Cobla
Encyclopedia
The cobla (ˈkobːɫə, plural cobles) is a traditional music ensemble of Catalonia
, Spain
and in Northern Catalonia
in France
. It is generally used to accompany the Sardana
, a traditional Catalan folk dance, danced in a circle.
There are small variations to this instrumentation in contemporary coblas: for example there is sometimes a third trumpet player. The woodwind players sit in the front row with the flabiol on the left, the brass sit behind them and the string bass is to the right of the group.
The main instrument in the cobla, the Tenora, was developed around 1850 by French-Catalan luthier Andreu Toron, in Perpignan
/Perpinyà.
The modern 11-piece cobla was developed by the Catalan musician Josep Maria "Pep" Ventura
. He wrote over 200 Sardana
compositions. There is a small street named after him in Barcelona
, as well as a subway stop, presumably because of this achievement.
In Barcelona
, capital of Catalonia
, in the summer time, one can often see cobla performances in open outdoor squares, with dozens of Catalonians mixed with tourists dancing the sardana, their purses and backpacks placed on the ground within the circle. Despite its small size, the cobla is powerful enough for the sound to fill an outdoor square and be heard beyond! Unusually, and to the delight of woodwind players, the tenores and tibles are the loudest instruments in the band.
In recent years, the cobla has also played concerts where there is no dancing. This mirrors a trend in other forms of folk music, such as the Music of Ireland
.
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and in Northern Catalonia
Northern Catalonia
Northern Catalonia is a term that is sometimes used, particularly in Catalan writings, to refer to the territory ceded to France by Spain through the signing of the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659...
in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It is generally used to accompany the Sardana
Sardana
The sardana is a type of circle dance typical of Catalonia, Spain. The dance was originally from the Empordà region, but started gaining popularity throughout Catalonia during the 20th century....
, a traditional Catalan folk dance, danced in a circle.
Structure
The modern Cobla normally consists of 11 players:- One person plays the flabiolFlabiolThe flabiol , also known as flaviol, flubiol or fabirol, is a woodwind musical instrument of the family known as fipple flutes. It is one of the 12 instruments of the cobla...
, a three-holed flute (notable for being the only three-holed flute in the world with eight holes) with the left hand while playing a small drum called a tamboríTamboriThe tambori is a percussion instrument of about 10 centimetres diameter, a small shallow cylinder formed of metal or wood with a drumhead of skin...
with the other hand. The tamborí is attached to the left arm of the player. - Four Catalan shawms (double-reed woodwinds)
- Two Tibles (a tible is like an oboe, but larger and louder)
- Two Tenores (a tenora is a larger version of the tible)
- Five Brass
- Two TrumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
s - Two horns (called fiscornFiscornFiscorn is a Catalan instrument. While the term also designates the modern flugelhorn, the term today in Catalonia commonly refers to a conical bell forward rotary valved brass instrument in C played in the cobla to accompany the sardana .-Background:Originally played in polka bands throughout...
in the Catalan languageCatalan languageCatalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
- they are baritone saxhornSaxhornThe saxhorn is a valved brass instrument with a conical bore and deep cup-shaped mouthpiece. The sound has a characteristic mellow quality, and blends well with other brass.-The saxhorn family:...
s in the "marching" configuration: with the bell facing forward like a large flugelhornFlugelhornThe flugelhorn is a brass instrument resembling a trumpet but with a wider, conical bore. Some consider it to be a member of the saxhorn family developed by Adolphe Sax ; however, other historians assert that it derives from the valve bugle designed by Michael Saurle , Munich 1832 , thus...
.) - One TromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
, often a valve-trombone
- Two Trumpet
- One String Bass (An orchestral double bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
; though originally a three-string bass.)
There are small variations to this instrumentation in contemporary coblas: for example there is sometimes a third trumpet player. The woodwind players sit in the front row with the flabiol on the left, the brass sit behind them and the string bass is to the right of the group.
