The latest National Dance Prize for performance, Javier Barón, is a serious and committed artist. However, and despite having worked in the world of flamenco dance for seven years, he is not as well-known and lauded as other dancers of his generation.

He has represented flamenco on stages all around the world his entire life. He has danced orthodox flamenco without giving up avant garde creations.

 With his latest show ("Dos voces para un baile"), and two well deserved awards, he returns to his roots, to the essence of the barest flamenco dance. It stands on its own merits, with no need for glossy magazines or big headlines.

What has the National Dance Prize meant to you?

It’s a very important prize. As a dance professional it’s the most important award you can be given, I am very proud. It’s been great because I wasn’t expecting it just now. It’s given me a boost to carry on, because this profession means you have to struggle every day and have to be always ready to fight. . And, incidentally it has coincided with the 20th anniversary of the Giraldillo of the Bienal de Sevilla.

Do you feel that this is recognition at last for your career which has been less glamorous than your colleagues?

It’s true that I may not be as well known as others are now, but with this award it shows they have looked to the past and looked at other people. In fact, when I was given the award I remembered all of my colleagues that have struggled and sacrificed so much without getting big headlines . And that’s when the award took on even more importance. It’s more a flamenco than dance award.

What’s your latest show "Dos voces para un baile" like?
It’s a simple and natural show. A classic dance and vocals show, without any other pretensions . A series of more than 20 styles in which I dance solo without a dance troupe. It’s very educational, for those who know and those who don’t.It’s very dynamic with a vocals line running through it with the voices of José Valencia and Miguel Ortega. It’s vocals, guitar and dance, and nothing more, it’s what I did originally. It’s kind of a pause and look back, a return to the roots . It’s a show like me, real, nothing strange.

And what styles do you dance?

There’s farruca, seguiriya, mirabrás, martinete… There like mini dances if you would. They’re not full dances. I interact and play with the vocals. They are brush strokes that link to others, the dance intermixes with the vocals and the guitar.

From the title you can guess that the vocals play an important role in the show. What do vocals mean to a dancer?

It’s very important, like the guitar, or even more. They both inspire you and accompany you when you dance. I base myself in the lyrics when I perform.When I teach I make my students listen to the vocals so they just don’t stomp for the sake of it. I ask them "why are you doing this?", and why are you feeling that?"… and that way I do a bit of theory. Practice is important, but you can’t forget the theory . Things are always so for a reason. I see dance as a form of expression, through movement, through lyrics and feeling of the vocals.I try and make my students see it. The thing is nowadays everything is too fast. Kids just want steps, steps and more steps .And everything needs to be coordinated. Inspiration is all well and good, but you also have to stop, find your place and get in position. There has to be a series of lines, although you may get carried away and cross them.

It’s true, over recent years there has been a emphasis on the power of the footwork, on the series of frenetic steps, over marking lines and movement.

Yes, that’s right. And that makes dance become something boring and repetitive. Choreographies aren’t developed anymore, there’s no new movements. Footwork and steps is repetition and repetition. Of course you can have your moves, but from there you have to go back to the lines and composition. When I started it wasn’t like that, they stopped you. The instructors said: "do Little but make it good. A lot and bad is a waste of time ". As the years go by you realise that they were right .One of the other important things is that you always have to keep on learning. You can’t just stop and believe you’re the best. To create you have to continually listen, look, go to see films, read…,things that develop you and tell you things. That’s my philosophy as an artist.

And how do you see current flamenco dance?

A lot of the time I think it’s too much like modern dance, like flamenco mixed with modern dance. I’m not saying the two don’t go well together but I think real flamenco is being ignored. What is done today on many occasions isn’t flamenco in itself.I think I try to be just there, sometimes more one than the other. Somewhere in between classic and avant gard, but always respecting the essence of each style .

In two words

Arms or feet?

Both, but both in the correct amount and coordinated. Knowing how to position the body is essential . Not just turning and there you go, you have to know where you are going to land. It’s essential and it’s the base of classic dance.

Classic or avant gard?

I don’t reject either. It’s important to not lose your origins and roots . You have to evolve and introduce new elements. As a dancer I think that tradition is more important, but without rejecting the avant gard.

Improvisation or technique?

Both. They are not mutually exclusive. It’s also nice to add some improvisation in a show, it gives spontaneity and keeps it fresh. If you keep flamenco in chains it dies, you have to let it breath. But, the more technique you have the easier it is to improvise .

Date: 4/9/2009

Research: meysam amini

Source: es flamenco