The slaves brought to South America during the Spanish colonization were not allowed to play their typical drum for celebrations, so they “invented” a more disguised one with the wooden boxes used to transport vegetables. The history of the flamenco cajón began.
Those vegetable boxes of the slaves in the 17th century they ended up becoming a fully-fledged instrument for the Peruvian population, which they called the cajón. And it was this box that, during a trip by Paco de Lucía to the country in 1977, enchanted the artist. In a party at the Spanish embassy in Peru, a famous local singer, Chabuca Granda, performed. His musicians carried a cajón, and De Lucía listened in amazement to its sound, which reminded him of the zapateado of a flamenco dancer. He saw it clearly: it was the ideal percussion for flamenco.
So he brought it back to Spain and began to use it as an accompaniment to his guitar.. The first flamenco show with cajón was given by Paco de Lucía himself in the theatre of the Parque de Atracciones (Madrid). In 1981, the flamenco cajón appeared on the album by the master from Algeciras, Solo quiero caminar, played with mastery by Rubem Dantas.
Evolution of the flamenco cajon
The cajón was initially played horizontally, with the percussionist sitting on a chair. But in the field of flamenco, it began to strike from a vertical perspective. The drawer man moved to stand on top of the instrument, taking new bells out of the instrument.
The flamenco cajón has been the result of multiple “experiments” both in the playing position and in the implementation of other elements. The most obvious in its development have been the addition of two guitar strings in the bore, the playing with drumsticks or brushes (or snare drums, bells…) and the modification in the way the lid is fixed to the snare.
The evolution of the flamenco cajón under the hands of Antonio Carmona is remarkable. Paco de Lucía said of this member of Ketama that he was “the best”. Antonio not only adapted basic flamenco patterns to this instrument but also managed to change the accentuation.
Antonio not only adapted basic flamenco patterns to this instrument, but also managed to change the accentuation. For them, in 2001, this instrument of humble origin was declared Cultural Heritage of the Nation.
The original Peruvian cajón offers a dry sound, while the flamenco cajón, after various evolutions, provides a higher-pitched, metallic timbre.
The flamenco cajon in the picture is a handcrafted marvel, model Taranto, by Cajones Al-Andalus. It is made of birch and designed for soft percussion.