Love Reprise

Love Reprise is an interesting project involving an Egyptian musician who specialized in Arabic flute and tabla, among many instruments, and a flamenco guitarist who has interests in the roots of flamenco. Flamenco, the music of Spain, is not purely Spanish, of course. The Moorish influence is there, a North African thread, and the guitar is a descendant of the oud or Arabic lute, and there is also the huge, if not overwhelming influence of the Rom (Gypsies), who originated in India and settled all over Europe. The Rom have a deep tradition as musicians--and the Spanish Rom or Gypsies of Andalusia are known for their influence on Flamenco, actually more than just "influence"--the Andalusian gypsy and Flamenco are inextricably entwined. There is also a theory that some of the singing is a parody or adaptation of plainsong (Gregorian Chant)--music that the populace would hear during church--possibly adapted as entertainment during parties or get-togethers. The word "Flamenco", strangely enough, stems from "Flanders", though it's hardly Dutch!