Juan Tamariz is BACK
with a brand new book
In this issue of The Erudite Magic Digest, I’m thrilled to share that Juan Tamariz has a new book (you’re going to want to know about this one!), we’re pulling some inspiration about magic from a couple of historical heavyweights, and I’m sharing a trick from my personal journal that was inspired by my last book review. Without any further ado…
The Maestro is back!
Penguin magic recently announced the pre-order for Steven Minch’s (likely final) collaboration with “The Maestro” (Juan Tamariz). The book is called Flamenco, and the magic book loving world is absolutely buzzing about this. It’s expected to ship out on March 3, which is today!
This book is the third in a series called “Bewitched Music.” The two predecessor volumes were Sonata and Mnemonica. Sonata explores Juan’s close-up magic (although I have personally seen Juan perform a piece from this for an 800 room theater), and focuses primarily on cards, but also shares a few routines using silks and pen knives toward the end. Mnemonica introduced us to Juan’s memorized deck work, and is still a tremendous resource for anyone looking to get started with that set of tools.
From what I’ve read, Flamenco picks up where Sonata left off - sharing tricks with cards, coins, knives, but also some interactive tricks for broadcast work. I don’t know how much this will overlap with Juan’s Verbal Magic, but I’ll report my findings.
I’ve ordered my copy, and will try to read through it as quickly as possible so I can share my thoughts with you. As with many of the more recent Hermetic Press prints/reprints, the price is slightly higher than it has been historically. You can purchase the standard edition for $100, or the Deluxe Edition for $150 (it appears that the Deluxe edition has sold out all available copies as of the time of this newsletter).
Anecdotally, this book has been anticipated for a loooong time, and is even mentioned in Jamy Ian Swiss’s Mnemonica review back in September 2004. How about you? How long have you been waiting for this?
Inspiration Corner
As we started last week, I want to explore some quotes from famous people about magic or from magicians in order to get inspired. Today I have two quotes for you, both of which get at the same thing, which we’ll discuss below.
"The magician and the scientist are twin brothers. One takes the world apart, the other puts it back together—but both are in search of the truth." —Edward Clodd
While not a magician, Edward was a writer and anthropologist, so he understood about human nature. The above is a beautiful observation that highlights the deep connection between magic and science, but what does it mean?
Magicians and scientists both experiment, both challenge perception, and both seek to reveal hidden truths. But they approach the world in opposite directions—scientists deconstruct reality to understand it, while magicians construct illusions to challenge our understanding.
The second quote comes from the great author, scholar, and theologian, C.S. Lewis. He saw the relationship between magic and science differently. He wrote:
The serious magical endeavour and the serious scientific endeavour are twins: one was sickly and died, the other strong and throve. But they were twins. They were born of the same impulse.” - C.S. Lewis, The Abolition of Man
His view was more cautionary, suggesting that while magic faded into simply deception, science became the true tool of power over nature (in fact, his argument was against science as a religion, but that’s a story for another day).
So where does that leave the modern magician? If science has uncovered so many truths, why do we still crave magic? The answer lies in the experience. Magic reminds us that not everything needs to be dissected—some mysteries are best left felt rather than explained. In a way, magicians continue the same quest as scientists, not by controlling nature, but by reigniting wonder.
In the end, both paths lead to the same destination: a deeper appreciation for the world around us. The scientist reveals how things work; the magician reminds us why that knowledge should still leave us amazed.
What do you think? Are magicians and scientists two sides of the same coin, or are they fundamentally different? Hit reply and let me know!
Playing with Gemini Twins
Last week on Erudite Magic, I reviewed Oliver Meech’s Effervescent, a terrific collection of refreshing and different magic. If you haven’t already seen that review, you can check it out here:
Inspiration
One of the tricks from this book, “Thinking Fast and Whoah” (p. 34) is a great reminder that a trick doesn’t have to be complex to be interesting and good. I don’t want to tip too much other than to say that part of this routine relies on the Gemini Twins force, which sent me back to my journal and reminded me of an interesting take I came up with years ago…
Background
Before I get to that, let me tell you, I love the original Gemini Twins as an excellent self-working miracle with a shuffled deck in use. If you don’t already know it, you owe it to yourself to go seek it out (see More Self-Working Card Tricks by Karl Fulves). While the principle on which it is based is old as the hills (see The Jinx - December 1937 for one of the earliest mentions of the principle), Karl Fulves really created something special with this one.
Anyway, fast forward to today. I found a note in my journal reminding me of an interesting variation on this trick.
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