Tony Bryant

  This year marks the 20th anniversary of Flamenco: An Englishman’s Passion, the book that marked my first step into the world of flamenco writing . My intention in undertaking the journey that led to the publication of this book was to help readers understand and appreciate the art of flamenco. I have sought to explain the distinction between traditional flamenco song and dance, performed by non-professionals, and the commercialised form of flamenco seen on the stage. My main aim has been to illuminate the two profoundly different faces of flamenco: the glittering, theatrical spectacle and the cante jondo - the deep, soulful songs that have existed in Andalusia for some five centuries. To truly understand flamenco, one must experience the spontaneous, raw emotion of its purest form, so far removed from much of what dominates the modern scene. It is important to remember that flamenco is an ancient art, preserved through generations by ordinary people who have used it as a powerf...

Many visitors coming to Seville for the first time tend to focus on its most famous landmarks, such as Plaza de España, the cathedral and La Giralda or the Alcázar fortress. However, few people - unless they are particularly interested in Mérimée’s Carmen -  spend much time admiring the old tobacco factory on Calle San Fernando. Today, the building, a remarkable example of 18th-century industrial architecture, houses part of Seville University, but it continues to attract a steady flow of tourists wanting a picture of the workplace of Seville’s famous cigarette girls. At the time of its construction, the 18th-century tobacco factory was the second largest building in Spain, after El Escorial, the royal residence in Madrid. The factory was built just outside the city walls on an old Roman burial site close to the Puerta de Jerez, an area that Richard Ford described as the ‘dunghill of the city’. Construction began in 1728 and took 30 years to complete, and it remains one of ...

None of the early romantic writers who visited Seville, such as Byron, Disraeli, Ford, Borrow and Irving, had the privilege of experiencing the, now, world-famous feria de abril , because they had all left Spain by the time the first April fair was held in Prado de San Sebastian in 1847. This grand display of culture, tradition, revelry and pride blend together to create a unique spectacle that typifies Seville . Even Franco, known to frown upon large-scale celebrations with no religious aspect attached, enjoyed the marvels that this week of colourful festivities has to offer. It has attracted world leaders, celebrities, artists and aristocracy from all over the world, along with numerous members of the Spanish monarchy. The fair was the brainchild of two businessman from the north of Spain who had settled in the city. Narciso Bonaplata (Cataluña) and José María de Ybarra (Basque Country) proposed a livestock and agricultural fair in the summer of 1846, and it was given the o...

English travel writer Richard Ford (1796 - 1858) was  immediately captivated by Seville’s mystique when he visited in the 19 th century, claiming it was his preferred Spanish city. Ford noted that the cathedral offers ‘a most interesting epitome of the rise, progress and decline of Spanish church architecture’. Born into a wealthy family in Chelsea, London, Ford was educated at Oxford. His first trip to Spain with his first wife, Harriet, in 1830, resulted in A Handbook for Travellers in Spain , which was published 1845. The book has been republished numerous times and is still considered one the greatest pieces of travel literature ever published. Following the premature death of his second son, and the consequent depression and decline in Harriet's health, Ford decided to spend the winter in a more suitable climate. After consulting several friends, like William Mark, English consul in Málaga, and Henry Unwin Addington, British ambassador in Madrid, Ford decided that southern S...

  With perhaps the exception of Ernest Hemingway, most foreign artistic luminaries who have passed through Seville over the last two hundred years claimed to have been seduced by its romantic allure and overwhelmed by its historic, religious and architectural wealth . Seville’s colourful customs and traditions also appealed to these foreign visitors, especially the Englishman, Richard Ford, who is said to have completely integrated into Sevillian society, even to the extent of adopting the typical attire of the period: this was in contrast to the traditional dress chosen among the 19 th century upper classes of London from which Ford descended. Spain acquired a European vogue during what is called the ‘romantic era’, a time when the theorisers of the romantism movements in the UK, France and Germany began to discover Spanish literature, in particular, Cervante’s Don Quijote . This period offered foreign artistes a rich source of themes and settings inspired by Andalucía and its ...