Hello all,
I have been playing for about 25 years. Started with a steel string acoustic then moved to electric and played mostly Jazz and Rock though my high school years. I abandoned guitar for a few years, but got back to it in my mid-late 20's following a spontaneous jam session with my work mates. Since then I have been unstoppable, delving deeper into Jazz, honing my technique, picking up more challenging pieces. Lately, over the past year or two I have turned my focus towards classical guitar. I have an Aparicio AA70 guitar, which is a fine classical guitar for a non pro like me. And I have been tackling Tarrega, Sor and Bach. Playing classical music I have found myself attracted to the more Spanish romantic (Albeniez, Tarrega) styles than the german/english lute music. And so I found myself more interested in Flamenco.
I am a flamenco novice. I have been learning technique and pieces from books and videos. I think I have enough experience at self education to pull it though - my rasgueado pamii, abanico and picado are already reasonable, and I believe I have the "Aire" when I play. But I still think I might get a flamenco guitar teacher for direction, ideas and criticism - at least for a while.
I am playing flamenco on my classical guitar - which is a fine instrument and I love her - but I am already feeling the need for a dedicated flamenco instrument. The classical has too much sustain and depth - and it can sound jumbled when playing fast incorporating rasguados. But it's difficult to find a good flamenco instrument here at a reasonable price (because on the other hand - I am not a performing artist, I am only starting out with flamenco, and I do have a wife and a newborn child to support!). I'll post in the relevant forum for your opinions on the guitar options I have here.
Well, that's about it

Oren

Oren, Welcome to the forum and hopefully you can find information on this forum that will help your study of flamenco. I am nearly all self taught except 3 or 4 hours lessons back in the early 70's. It is a slower way to go, but with the internet and videos, it is more possible that before. Finding a good knowledgeable flamenco teacher is also difficult and usually not convenient and can be expensive. The key to learning flamenco is a lot of listening, including cante. Even if you don't understand one word of it, getting the feeling is of importance. Getting a guitar made for flamenco can be expensive, although now prices are way low on great used flamencos. Fitting such a purchase into a family budget can be difficult. There is a guy there in Israel that makes nice flamencos for a very reasonable price. http://gwguitars.com/flamenco.htm