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 ...