mysteriousman4966]

this is more complicated than i thought haha. i wonder how i learned to play impetu by mario escudero without compas lol.

[@FlamencoExplained]

Hmmm - good question!

[@pleasepermitmetospeakohgre1504]

@@FlamencoExplained Is there an answer?

[@FlamencoExplained]

@@pleasepermitmetospeakohgre1504 well it’s easier to learn a piece that’s composed than to learn to improvise. With a full piece you can learn all the notes and even the time without necessarily underatanding the underlying compas.

[@pleasepermitmetospeakohgre1504]

@@FlamencoExplained Okay 👍 forgive my lack of knowledge on the subject. So is 'Impetu' a composition rather than one of the flamenco structures? I often hear it referenced in relation to three people, Mario Escudero, Paco de Lucia and Mario Amaya.

[@bateriayguitarra5032]

Digo yo si no es mas correcto el acorde La, colocando en modo flamenco.

[@nikhiliyer9371]

What is a falsetta?

[@FlamencoExplained]

There's a little bit of "I know it when I hear it", but basically compás is the 'glue' that holds everything together in flamenco, and it's almost always variations of a few traditional melodies/ideas. Falsetas are self-contained melodic ideas that can be very simple or extremely sophisticated, and they are composed by the guitarists who play them. Falsetas are generally the greater part of a guitar solo, whereas when accompanying one would play more compás. Hope that helps! Cheers, Kai

[@FlamencoExplained]

There's a little bit of "I know it when I hear it", but basically compás is the 'glue' that holds everything together in flamenco, and it's almost always variations of a few traditional melodies/ideas. Falsetas are self-contained melodic ideas that can be very simple or extremely sophisticated, and they are composed by the guitarists who play them. Falsetas are generally the greater part of a guitar solo, whereas when accompanying one would play more compás. Hope that helps! Cheers, Kai

[@nikhiliyer9371]

@@FlamencoExplained Thank you kai for a comprehensive explanation.

[@FlamencoExplained]

Just glad it made sense!

[@aekkaratsanyasiri]

ใบแดงของน้องง❤😂🎉😢😮😅😊

[@kalosevillinas]

I am not trying to be disrepctful. But he talks way 2 fast in his explanation n he shows examples way 2 fast...there is so much information come at u at one time

[@td4yd154]

Normalise demonstrating first, then explain.