History
Originally, the cobla was a 3-piece band:- One person played the flabiolFlabiolThe flabiol , also known as flaviol, flubiol or fabirol, is a woodwind musical instrument of the family known as fipple flutes. It is one of the 12 instruments of the cobla...
and drum - The second person played the tible
- The third played bagpipesBagpipesBagpipes are a class of musical instrument, aerophones, using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. Though the Scottish Great Highland Bagpipe and Irish uilleann pipes have the greatest international visibility, bagpipes of many different types come from...
The main instrument in the cobla, the Tenora, was developed around 1850 by French-Catalan luthier Andreu Toron, in Perpignan
Perpignan
-Sport:Perpignan is a rugby stronghold: their rugby union side, USA Perpignan, is a regular competitor in the Heineken Cup and seven times champion of the Top 14 , while their rugby league side plays in the engage Super League under the name Catalans Dragons.-Culture:Since 2004, every year in the...
/Perpinyà.
The modern 11-piece cobla was developed by the Catalan musician Josep Maria "Pep" Ventura
Josep Maria Ventura i Casas
Josep Maria Ventura i Casas , popularly known as Pep Ventura, was a Catalan musician and composer who consolidated the long sardana and reformed the cobla, adding instruments to give it its current formation....
. He wrote over 200 Sardana
Sardana
The sardana is a type of circle dance typical of Catalonia, Spain. The dance was originally from the Empordà region, but started gaining popularity throughout Catalonia during the 20th century....
compositions. There is a small street named after him in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, as well as a subway stop, presumably because of this achievement.
How it is used
The cobla is normally used to accompany the SardanaSardana
The sardana is a type of circle dance typical of Catalonia, Spain. The dance was originally from the Empordà region, but started gaining popularity throughout Catalonia during the 20th century....
In Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, capital of Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, in the summer time, one can often see cobla performances in open outdoor squares, with dozens of Catalonians mixed with tourists dancing the sardana, their purses and backpacks placed on the ground within the circle. Despite its small size, the cobla is powerful enough for the sound to fill an outdoor square and be heard beyond! Unusually, and to the delight of woodwind players, the tenores and tibles are the loudest instruments in the band.
In recent years, the cobla has also played concerts where there is no dancing. This mirrors a trend in other forms of folk music, such as the Music of Ireland
Music of Ireland
Irish Music is the generic term for music that has been created in various genres on the island of Ireland.The indigenous music of the island is termed Irish traditional music. It has remained vibrant through the 20th, and into the 21st century, despite globalizing cultural forces...
.
External links
- El testament n'Amèlia Video of a performance of the sardana (composer Joan Lamote de GrignonJoan Lamote de GrignonJoan Lamote de Grignon i Bocquet , was a Catalan Spanish pianist, composer and orchestra director.Joan Lamote de Grignon was born and died in Barcelona, the son of parents of French descent Lluis Lamote de Grignon and Elena Bocquet. In 1911 he founded the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, of which he...
), by the cobla "Comptat d'Empúries" at the Castelló d'Empúries - The Selvatana Cobla site has many pictures and the history of this particular cobla, which was founded in 1913.
- www.cobla-amsterdam.nl, site of the only non-Catalan cobla in the world, Cobla La Principal d'Amsterdam, founded in 1987 by a group of Dutch professional musicians, distinguished with the Catalan Creu de Sant Jordi in 2007.
- The Sardana and I, an essay about Catalonian traditional dancing and music.
- 45-sec Video of Sardana music and dance on Commons
- Audio Recording of Cobla Music, Palamos, Catalunya
- MP-3 examples of sardanaSardanaThe sardana is a type of circle dance typical of Catalonia, Spain. The dance was originally from the Empordà region, but started gaining popularity throughout Catalonia during the 20th century....
music are available on the Selvatana Cobla and Cobla Sabadell sites.