The ''gaita asturiana'' is a type of

bagpipe Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, Nor ...

native to the

autonomous communities eu, autonomia erkidegoa ca, comunitat autònoma gl, comunidade autónoma oc, comunautat autonòma an, comunidat autonoma ast, comunidá autónoma , alt_name = , map = , category = Autonomous administra ...

Principality of Asturias Asturias (, ; ast, Asturies ), officially the Principality of Asturias ( es, Principado de Asturias; ast, Principáu d'Asturies; Galician-Asturian: ''Principao d'Asturias''), is an autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive ...

on the northern coast of

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Differences from other Iberian gaitas

*The ''gaita asturiana'' is of larger size than the ''

Galician gaita The Galician gaita ( gl, Gaita galega, pt, Gaita galega, es, Gaita gallega) is the traditional instrument of Galicia and northern Portugal. The word is used across northern Spain as a generic term for "bagpipe", although in the south of Spain ...

'' of the same key; that is to say, its pipes are of longer dimensions. The reed of the chanter (''payuela'') is of smaller size than the ''galician'' reed. Compared to the ''galician'', the finger holes are distributed differently, making it easier to extend to the 4th of the second octave with a simple increase in air pressure on the bag (''fuelle''), a method known as ''requintar''. *In the autonomous community of

Cantabria Cantabria (, also , , Cantabrian: ) is an autonomous community in northern Spain with Santander as its capital city. It is called a ''comunidad histórica'', a historic community, in its current Statute of Autonomy. It is bordered on the east ...

this gaita is also called ''gaita astur-cántabra'' or ''gaita cántabra'', though it is identical in construction.

Attestation

The first evidence for the existence of the ''gaita asturiana'' dates back to the 13th century, as a piper can be seen carved into the capital of the church of Santa María de Villaviciosa. Further evidence includes an illumination of a rabbit playing the ''gaita'' in the 14th century text ''Llibru la regla colorada''. An early carving of a

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...

playing the pipes may be seen at the

Cathedral of Oviedo The Metropolitan Cathedral Basilica of the Holy Saviour or Cathedral of San Salvador ( es, Catedral Metropolitana Basílica de San Salvador, la, Sancta Ovetensis) is a Roman Catholic church and minor basilica in the centre of Oviedo, in the Astur ...

History and evolution

Traditionally the ''gaita asturiana'' had only the two pipes: the chanter and the drone, the same as the ''gaita gallega''. The traditional tuning of the chanter was in C5 (an octave above the piano's Middle C). Traditionally the C of the ''gaita'' was between concert C and C#, known as ''C brillante'' ("C brilliant"), though examples are also found in D (rare) and B (more frequent, used to accompany male "tonada" singers). Some times it was also possible to see tiny chanters tuned above D. The drone is tuned to the tonic of the chanter, but two octaves lower. However, in the modern day some makers add a tenor drone (''ronquín'') tuned one octave below the chanter, the same as the ''ronqueta'' of the ''gaita gallega''.

The ''gaita asturiana'' today

Currently, the ''gaita asturiana'' is constructed in a wider array of keys and types, anywhere from A to as high as E. Also, refinement of the chanter construction has made it possible to play as high as the tonic in the third octave. Further, the ability to hit

chromatic note Chromaticism is a compositional technique interspersing the primary diatonic pitches and chords with other pitches of the chromatic scale. In simple terms, within each octave, diatonic music uses only seven different notes, rather than the ...

s has increased, turning the chanter from a completely

diatonic Diatonic and chromatic are terms in music theory that are most often used to characterize Scale (music), scales, and are also applied to musical instruments, Interval (music), intervals, Chord (music), chords, Musical note, notes, musical sty ...

instrument to a nearly fully chromatic one. The addition of auxiliary holes has also increased. As a further sign of modernisation, keys have been added to some variants to extend range and chromatic ability.

Famous ''gaiteros asturianos''

In the history of the ''gaita'', there have been numerous notable players. It is necessary to begin with the legendary Gaiteru Llibardón, author of the first recording of the ''gaita''. Throughout the 20th century there have been other famous ''gaiteros'', such as José Remis Vega (''aka'' Capilla and El Gaiteru Margolles) and his son José Remis Ovalle, a reference for today's ''gaita'' interpretations. José Ángel Hevia Velasco, known professionally as

Hevia José Ángel Hevia Velasco, known professionally as Hevia (born October 11, 1967 in Villaviciosa, Asturias), is a Spanish bagpiper – specifically, an Asturian gaita player. He commonly performs with his sister, María José, on drums. I ...

(born 1967 in

Villaviciosa, Asturias Villaviciosa () is a town and municipality in the autonomous community of Asturias, Spain. José Ángel Hevia Velasco was born in the town. Villaviciosa is important for the production of cider. The town also produces milk and relies on tourism, ...

). Hevia is known for helping invent a special brand of MIDI electronic bagpipes, which he is often seen playing live. He commonly performs with his sister, Maria José, on drums. In 1992 he was awarded first prize for solo bagpipes at the

Festival Interceltique de Lorient __NOTOC__ The (French), Emvod Ar Gelted An Oriant (Breton) or Inter-Celtic Festival of Lorient in English, is an annual Celtic festival, located in the city of Lorient, Brittany, France. It was founded in 1971 by . This annual festival takes ...

, Brittany.

References

External links

GaitaForum.com
a discussion forum for gaitas {{Music of Spain Bagpipes Asturian musical instruments Cantabrian music Spanish musical instruments