Tajaraste
Encyclopedia
Tajaraste is combined music and dance typical of the Canary Islands
, (Spain
). It is specific to the islands of Tenerife
and La Gomera
. Essentially an upbeat, happy and syncopated rhythm, danced in pairs accompanied by tambourines, drums and small castanet
-like instruments called chácaras
.
The dance is collective in nature and its choreography changes from island to island. The differences arise from the originating island.
Tajarastes arrived in the European courts in the 16th century. Its songs are from ancient romances that were revived after the conquest of the Canary Islands. They describe stories, miracles and forbidden loves.
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...
, (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...
). It is specific to the islands of 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...
and La Gomera
La Gomera
La Gomera is one of Spain's Canary Islands, located in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. In area, it is the second-smallest of the seven main islands of this group.- Political organization :...
. Essentially an upbeat, happy and syncopated rhythm, danced in pairs accompanied by tambourines, drums and small 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...
-like instruments called chácaras
Chácaras
Chácaras are a type of castanets from the Canary Islands. They are an idiophonic and chattering instrument, with an interior cavity.Chácaras are used in the traditional music of the islands of El Hierro and La Gomera, the latter being very big, bigger than the hands of the player...
.
The dance is collective in nature and its choreography changes from island to island. The differences arise from the originating island.
Tajarastes arrived in the European courts in the 16th century. Its songs are from ancient romances that were revived after the conquest of the Canary Islands. They describe stories, miracles and forbidden loves.
External links
- http://www.spanishdancesociety.org/main/articles.asp?number=7 Para 9.
- http://il.youtube.com/watch?v=B6xZn77yi9I&feature=related
- http://www.tajaraste.org/index2.php