Soledad. Esencia. Necesidad. Evolución. Sinergia.
S. E. N. E. S
Solitude. Essence. Necessity. Evolution. Synergy.
“El Flamenco es un arte universal, sin pasaporte, sin fronteras, sólo toma tu tiempo para entender y comprender la naturaleza de esta cultura milenaria ..
Flamenco is a universal art, without a passport, without borders, just take your time to learn and understand the nature of this ancient culture .. ”
Photography: Venessa Trombetta Dancer: Aya Kitaoji SENES Flamenco
What is Flamenco?
Flamenco is an expression of the gypsies that settled in Andalusia, Spain. It is a gypsy art form made up of three parts;
Song "Cante" , Guitar "Guitarra/Toque" & Dance "Baile"
Flamenco is influenced by many world cultures, including Gypsy, Indian, Moorish, Jewish, Celtic, Arabic, African, Latin American and traditional Spanish folkloric dance and music. It has also received modern influences from all styles of dance and music including contemporary, jazz and classical.
Flamenco is a very emotive and rhythmical style of dance where dancers interpret the live music using body movements, combining fluid hand movements, rhythmical footwork and hand claps to form part of a musical ensemble.
Today, Flamenco is embraced all over the world and in 2010 was listed under UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
SENES Flamenco
Photo: Sharyn Swanepoel
Based in Melbourne Australia, SENES Flamenco Ensemble brings exhilarating live flamenco dance & music performances to diverse audiences since 2011.
Its central ideas are motivated by the freedom for artists to express themselves through dance and music in an authentic, truthful manner to engage with audiences through the art of Flamenco.
The ensemble aims to inspire cross-cultural understanding through sharing the art of flamenco music and dance.
Working in conjunction with talented artists across diverse genres, it is dedicated to the development of multicultural performing arts and arts education in Australia.
Centro de Flamenco Melbourne
CENTRO DE FLAMENCO MELBOURNE was established by Aya Kitaoji in 2011 to promote flamenco in Australia through arts education and to improve health and wellbeing in our community through dance and music.
We conduct regular flamenco dance classes for all ages and levels for the community offering:
Flamenco Dance Lessons
Flamenco Guitar
Cajón, Palmas & Castanets
Cante / Flamenco Singing
Dance Workshops & Masterclasses
Flamenco Dance Incursions for Victorian Schools
Regular students have performance opportunities each year in local live venues and a flamenco gathering / peña flamenca is organised on a regular basis in our patio.
Our classes and courses are always open to new students and promote a nurturing and encouraging learning environment for all ages and levels.
Biography
Photo: Natalia Robledo, Spain
Aya Kitaoji
Artistic Director (Dancer. Instructor. Musician)
Aya commenced flamenco dance at a young age in Triana, the heart of Seville, Spain. She is one of Australia’s small handful of active Flamenco artists today. She is an accomplished dancer as well as a versatile percussionist and singer, dedicating her life to dance, music, performance and teaching.
With a formal background in classical ballet, folkloric & contemporary dance since age 5 and with over 20 years experience in Flamenco, Aya is a captivates audiences with a distinctly traditional yet unique style, breaking all cultural boundaries.
As a result of her continuing passion for flamenco dance and music, Aya created Melbourne-based ensemble “SENES Flamenco” in 2011 with lead guitarist and musical director, Alejandro Flórez.
In the same year, “Centro de Flamenco Melbourne” was established to share their knowledge of flamenco through regular dance lessons and workshops. The Centro is community focused, promotes wellbeing and culture for all ages through dance and music.
As a soloist dancer, Aya regularly travels to Spain each year to perform and collaborate with local Spanish artists, consistently training and developing new creative works.
In 2019, Aya presented her solo dance show “Son de La Calle” in Seville with Carlos Lobo and Ernesto Bravo which followed with a recording project with maestro Paquito Gonzalez in Sanlucar de la Barrameda.
In 2023 Aya was invited by Paco Lara as guest artist for Melbourne’s Birds Basement in his collaborative trio with Alejandro Florez. In 2022 she was invited to perform for the Opening Night Gala for The Round Theatre.
She has also featured as guest dancer in typical flamenco venues in Spain and was invited to perform by flamenco maestro José Galván at the Peña Cultural Don Cecilio “TBO” Sevilla with Carlos Ayala, Samuel Gutierrez and Carlos Lobo, at Centro de Baile Flamenco “Amor De Dios”, El Camerino Sevilla with Ernesto Bravo and was guest vocalist at “El Bombardino” with Rafael Casado. She has also performed in Milan, Italy for the 5a Giornata di Chitarra Classica with Giorgio D’Ambrosio.
Following the success of Australian-based flamenco works include “SoMoS”, 2018, “La Vida; Una Canción” was presented in 2019 followed by “S.E.N.E.S: 5 Elements / 5 Elementos de la Existencia” featured as part of The Boite World Music 2020-2021 season and was also filmed as a livestream to audiences across the globe.
Television appearances include performances and interviews for ABC News, Spanish Television “Canal Sur” - Festival de Jerez 2019, “Belen Fernandez - Lección de la Maestra” by Tiempos Dificiles Productions 2017, and in 2020 performed in the Spanish Television Canal Sur’s program, “Andaluces por El Mundo”. She has also featured as flamenco dancer for ABC’s Utopia series.
Influential teachers of flamenco include mentor Adrian Galia, former director of the Antonio Gades Dance Company, with whom she studied with at “Estudio Galiana” in Tokyo, Japan. She then furthered studies in Madrid, Seville and Jerez de la Frontera, Spain, in particular at the prestigious “Centro de Baile Flamenco Amor de Dios”, trained by renowned flamenco maestros including Paco Romero, La Tati, Carmela Greco, Belén Fernandez, Maria Torres and Antonio Reyes. She has continued professional development with international artists such as Eva La Yerbabuena, Isabel Bayón, Belen Lopez, Antonio Canales, Gema Moneo and Joselito Maya.
Over the past 15 years, Aya presents her shows regularly as part of major multicultural events and national arts festivals. Festival highlights include Parliament of Victoria Cultural Diversity Week Performance, Federation Square, Adelaide Fringe Festival 2020 Fringe View, National Gallery Victoria, National Multicultural Festival, Spanish Film Festival, Queen Victoria Night Market and Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.
Aya is also a versatile percussionist and vocalist, featuring in Spanish guitar band Solquemia’s second album, "Limonera". She tours each year as a musician and guest dancer for bands both locally and interstate.
Currently based in Melbourne, Aya continues promoting flamenco through regular live performances, international recordings projects, dance and music classes, cultural workshops, flamenco school incursions and realising independent projects such as “Flamenco for Health & Wellbeing”, “Wheelchair Flamenco” and collaborations with Spanish artists to encourage the appreciation of Flamenco in Australia.
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