Knopf, DUENDE

My love of Flamenco started in 1979 when I first heard Paco de Lucia and Manolo Sanlucar on cassette tapes given to me by a friend. This passion has become a haunting of the mind and spirit, and it has stayed with me ever since. These works were composed for the Once Around the Sun volumes between late 2016 and early 2022. They are gathered here into a folio of eight pieces. The music is Flamenco-inspired and, as such, is not bound by traditional forms and compás (Flamenco time metrics), although references to these are used in the pieces. The music was approached and conceived as if the sounds and stylisms of this great poetic art form were a natural part of the contemporary composer. The order here is but one of many choices in performing. The entire eight pieces can be presented in one setting, or broken up into two sets or suites. But there are many other combinations available. I leave it up to the performer to select pieces and an order to suit their performance occasion and venue. I hope this music will fill the players’ and listeners’ hearts and minds with the expansive beauty and demon spirit (duende) embodied in the Flamenco art form. 

Michael D. Knopf