The Canary Islands is one of the main tourist enclaves with the highest volume of Spanish nationality. This archipelago to the northwest of Africa has a high cultural diversity, due to its geolocation. Although it has a lot of cultural diversity to explore, here we will focus on the typical dances of the Canary Islands.
If you want to know more about the typical dances of the Canary Islands, here We are going to mention all that we know and we will explain a little about them.
The Canary Islands
First of all, put yourself in context a bit:
The Canary Islands They make up an archipelago in northwestern Africa. Near the southern coast of Morocco and the north of Western Sahara. Politically, belonging to Spain. Formed by eight islands (El Hierro, La Gomera, La Palma, Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and La Graciosa).
The origin of these islands is volcanic, its subtropical climate added to its high biodiversity, rich landscape and the mixture of cultures makes it have a great heritage value. In fact are declared by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Next, we are going to show you which are the typical dances of the folklore of the Canary Islands.
Some of the typical dances
sheets
The Folias It's a perfect dance of love and courtship. Its provenance and origin comes from the Spanish Bolero. In almost all the islands and in different parts of the Canary region we can find different versions of the Folías style both in rhythm and choreography.
Seguidillas and Saltonas
Seguidillas and Saltonas, is a genre originating in Castilla-La Mancha and introduced in the Canary Islands in the XNUMXth century, which in turn was associated with another great genre of Andalusian folklore such as Fandango. In Tenerife there are the so-called Seguidillas and Saltonas robadas, because the soloists "trample" each other and steal couplets.
On the slender island of Tenerife, from the XNUMXth century, these two genres are linked to each other, with different musical interpretations, in the choreographic part, the peculiarities of the composition of the dance groups that make up the island's folk groups. It can be said that there has been an evolution with respect to the original seguidillas of the La Mancha community.
Isa
La Isa is a song and dance typical of the Canary Islands, characterized by cheerful and extravagant rhythms, which together with the folía and the Canarian malagueña form the main pillar of Canarian folklore.
Presented with a strong triple rhythm, it is one of the most iconic of the islands, accompanied by a lively and jovial song. At the same time, it also presents a collective participation dance, which has been incorporating different characters over time. The fact that good coordination between the dancers is required during the dance show shows the European influence on cultural dance in the XNUMXth century. the canary island It is mainly played with guitar, drumsticks, bandurria and lute., but other percussion and even wind instruments can also be introduced.
One difference between the isa and the jota is that while the former does not change the rhythm of the dance, the latter does. Therefore, the isa dance steps remain the same in both song segments and instrumental music. In the jota, however, the dance group clarifies the sung part to celebrate the quality of the soloist.
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Tajaraste is typical group music and dance from the Canary Islands (Spain), especially Tenerife and La Gomera. It has a cheerful and syncopated character, dancing in pairs to the sound of tambourines or drums and chácaras.. The dance is collective and its choreography varies according to the island of origin. It appeared in European courts in the XNUMXth century, and its songs consist of ancient romances dating back to the conquest of the Canary Islands. They are stories, miracles and unfortunate loves.
malagueña
The malagueña is a traditional popular dance and song from the province of Malaga (Spain). In the themes of the malagueña, as a song, the love for the mother and the loss due to the death of the mother stand out. The malagueña in the Canary Islands probably emerged in the XNUMXth century as a fusion of the Canarian folía and the Andalusian fandango, more precisely from the province of Málaga, from where it took its name.
Also characteristic of the province of Malaga (Spain) is the dance of the Malagueñas, dancing with the Malagueña, a musical piece of the same name similar to the fandango. You can dance with typical costumes of the province, such as the luxurious malagueña or bolero, marenga and verdiales. It is danced in pairs, some of the steps are paseíllo, arms and careos. The "Malagueña de Fiesta" has been celebrated since 1985, with groups of Yucatecans dancing around a pregnant woman to pay their respects. One of the main purposes of this dance is seduction.
sorondongo
It is a traditional musical composition, typical of Lanzarote, Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria, in which a series of quatrains alternate with a chorus that begins with sorondongo. This dance goes to the rhythm of this traditional music, in which the dancers turn and jump with grace and ease in pairs. Folk groups begin with malagueña and end with sorondongo.
It is believed that the sorondongo comes from the Jeringonza, a XNUMXth-century children's song game that settled in several Spanish communities, including the Canary Islands. It was probably brought by people from other communities that settled on this land, although it is also possible that it is related to the Andalusian Zorongo.
Mazurka or Polka
The Mazurka or Polka was brought along with the polka from Europe by the Italians and the Spanish. It is said to be a typical dance that originated in Masuria, Poland, and was introduced to the archipelago in the second half of the XNUMXth century. Originally it is a ballroom dance, although it ended up being a popular dance, taking root in a special way in Gran Canaria.
Generally, played only with instruments, some of which even resemble concert pieces, sometimes similar to a waltz. It is a group dance in which couples hold each other and extend their arms with the tips of their fingers. During the dance, they take three small jumps to the left of the man and three more jumps back.
They are always face to face, they drop their fingers, they raise their arms, they do three little jumps again, but now in opposite directions, they are face to face again. Next, she rotates her hands twice at shoulder height, to the rhythm of the music, remaining as they were in the starting position, and so on. For the most part we find them improvised, on such occasions using spontaneous lyrics, in an errant and carefree manner, almost always in the form of a reply to an "adversary" who had previously challenged him.
