Flamenco in Emails 12

2. The 3rd flight to Portland

 

 

At my first visit to Portland, this city let me have an encounter

with flamenco  completely unfamiliar to me. In case of my second

trip to this city in the summer 2001 I stayed there a couple of months

with one purpose:to see and hear flamencos performed  in the very

city where I was hooked by the far-off and strange sound of flamenco

cante. By accident I got a fortune to meet Lau, a flamenco bailaora,

with whom  I have exchanged emails for 8 years or more.

And in winter of 2007  I made my third flight to this city. I wanted to

persuade her and her group to participate with me in the Kift festival

of 2008 in Korea. I particularly wished  the poem 'Back to Heaven' 

to be danced in Sloea by Lau. She already danced  Morning Dews

in flamenco before. So I thought that she was the very bailaora

to express in flamenco the tragic lyricism of the  Korean poem.

 

 

Masan, Aug.,2007

Dearest Lau
On my visa re-issued,

I would fly to Portland and Tokyo in September.

In relation with my September visit to you, Below is

my idea of the expected flamenco performances

on the stage of the 2008 Kift Festival.

 

'below'

 

Two flamenco groups are to be separately on the stage 3 nights.

one of them is  hopely to be from Spain. The other is supposed

to be a flamenco-Salpury group . You  and Korean dancers are

to be the other group. You are expected to dance 2 Korean poems

, 'Morning Dew 'and 'Back to Heaven' in flamenco accompanied

by a guitarist, preferably Mark .And some Korean dancers  are to

dance Salpury and Sungmu, the Korean traditional dances

 

On my way back home after our meeting in Portland,

I am going to have a short time of stay in Tokyo,

in order to contact Spanish flamenco groups.

As you know ,in Tokyo there are several Spanish groups.

Fyi, at Tokyo I am expected to meet Juana, Spainish bailaora,

who is to visit Tokyo in October to have concert

at the Flamenco Tablao in Synjuku there.

Her expressive style was intoxicating. I saw her team

performing 3 times at a small flamenco cafe

during my stay in Granada. I hope to suggest to her

that her team come to Korea next year in Summer

 

As for a Spanish flamenco group to be invited,

Probably a flamenco group in Tokyo is preferable to

one In Spain because in this regard kift side would not

have to pay for the Madrid- Seoul fleight charges .

 

Of course this is now a rough concept only in my mind.

Before flying to Portland, I will have a meeting to discuss

with the Kift side on these. The staff in charge of perforamce

said to me that that flamenco performance should be as one of t

wo imortant new projects for the 2008 kift.

 Any question?

 

 Much love,

 Gohk

 

 

 Masan, Sept. 2007

 Hi, lau:
My flight to Portland was booked.

I am to be in USA from October 7 to 13.

I hope to stay in Portland 3 days from 8th of October

to see you, if it is not unconvenient for you.

The next year hopely will see flamenco danced

as an important event for the Kift festival.

For this summer at my presentation of flamenco 

given to the Kift staffs they came to be sure that

flamenco is to be a potential attraction for Kift Festival

from 2008 on. In particular lots of audience there 

was attracted by a Korean flamenco dancer whom

I invited for the presentation.

love
Gohk 

 

 

 

 

 

Portland, Oct. 2007

 

Dear Gohk:

 

This is wonderful news! 

 May I please have your flying schedule

so that I can meet you at the airport? 

 Would you like to stay with us in our home?
I am so excited!!!

 

Abrazos,
Lau

 

 

Masan, Oct. 2007

 Dearest Lau:
Thank you for your considerateness!

But please don't come out at the airport.

It would be my 3rd arrival at the airport of Portland.

I am familiar to the way to the downtown.
It would be better to meet you free over coffee

at Pioneer Square around at noon on 8th of Oct.

You know that I, as a tramp, would be more comfortable

to stay in the hostel where nobody knows me .

