Music in the Valencian Region

In the Valencian Region there is a wide and ancient popular musical tradition. From the Municipal Musical Bands to the multitude of groups of friends who decide to create an urban music band. 

In Valencia we have our own instruments.

Dolçaina

Dolcaina is a double-tongued wind instrument belonging to the oboe family. It consists of a conical tube about 30 centimeters in length in which there are 7 holes. This instrument is typically used in traditional Valencian music.

Tabalet

The tabal or tabalet is a cylindrical percussion musical instrument, with two membranes – usually leather – that emits an indeterminate sound. There are of all sizes, although the tabalet is usually a drum of medium dimensions, which can be hung around the neck.

The tabalet pairs with the sweetness in the interpretation of the Valencian Song and both are useful instruments to musically liven up any street party

Tradition of music bands

Valencia collects a long musical tradition in its municipal bands and music schools that, over the years, train more than 60,000 students from the different Valencian municipalities. In addition, they play an important role in preserving and enhancing Valencian heritage through their popular traditions and festivals such as the Fallas.

More than 500 musical societies grouped by the Federation of Musical Societies of the Valencian Region (FSMCV), represent approximately half of those existing in Spain and bring together 40,000 musicians and more than 200,000 associated members.

As is normal throughout Spain, the Valencian community is very rich in typical music and dances. Almost every town has its own, which is surely minimally different from others. The most popular are the Jacks and the «dawns».

Popular songs from the Valencian Region

Next we want to take a tour of five of our most popular songs to discover the richness of traditional Valencian music.

La manta al coll

A song that everyone knows in Alicante is undoubtedly «La manta al coll», a song with a humorous touch, original from this province.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8b33EFWxYrI 

Tinc una barraqueta

The lyrics are about a small barracks, a typical Valencian construction, and its owner describes what it is like: without ceiling, which gives it the sun, is small, with a wardrobe…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dh7hhqSYzMA 

Ramonet, si vas a l’hort

With fuzzy origins, this song can be known by other names rather than Ramonet such as Pasqualet, Masseret, Miquelet… but in all the rest of the lyrics he tells us about a country man, who asks him that when he goes to the orchard he brings figs and apricots. It is a much-loved song at parties, and is played with traditional instruments: dolcaina and tabalet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbP2fpIV6A0

Pasodoble Xàbia

A song that is not only played in the rest of Spain but has reached places as remote as Mexico, Bolivia or Ukraine is the Pasodoble Xàbia, one of the best known and performed in Spain. Created by composer Salvador Salvá in 1976, this song has been named after the population practically on 5 continents.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYJDYDmLtHI 

Tio Pep

Uncle Pep is the protagonist of this popular song with the same name, perhaps one of the most famous and covered of the Valencian Region. The lyrics tell us the story of a Valencian labrador who goes to the village of Muro to buy himself a tartan and a donkey so that he can till his orchard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrn8Sc0Pd6Y 

Music groups, urban bands

The rooting of music in the Valencian Community has also led to the emergence of numerous urban music bands; many of the groups have crossed the borders of the community and are a reference of music in Valencian or Catalan. 

The most popular ones:

La gossa Sorda

La Gossa Sorda was a Valencian musical group that singed in Valencian from the town of Pego, in the province of Alicante. Among the styles of music they encompass are rock, punk, reggae, and Sandx, with the use of many Mediterranean rhythms and other influences.

Obrint Pas

Obrint Pas was a Spanish music group from the city of Valencia. His music is a fusion of ska, rock and some elements of punk with traditional Valencian melodies and instruments among which the dolcaina stands out.

Aspencat

His style has been based on ska, reggae and drum and bass, but in their latter stage they have advanced towards more electronic rhythms where you can see the presence of dubstep. They have thus achieved their own style by combining electronic sounds with the style that has prevailed until then.1 They were one of the most representative bands of the Valencian Region.

