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 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, ...

", although in the south of Spain and Portugal it denotes a variety of horn, flute or oboe like instruments according to region.

Etymology

There are many suggestions as to the origin of the name . It has been compared to the names of eastern European bagpipes, such as , , and . The linguist

Joan Coromines Joan Coromines i Vigneaux (; also frequently spelled ''Joan Corominas''; Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, by Joan Corominas icand José Antonio Pascual, Editorial Gredos, 1989, Madrid, . Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain 1 ...

has suggested that the word most likely derived from a

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

word or , meaning "goat"; as the bag of a gaita is made from a whole, case-skinned goat hide. Gothic was spoken in Hispania from the fifth century to the eighth century when the country was ruled by the

Visigoth The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is kn ...

s. The Visigoths originated in north-eastern Europe.

The instrument

The Galician gaita has a conical chanter and a bass

drone Drone most commonly refers to: * Drone (bee), a male bee, from an unfertilized egg * Unmanned aerial vehicle * Unmanned surface vehicle, watercraft * Unmanned underwater vehicle or underwater drone Drone, drones or The Drones may also refer to: ...

() with a second octave. It may have one or two additional drones playing the tonic and dominant notes. Three keys are traditional: D (, lit. "cricket bagpipe"), C (), and B♭ (). Galician

pipe band A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of pipers and drummers. The term pipes and drums, used by military pipe bands is also common. The most common form of pipe band consists of a section of pipers playing the Great Highland bagpipe, a ...

s playing these instruments have become popular in recent years. The playing of close harmony (thirds and sixths) with two gaitas of the same key is a typical Galician gaita style. The bagpipe or gaita is known to have been popular in the Middle Ages, as early as the 9th century, but suffered a decline in popularity from the 16th century until a 19th-century revival. It saw another decline in the middle of the 20th century when the Francoist dictatorship tried to use it for propaganda purposes. Then, beginning in about the 1970s, a

roots revival A roots revival (folk revival) is a trend which includes young performers popularizing the traditional musical styles of their ancestors. Often, roots revivals include an addition of newly composed songs with socially and politically aware ly ...

heralded another rebirth. The folk revival may have peaked in the late 1990s, with the release of acclaimed albums by Galician Carlos Núñez (). The gaita began to gain popularity with the massive immigration of Galicians to the United States and Latin America. The foundations of Galician Centers ( / ) in key cities and capitals, from New York City to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Traditional use include both solo performances or with a snare-drum known as (a wooden natural-skinned drum with gut snares), and the , a bass drum. Galician bagpipes come in three main varieties, though there are exceptions and unique instruments. These include the (B-flat), (D) and (C).

Description

The player inflates the bag using his mouth through a tube fitted with a non-return valve. Air is driven into the chanter ( gl, punteiro) with the left arm controlling the pressure inside the bag. The chanter has a double reed similar to a

shawm The shawm () is a conical bore, double-reed woodwind instrument made in Europe from the 12th century to the present day. It achieved its peak of popularity during the medieval and Renaissance periods, after which it was gradually eclipsed by th ...

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. ...

, and a conical bore with seven finger-holes on the front. The bass drone ( or ) is situated on the player's left shoulder and is pitched two octaves below the key note of the chanter; it has a single reed. Some bagpipes have up to two more drones, including the or , which sticks out from the bag and plays an octave above the , or the smaller . These two extra drones are located next to the right arm of the player. The finger-holes include three for the left hand and four for the right, as well as one at the back for the left thumb. The chanter's tonic is played with the top six holes and the thumb hole covered by fingers. Starting at the bottom and (in the Galician fingering pattern) progressively opening holes creates the diatonic scale. Using techniques like cross-fingering and half-holing, the

chromatic scale The chromatic scale (or twelve-tone scale) is a set of twelve pitches (more completely, pitch classes) used in tonal music, with notes separated by the interval of a semitone. Chromatic instruments, such as the piano, are made to produce th ...

can be created. With extra pressure on the bag, the reed can be played in a second octave, thus giving range of an octave and a half from tonic to top note. It is also possible to close the tone hole with the little finger of the right hand, thus creating a semitone below the tonic.

Songs

Tunes using the gaita are usually songs, with the voice either accompanying the instrumentation or taking turns with it. The most common type is the , a sprightly 6/8 rhythm. Other 6/8 Galician tunes use different steps; they include the , , , and . , usually-instrumental tune, most often in 2/4, though sometimes 3/4, and is characterized by a series of descending turning phrases. It is used to begin a day's celebrations, and is played at sunrise. The is a joyful 3/4 jota-type song, often played at (community gatherings at a local shrine).

Famous gaita players

Galicia

Avelino Cachafeiro Avelino Cachafeiro Bugallo, called O Gaiteiro de Soutelo (May 26, 1899 – April 13, 1972) was a Galician musician, who played the gaita, the traditional Galician bagpipe. Cachafeiro also wrote poetry, painted, and owned businesses. In 1969, he p ...

* Perfecto Feijoo * Os Campaneiros * Moxenas * Os Rosales * Carlos Núñez * Anxo Lorenzo * Xosé Manuel Budiño * Cristina Pato * Susana Seivane * Carlos Meiga

External links

GaitaForum.com
a discussion forum for gaitas
"Jota da Mahia" performed by Javier Celada (Heiligkreuzkirche Berlin, 2004)

Gaita Maker
history of the instrument in Americas and Brazil, Gaita Maker {{Music of Spain Spanish musical instruments Galician musical instruments Gaita Bagpipes Portuguese musical instruments Galician symbols