4. PRE-FLAMENCO MUSIC ON XVIII-XIX CENTURY.
Pre-flamenco was a genre that encomplassed typical Spanish dances and music of half of the XVII to XIX centuries. One of its components consisted of the defense of traditional and national music and dances from Spain, against the Italian fashion prevailing from XVI century. Pre-flamenco must be considered the sociological antecedent of flamenco. Flamenco, at is known nowadays, emerged on XIX century (1850 approximately) with its main themes revolving around love, live and death. It origins can be traced to three places in Andalusian places; Jerez, Triana and Cádiz.
Pre-flamenco atmosphere developed in Barcelona at the end of XVIII century and the beginning of XIX C, as it was the cultural centre of Spain and connected to the first wave of Andalusian immigrants arriving in the city, attracted by the economic growth in the north of Spain. Previously, throughout the XVI, XVII and XVIII centuries a small contingent of Andalusians arrived in Catalonia to cover certain tasks a leading functions in the Catalan political, military and ecclesiastical administrations. At the same time, a more significant group was formed by Andalusians recruited to defend the borders against France, to join Italian expeditions, and, after The War of Succession, to be part of the militia responsible for monitoring the maintenance of the borders in Catalonia. Additionally there were Andalusians who came to Barcelona to participate in the folkloric shows enjoyed by the Catalan bourgeoisie and population.
Specifically, the economic growth and social mobility experienced in Catalonia, and particularly in Barcelona, throughout the XVIII century, enabled the emergence of a bourgeois class with exotic tastes (such as increased chocolate consumption, interest in possessing parrots and other exotic animals, and investment in culture, etc.). With these tendencies, the bourgeoisie, eager for spectacles, was very receptive to traditional Spanish songs and dances with the folkloric flavour of flamenco. At the same time, Barcelona's commercial and port activity favoured multicultural contacts, as well as the arrival of music and sounds from other latitudes that began to penetrate into the working classes of the populationand ended up settling in Catalonia as the best-known example La habaneras.
The analysis of theatrical activity through the press of the XVIII and early XIX centuries allows to confirm the acceptance of traditional Spanish music and dances such as sainetes, tonadillas de escena, or seguidillas, all of which are considered part of the pre-flamenco genre and were represented in theatres during that time.
The seguidillas, tiranas, and the tripili trápala among other, were also performed on numerous occasions as a pre-flamenco genre and above all of them, the boleros stood out, a mixture of classical dance and popular dance and later with a variation, las boleras (see below the table of the pre-flamenco genres analysed in this research in the XVIII century).
During the XIX century, Spain went through numerous socioeconomic, political, and cultural changes that could have influenced the evolution of flamenco and its move to cafes and taverns. Spain experienced several economic crises throughout the XIX century, including state bankruptcy in 1809 and other financial difficulties. These crises could have affected economic support for more traditional artistic expressions, prompting artists to seek new audiences and opportunities in more urban environments such as cafes. The transformation of Spanish social structure during the XIX century, with the growth of cities and rural-urban migration, generated changes in cultural and artistic patterns. The transfer of pre-flamenco to cafes and taverns could have been part of this adaptation to a new social and cultural context. Also, the XIX century in Spain was marked by numerous political conflicts, including the Carlist Wars and political instability after the loss of the American territories. These events could have had an impact on the social and cultural life of the country, including the way music was experienced and shared. These changes in society, economy, and politics could have influenced the way in which art, including pre-flamenco, was consumed and presented, promoting its transfer to more open and accessible spaces such as cafes and taverns.