And please never fail to pass To Mark my ardent hope

to see and hear him accompanying you.

Love
Gohk

 

 

 Portland, Oct. 2007

 

Dearest Gohk:

I am very excited to see you early next week. 

Also, we will be having you as a guest

at the Flamenco studio on Wednesday evening

so that you can watch a rehearsal and party.

Please call me when you are safely in Portland.

 

 Love,

 Lau

 

 

Masan, Oct. 2007

 Hi, Lau

Just a day prior to departure!

The weather man said that it will be rainy and windy tomorrow

here before my take off time . I am a little worried.

How excited I would be at the flamenco party in your studio!

Will call you at Oct.7th in the afternoon.

 

Thinking of you,

Gohk

 

 

 

 

 

 

As referred to before, I was scheduled to drop in Tokyo  to meet

Juana ,a flamenco bailaora . I loved her deep baile.

While I stayed in Granada, I went to  Del Loro,a  flamenco cave

3 times to see her dancing. She performed there every other day.

In a sense, two cities I visited to, Portland and Granada  reminded me

of 2 flamenco dancers , Lau of the former city and Juana of the latter.

By her recent emails, Juana  was still performing in Granada . And also

she said she performed abroad including in Naples and Ireland.

                          

 

 

 Masan, South Korea, Aug. 2007

Hello Juana:
This is Gohk, interested in you and your group as ever.

 Mako, manager of Ol'e in Tokyo informed me

that you are scheduled to have concert at El Flamenco

there in October. I think it would be a very good chance

for me to see you dancing again,

this time in Tokyo much nearer geographically to me.

As you know, I saw your performances twice in Granada

and above all things, you speak not only Spanish

but also English. So I came to contact you again

by email person to person.

Now as a request of the Kift Festival in South Korea,

I have a plan to help them to add flamenco performances

to their 2008 Festival held in July-August next year.

Now I have a question - Shall I meet you again at Tokyo

in September? For your information, in relation with it

I am scheduled to visit to Portland, USA.

So if you are okay, on returning home I would like

to drop in Tokyo at the time of your stay there.

 

Waiting for your reply,
Gohk

 

 

Granada, Aug., 2007

 

Dear Gohk

We are to be at Tokyo around the middle of October,

when at any time it will be okay. Our performance will be available

3 nights in a week until at the end of the month. In El flamenco

which has a smalll stage, we keep the same program

of our performance you saw at Granada.

For the further negotiation in detail It would be better

for you to contact with our manager,

who will email you soon.

 

 Sincerely yours

 Juana

 

//////////////////////

 

 

 

 

Hi, Juana

How glad and Happy at your unexpected emailed
message!

First of all I wanna you & your group to be known
here as flamenco artists through newspaper and
internet, on which I have written ' a traveller's
flamenco story' as series of essay.


Would you let me have the advertising material
including photos for you as a flamenco artist through
my email or mail address( for video or DVD)?

And also  i wanna to get every necesary information
of payment for your performing trip here ?

Now I am a writer working for a local newspaper here
as a journey-essayist.

My address: 115-40 Seuk Jeun Dong,
              Masan, Kyung Nam
              South Korea
              630-010

It is great to contact you again!

Buenos dias,
Joon Kim 

--- juana larreta <j_larreta@yahoo.com> wrote:

> Hello Joon,
>                    I´m Juana, you came to see my
> flamenco group in Granada last year and gave us your
> contact, I am the dancer. We are still performing in
> Granada at the Huerto del Loro, a cave if you
> remember. We are  also performing abroad , we had  a
> show in Naples and we are going to Ireland in June.
>            We were wondering if you have any
> contacts
> in the South korea or in the States . We would like
> to
> perform more abroad , so you have any ideas please
> contact us.
>                           I hope all goes well with
> your projects.
>                     
>                         I attach all our info.
>                             
>                             Yours Sincerely,
>                                                     
> 
>    Juana
>