Zoo

Valencian musical group born in 2014 in Gandía that focuses on rap, breakbeat, reguetón, rock and ska, mixed with electronic rhythms. The lyrics of the songs deal with current political and social issues.

El Diluvi

El Diluvi is defined as a modern folk music group that fuses different musical styles, such as cumbia, reggae, rumba, folk and traditional and Valencian-rooted music. With Mediterranean instruments such as violin, bandurria, diatonic accordion, flamenco guitar, guitar and percussion of all kinds, they create a new style they call Mediterranean Mestizaje.

Gastronomy of the Valencian Region

Valencian cuisine is a clear example of the Mediterranean diet, where products from the Mediterranean sea and the Valencian garden are the fundamental key to Valencian dishes. Paella is the most characteristic recipe in the entire region and the one that has crossed international borders. Even so, the Levantine cookbook has more traditional dishes such as Fideuà and other recipes where local products from each area prevail.

One of the most common Valencian entrees is called Esgarraet, Especant or Esguellat (depending on the location). It is a salad of roasted vegetables, salted cod, garlic and olive oil. Depending on each area, one or the other vegetables are used, although the basic ones are eggplant and red pepper. Cocas, empanadillas and rosquilletas are other of the most common appetizers in all Valencian homes and bakeries.

But without a doubt, the dish that generates the most admiration and controversy at the same time is the famous Paella. But what ingredients does the traditional Valencian Paella have? Paella has many variants depending on the area where it is prepared, such as Vegetable Paella, Seafood Paella, Meat Paella, Mixed … Although the most popular is Meat Paella and this would be the one that could be coined as «Valencian Paella». The main ingredients with which it is prepared are: round rice, chicken, rabbit, garrofó, beans and fresh rosemary. A term associated with Paella is socarrat and many are the followers of this effect of the rice in the Paella, which is achieved just at the end of cooking.

If you want to explore more about the ingredients of Paella and become professional paella masters, you can consult more information on Wikipaella, a website where you can find out what ingredients are traditionally used to make the classic Paellas of the Valencian Community.

Another popular and recognized dish is the Fideuà, more typical of the Valencian coastal areas. La Fideuà is made like Paella, but its ingredients are noodles, fish and fresh seafood from each local market.

Below are different Valencian recipes:

In the inland area of Valencia, baked rice is very traditional. A rice that is cooked as its name indicates in the oven and is made in a clay pot. Formerly it was a recipe of use that was made with the leftovers of the Valencian Pot or Pot, so in this rice we will find: black pudding, pork ribs, meatballs (Valencian pilota), chickpeas, pig’s ear, etc.

On the other hand, Valencia has many products with designation of origin, examples of this are the Valencian clóchinas, tasty mussels with a Mediterranean character, the artichokes from Benircarló, the dates from Elche, the ñoras from Guardamar, the honey from the Marina Alta , Valencian oranges, rice from the Albufera fields, DO Utiel-Requena wines or the famous prawns from Vinaroz.

Galician Tradicional Dance

Galician regional dance is a very complex culture, with a rich folk heritage. Within Galicia, depending on the area you go to, you will find it in different ways, there are places where the «Muñeira» has more influence, in others «xota» and the area closest to Portugal the «polkas».

But the «muiñeira» is one of the best known and most used rhythms. It has become so popular that it has undergone multiple variations. Although they all have the same musical structure, their rhythm is faster and happier.

In addition to dancing, Galician culture also counts on the music that is made up of bagpipes and tambourines. The bagpipers are a very important piece to dance, like the cantareiras, since without all of them you can’t dance because the music is live.

how it is danced and the melody of the dances. Despite this, there are many dance groups and bagpipe bands throughout Galicia, especially in the towns. It is one of the most beautiful cultures in Spain

Festivities of Interest of the Valencian Region

• Moors and Christians Festivities

It is mainly held in the south of the Valencian Community. These festivities commemorate the battles that were fought during the Reconquest. Alcoi, Castalla, Villena, Cocentaina, Elda, Ibi, Ontinyent and Banyeres, among many others, are localities where this tradition is celebrated. 