Siote or Chotis
the siote is a genre of dance and music which originated in the countries of Central Europe. It arrived in the Canary Islands in the XNUMXth century, and until the XNUMXth century it was performed as a ballroom dance or in the famous Taifa and Candil dances. The Siote has its origin in the Island of La Palma, on the other hand in the island of Fuerteventura, this dance is called Chotis.
It has a festive style, played with a binary rhythm, where string instruments (lute, guitar, drumsticks, violin) are used, even on some occasions the accordion. It is always danced in an even number of couples not less than four, and these placed in columns are rotated. It is similar to the Madrid chotis.
serinoque
It is said to be of pre-colonial origin, due to the intonation of the song and the scenery of the dance described by historians. The sirinoque or serinoque is a canary classic that occurs on the island of La Palma as part of the so-called “drum folklore”. You dance to the rhythm of the drums, they are usually played by the same singer. Sometimes instead of drums there are percussion instruments as in the flute and castanets or castanets.
It is danced in two opposing rows, one of men and the other of women who cross each other, and is characterized by its heel tapping. The dance is interrupted when the second part of the sirinoque begins, that is to say the games of colleagues what is it called that is interpreted by the same dancers.
There is a set of verses, which are most often improvised, in which several people challenge each other. It is done as a rivalry between the opponents trying to see who makes the cleverest rhyme in front of the opponent. Sometimes they even tend to have a picaresque touch, in the sexual sense.
Cho Juan Perenal
Also known as the wheat dance. It is one of the agricultural dances that remain on the islands. in these songs What is narrated is the cycle of the wheat harvest, from the time it is sown to how the bread and the famous gofio are made.. The only accompaniment there is is the drum. In the dance, the women are positioned in rows in front of the men, although some say that in the past they danced in a circle.
It has Jewish-Sephardic origin, possibly from when in 1492 the Jews were expelled by the Catholic Monarchs from the Iberian Peninsula. And many of these sat in the Canary Islands.
the caraqueña
In some places on the peninsula it is called “La Carrasquiña”, and the Canarians have derived it from that name. This game is traditionally for girls. Before, they danced in a circle without maintaining physical contact. Now it is performed in pairs, even rhythmically representing what is marked in the song.
Before there was no motor coordination. Currently this game has been rescued by folk groups, who have taken it as a dance. There are several versions of this song. But If there is something that characterizes this game-dance, it is spontaneity.
the saloon
It is a dance that originated in Central Europe and was introduced in the Canary Islands in the XNUMXth century. It is believed that it came from Berlin, where there is a dance with the same name. Along with the polka and the mazurka, they are the latest additions to the folklore of the Canary Islands, which lasted well into the XNUMXs. At first they were just instrumental pieces, then with loving lyrics, spicy and quite simple choreographies.. They took root mainly in Fuerteventura, La Palma, El Hierro and Tenerife, where each island has its own version:
- En El Hierro it is sometimes played with whistles and drums. It arrived at the beginning of the XNUMXth century, and although it has its origins in loose dancing, it was adapted to the "snatch dance" fashion that was predominant in the islands since the mid-XNUMXth century.
- En La Palma It was considered one of the most popular dances among the peasants, who sang and danced to the sound of the guitar and the accordion in the light of the lamps.
- En Tenerife It is a dance that is still alive in several areas (Valle Guerra, Tejina, Punta del Hidalgo and El Escobonal). In fact, this is where the original choreography of a single figure was added to the female figure to make it less monotonous, more striking.
List of typical dances of the Canary Islands by Island
What we have mentioned above are the typical dances of the Canary Islands, in a general way. Next, we attach a list of typical dances of the Canary Islands, according to the islands.
Dances of Tenerife
- Leaves of Tenerife
- Isa
- the polka dot
- the weevil
- traditional malaguenas
- Passover
- Malaga Paso Doble
- Mazurka, waltz and polka by Acentejo
- Seguidillas and jumping
- Sorondongo of La Victoria
- Tajaraste of El Amparo
- Tanganillo from Icod el Alto
- Tanganillo, Santo Domingo and Tajaraste
- Florida Tango
- guanchero tango
- Acentejo ribbon dance
Dances of Gran Canaria
- Seguidillas of Gran Canaria
- Loose Island of Gran Canaria
- Air of Lima from Valsequillo
- Sorondongo from Gran Canaria
- Mazurka of Agüimes
- the caraqueña
La Palma Dances
- Leaves of La Palma
- La Palma Saloon
- Berlin of Tijaraje
- Airs of Lima
- Goat Count
- Siote palm tree
- Cho Juan Perenal
- serinoque
- The Caringa
Dances of La Gomera
- Santo Domingo Gomeran
- the little mask
- drum dance
- Dances of El Hierro
- Berlin of El Hierro
- The live or alive dance
- Mazurka
- Goat Count
Fuerteventura Dances
- Leaves of Fuerteventura
- Malagueñas of the bride and groom
- Seguidillas of Fuerteventura
- isa majorera
- Fuerteventura Polka
- Berlina from Fuerteventura
- Schottische
Lanzarote Dances
- Leaves of Lanzarote
- Seguidillas of Lanzarote
- island of one
- Sorondongo from Lanzarote
As you can see, the Canary Islands have numerous charms, including their typical dances. And it is that its location is a key and strategic point in all aspects that makes it an area highly rich in culture. I hope you liked this information and it was useful to you.