How to count it
Picture a clock face: 12 beats in a circle, with 12 at the top. Each compás is one full turn, and the beats that carry the weight are 3, 6, 8, 10 and 12.
These are the accents of this whole family: in threes in the first half of the turn and in twos in the second. It shares its compás with bulerías, soleá and alegrías; what changes from one to another is the feel.
| Beat | Accent |
|---|---|
| 1 | Weak |
| 2 | Weak |
| 3 | Strong |
| 4 | Weak |
| 5 | Weak |
| 6 | Strong |
| 7 | Weak |
| 8 | Strong |
| 9 | Weak |
| 10 | Strong |
| 11 | Weak |
| 12 | Strong |
Between soleá and bulerías
It has the depth of soleá and the drive of bulerías, and some people call it the other way round, bulería por soleá. Its tempo falls between the two: livelier than soleá, which in the app runs from 60 to 120 beats per minute, and more measured than bulerías, from 150 to 240.
As in soleá, remates, cierres and llamadas end on 10, with two beats of room to come back in; and as in bulerías, some people count it from 12.
It is a very useful step in your practice: with the soleá compás already settled, it gets you used to a speed that keeps moving closer to bulerías.
What tempo it is played at
In the app it is recorded at 120, 130, 140, 150, 160, 170, 180 and 190 beats per minute, and you can set it to any tempo from 80 to 190 without changing pitch. The first time you open it, it starts at 140.
If another metronome gives you 70 for a soleá por bulerías, it is probably ticking once every two beats: here that would be 140 beats per minute.
| Beats per minute | One compás lasts |
|---|---|
| 120 | 6 s |
| 130 | 5.54 s |
| 140 | 5.14 s |
| 150 | 4.8 s |
| 160 | 4.5 s |
| 170 | 4.24 s |
| 180 | 4 s |
| 190 | 3.79 s |
How to practise it with the metronome
A sequence that builds up step by step:
Start close to soleá
Set it to 80, which is almost a soleá tempo, and count the 12 beats out loud with the wheel.
Mark only the accents
Clap on 3, 6, 8, 10 and 12 until the sway of the turn comes without thinking.
Close on 10
End each round on 10 and come back in after the two beats of room.
Move towards bulerías
Turn on the Speed trainer and let it rise to 190. From there, the jump to bulerías is much shorter.
Strip back the accompaniment
In Instruments, keep a single instrument and turn on the Click to check you are not dropping any beats.
What you can practise it with in the app
In Full you hear the whole accompaniment; in Instruments, each instrument separately, with its own pattern and volume. With Fills turned on, every few compases one of them rounds off with a recorded fill: here there are fills on cajón, frame drum and tinaja.
- Full
- 1 accompaniment
- Knuckles on table
- 2 patterns
- Cajón
- 2 patterns
- Palmas
- 2 patterns
- Frame drum
- 2 patterns
- Tinaja
- 2 patterns
Frequently asked questions
Is it the same as bulería por soleá?
The two names are often used for the same thing, although some people tell them apart. It is the 12-beat compás of soleá, at a tempo between soleá and bulerías.
Where do the accents fall?
On 3, 6, 8, 10 and 12, as in bulerías, soleá and alegrías. And it closes on 10.
How fast is it?
Livelier than soleá and more measured than bulerías: in the app, from 80 to 190 beats per minute, starting at 140.