• Carnival of Vinaròs

One of the most famous carnivals in the Mediterranean basin. It dates back to 1871 and is held in the town of Vinaròs, in the north of the region. 

Carnaval of Vinarós

The Queens Gala takes place in the Bullring of Vinaròs, and more than seven thousand people attend the gala. An eye-catching montage is carried out in which the color, fantasy, imagination and colors stand out. The presenters of the Gala give way to different comparsas (groups of friends) that show their spectacular costumes. 

• Festivity of Our Virgin of Health of Algemesí 

About 1,400 people participate in the celebration of these festivities in Algemesí town each year, both in theatrical performances, in music concerts, as well as in dance shows. 

Festivity of Our Virgin of Health of Algemesí 

• Fallas of Valencia

The Fallas de Valencia is the most important festival of the city, they are celebrated in honor of San José, patron saint of carpenters, and have been declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Unesco. This holiday comprises 5 days, start with the «plantá» of faults, which is when they are built by the different neighborhoods of the city, and conclude the day of «la cremo», when these same monuments are devoured by the flames. 

These festivals are also characterized by gunpowder; every day a sound show is held, with a pyrotechnic montage in the town hall square. 

• Fair of All Saints of Cocentaina

This festivity consists of an open-air market. It is the second oldest in all of Spain, it was created in 1346. It takes place in the town of Cocentaina. This fair has been declared of Cultural Interest and Festival of International Tourist Interest. This fair is divided into three main spaces: the most important is that of agricultural machinery, followed by the Arab souk (where typically Arab products are marketed) and the Christian market. 

The 7 herbs of St. John

June 23rd is a very special day, also known in Galicia as “a noite de San Xoán”, the night of St. John. It is a ritual celebration that originates in the pre-christian ages of our land. In the old times, it was celebrated as the summer solstice.

This is associated with the shortest night of the year in the northern hemisphere the longest in the southern), though that usually happens around the 21st.

Fire is the ritual item for the celebration. The night of San Xoán it is tradional to jump over a bonfire, known as “cacharela”. Galician people have the superstition of jumping three times in a row over the fire to avoid “meigas” (witches) and call for a year of health and good luck.

Todas All feasts are about food!! We like good food, a lot! So, with the bonfire, it is traditional to dinner roasted sardines, with cornbread, and “cachelos” (potatoes cooked in the ashes, not peeled). They are delicious!, and it seems that in San Xoán night are better than ever!

Ernesto with St John flowers

Before the night comes, during the afternoon and the evening, it is also very traditional to take a walk around the countryside, and pick some flowers and herbs.

Then they are placed in water in a bowl, and left ovenight outside, letting night dew fall on it. In the morning you wash your face and hands with this water as soon as you get up from bed.

It is the best skin-care treatment of all times! This is a ritual, so certain flowers and herbs have to be chosen, not any! The most common “recipe” is to use at least 7, associated with medicinal and aromatic properties.

the 7 herbs of st. john

You can find a list with the traditional herbs. Try this beautiful experience!

Herba de San Xoán ou hipérico. Abeluria. Hypericum perforatum.

Helecho macho. Fento macho. Dryopteris filix-mas.

Hinoxo. Fiuncho. Foeniculum vulgare.

Malva. Malva sylvestris.

Hierba luisa. Herba luisa. Aloysia citriodora .

Romero. Romeu. Rosmarinus officinalis.

Codeso. Adenocarpus complicatus.

Sauco. Sabugueiro, bieiteiro. Sambucus nigra.

Nogal. Nogueira. Juglans regia.

Dedalera. Estraloque, dedaleira. Digitalis purpurea.

Laurel. Loureiro. Laurus nobilis.

Flor de San Juan. Falsa árnica. Helichryssum foetidum.

Torvisco. Daphne gnidium.

Rosa. Rosal silvestre. Rosa canina.