Music of the Canary Islands
Encyclopedia
The music of the Canary Islands
reflects its cultural heritage. The islands used to be inhabited by the Guanche
s which are related to Berbers
; they mixed with Spaniards, who live on the islands now. A variant of Jota
is popular, as is Latin music, which has left its mark in the form of the timple
guitar
.
There has been a strong connection with Cuban music, Venezuelan, Puerto Rican, and other Caribbean countries both through commerce and migration.
Popular dances from the Canary Islands include:
Of these, the Isas, a local variation of Jota
are the most well-known and characteristic of the Canary Islands. They are graceful music, with a lot of variation among islands. In some places, a captain leads the dance and organizes others in a chain as the dance grows more and more complex.
Rondalla
arrangements are very common. Instruments include charangas, timple
s (similar to a cavaquinho
/ ukulele
), castanet
s, panderetas, laud
s and guitar
s. A peculiar ensemble in El Hierro
island is made of pito herreño players (a wooden transverse flute) and drums. Some ritual dances in Tenerife
island are led by a tabor pipe player. Joyful music for carnival lies to a big extent on brass band
s and Latin American patterns.
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
reflects its cultural heritage. The islands used to be inhabited by the Guanche
Guanche
Guanche may refer to:*Guanches, an aboriginal people of the Canary Islands*Guanche language, extinct language, used to be spoken by the Guanches until the 16th or 17th century...
s which are related to Berbers
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
; they mixed with Spaniards, who live on the islands now. A variant of Jota
Jota
Jota may refer to:*the name of J, the tenth letter of the Spanish alphabet and Portuguese alphabet*Jota , a type of Spanish music and dance*Jota, a bean-sauerkraut soup of Slovenian/Croatian origin*Laverda Jota, a motorcycle...
is popular, as is Latin music, which has left its mark in the form of the timple
Timple
The timple is a traditional Spanish plucked string instrument of the Canary Islands.In La Palma island and in the north of the island of Tenerife, many timple players omit the fifth string, in order to play the timple as a four-string ukulele, though this is considered less traditional by players...
guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
.
There has been a strong connection with Cuban music, Venezuelan, Puerto Rican, and other Caribbean countries both through commerce and migration.
Popular dances from the Canary Islands include:
- IsasISASISAS may refer to:* International School for Advanced Studies, a post-graduate teaching and research institute in Trieste, Italy* Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, a Japanese research institute which is former independent space agency, now a part of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency .*...
- El Tajaraste
- Baile del Candil
- Baile de Cintas
- Danza de Enanos
- El Santo Domingo
- El Tanganillo
- FoliasFoliás- Track listing :#Cumpleaños En Los Lagare - 2:06#Color de Galleta - 2:14#Jugadores De Juegos - 2:30#Es Mejor Ser Un Kart - 1:58#Ven A Mi Fiesta - 2:04#El Tiburon - 1:26#Galapagos - 3:08#100 veces fuego - 2:02#Abejitas - 2:18#Te Lo Digo En Chino - 1:30...
- Malagueñas
Of these, the Isas, a local variation of Jota
Jota
Jota may refer to:*the name of J, the tenth letter of the Spanish alphabet and Portuguese alphabet*Jota , a type of Spanish music and dance*Jota, a bean-sauerkraut soup of Slovenian/Croatian origin*Laverda Jota, a motorcycle...
are the most well-known and characteristic of the Canary Islands. They are graceful music, with a lot of variation among islands. In some places, a captain leads the dance and organizes others in a chain as the dance grows more and more complex.
Rondalla
Rondalla
The rondalla is an ensemble of stringed instruments played with the plectrum or pick and generally known as plectrum instruments. It originated in Medieval Spain, especially in Catalunya, Aragon, Murcia, and Valencia...
arrangements are very common. Instruments include charangas, timple
Timple
The timple is a traditional Spanish plucked string instrument of the Canary Islands.In La Palma island and in the north of the island of Tenerife, many timple players omit the fifth string, in order to play the timple as a four-string ukulele, though this is considered less traditional by players...
s (similar to a cavaquinho
Cavaquinho
The cavaquinho is a small string instrument of the European guitar family with four wire or gut strings. It is also called machimbo, machim, machete , manchete or marchete, braguinha or braguinho, or cavaco.The most common tuning is D-G-B-D ; other tunings include D-A-B-E...
/ ukulele
Ukulele
The ukulele, ; from ; it is a subset of the guitar family of instruments, generally with four nylon or gut strings or four courses of strings....
), castanet
Castanet
Castanets are a percussion instrument , used in Moorish, Ottoman, ancient Roman, Italian, Spanish, Sephardic Music, and Portuguese music. The instrument consists of a pair of concave shells joined on one edge by a string. They are held in the hand and used to produce clicks for rhythmic accents or...
s, panderetas, laud
Laud
Laud may refer to:People with the surname Laud:* William Laud , Archbishop of Canterbury* Derek Laud , British political lobbyistPeople with the given name Laud:* Laud of Coutances , bishop of Coutances...
s and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
s. A peculiar ensemble in El Hierro
El Hierro
El Hierro, nicknamed Isla del Meridiano , is the smallest and farthest south and west of the Canary Islands , in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa, with a population of 10,162 .- Name :The name El Hierro, although phonetically identical to the Spanish word for 'iron', is generally thought...
island is made of pito herreño players (a wooden transverse flute) and drums. Some ritual dances in Tenerife
Tenerife
Tenerife is the largest and most populous island of the seven Canary Islands, it is also the most populated island of Spain, with a land area of 2,034.38 km² and 906,854 inhabitants, 43% of the total population of the Canary Islands. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, the...
island are led by a tabor pipe player. Joyful music for carnival lies to a big extent on brass band
Brass band
A brass band is a musical ensemble generally consisting entirely of brass instruments, most often with a percussion section. Ensembles that include brass and woodwind instruments can in certain traditions also be termed brass bands , but are usually more correctly termed military bands, concert...
s and Latin American patterns.
Canarian musicians
- Brandania
- Pedro GuerraPedro GuerraPedro Manuel Guerra Mansito is a Spanish singer-songwriter.- Biography :Guerra is the son of Pedro Guerra Cabrera the first President of the Canarian parliament....
- Rosana