Photo by Tat Suki
If Milwaukee becomes a center for flamenco artistry, we may have Marija Temo to thank. A guitarist, singer and dancer of the Spanish folk art that’s breaking exciting new ground nowadays, Temo has a distinguished résumé and a national following. She’s relocated to Milwaukee from the Maryland/D.C. area to be near her sister and is offering classes at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. With guest dancer Wendy Clinard from Chicago, she’ll present a concert of traditional, contemporary and original flamenco music and dance on Nov. 14 in the Conservatory’s Festival of Trees and Music.
What is flamenco?
There’s no exact answer. It came from gypsies who settled in Andalusia in southern Spain where there was a lot of Moorish and probably Indian influence. And then there was the 15th-century Inquisition. Through all the trials and tribulations of the gypsies—being kicked out, not having a place—flamenco was created as a way of life. What was that way of life? Well, it consists of a lot of pain; and not only a lot of pain but a lot of triumph; and in that triumph there’s integrity and pride. I’m speaking of the traditional form. Modern flamenco has pushed the boundaries in many ways. Every emotion that exists, there’s a repertoire for it based on key, based on rhythmic pattern. But fundamentally, if they’re singing about something happy or fun, you’re going to hear pain in it. You have this guttural, throaty, heart-wrenching sound. This is where they have the word duende in flamenco: the soul. It’s generations of ancestors coming through you spiritually, through your spirit, when you’re singing. If there’s something in you that it stirs, then you love it. If it sounds extremely foreign to you, it could be like, “Oh, they’re just screaming their heads off, what is that?”
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Are you Spanish?
Not an ounce. I’m quite a mixture but my main background is Greek and Serbian. I started learning flamenco when I was 6 and I haven’t looked back. I’ve dedicated my whole life to it, as a guitarist, singer and dancer. Part of my mission here is to contact people in the Hispanic community to let them know I’m cultivating something that will maybe feel like home to them. There’s something here for Spanish-speaking people from any country, Spain or the Americas, to identify with. All people, not just Hispanic people who are dance and music enthusiasts, might find the passion, the rhythm, the high intensity of flamenco intriguing. There are already pockets of people in Milwaukee willing to come together to study because of my credentials.
What classes are you offering?
Flamenco guitar and classical guitar—I have a master’s degree in classical guitar from the Peabody Conservatory—flamenco singing and, very soon, flamenco dance. The ultimate goal is to put them together in a flamenco communication, interpretation and improvisation class. In flamenco, solo guitar is a different discipline than playing for a singer. To accompany a dancer is another discipline. From all perspectives—singing, guitar, dancing—you have to learn to anticipate the unexpected. And when you do, you crave the unexpected. Because it’s not choreography, it’s not a guitar repertoire, it’s not a singing piece. You don’t know what will happen. It forces a person to confront and be in the moment and deliver.
You’ve developed your own teaching method?
It’s a method for foreigners like me. People can understand it and they can do it. Some amazing people have mentored me. Teo Morca, an amazing dancer, I was his singer for 10 years. I was the guitar accompanist for the singer Manolo Leiva for 20-some years. It was a big thing for a Spaniard to accept an American. And a female. These gentlemen are quite the figures in the flamenco anthology. Now I want to teach this knowledge. I have all this. I need to pass it on. I’m so glad I can start building something here.
And your concert?
It will be guitar, song, dance, passion, precision, high energy, an emotional journey through this Spanish art form, including my own compositions, pieces from different countries and even a flamenco version of “Hotel California.”
7:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 14 at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music, 1584 N. Prospect Ave. See marijatemo.com and clinardance.org. The Festival of Trees and Music runs Nov. 12-22. Call 414-276-5760 or visit wcmusic.org/fotm.
