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Murga is a form of popular
musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...
performed in
Montevideo
Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...
,
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
,
Panama
Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
and
Badajoz
Badajoz (; formerly written ''Badajos'' in English) is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. It is situated close to the Portuguese border, on the left bank of the river Guadiana. The population ...
,
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 ...
during the
Carnival
Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...
season. Murga groups also operate in the
Buenos Aires Carnival The Buenos Aires Carnival ( or ''Corso de Buenos Aires'') is an annual event that takes place during the Carnival festivities, usually at the end of February, on the streets of Buenos Aires, Argentina. The two-day event features murga parades, colo ...
, though to a lesser extent than in Montevideo; the Argentinian murga is more centred on dancing and less on vocals than the Uruguayan one. Uruguayan murga has a counterpart in
Cadiz,
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 ...
from which it is derived, the
chirigota ''Chirigota'' is a genre of Spanish choral folksong originating in the Province of Cádiz. The songs are satirical in nature and are performed predominantly in the streets by costumed performers during the annual two week carnival. It has been desc ...
, but over time the two have diverged into distinct forms.
A murga performance features up to 17 performers, usually men. In the period preceding Carnival, which takes place from late January to early March in Uruguay, each group will prepare a musical play consisting of a suite of songs and
recitative
Recitative (, also known by its Italian name "''recitativo''" ()) is a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms and delivery of ordinary speech. Recitative does not repea ...
(heightened speech) lasting around 45 minutes. This suite will be performed on community stages known as ''tablados'', set up in Montevideo's various neighbourhoods, throughout the Carnival period. Groups also vie against one another in a prestigious official competition.
Lyrical content is based on a particular theme, chosen by the group, which serves to provide commentary on events in Uruguay or elsewhere over the preceding year. Consequently, murga lends itself well to being used as a form of popular resistance. For example, during the dictatorship in Uruguay in the 1970s, groups like became known for their left-wing tendencies, subversive commentary and oppositional stance.
A traditional murga group is composed of a
chorus
Chorus may refer to:
Music
* Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse
* Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound
* Chorus form, song in which all verse ...
and three percussionists and this is the type of murga performed on stages at Carnival. The singers perform in polyphony using up to five vocal parts. Vocal production tends to be nasal and loud with little variation in volume. The percussion instruments, derived from the European military band, are ''bombo'' (a shallow
bass drum
The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter much greater than the drum's depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. Th ...
worn at the waist and played horizontally), ''redoblante'' (
snare drum) and ''platillos'' (clash
cymbals). The two most important pieces of the performance are the opening song (''saludo'') and the exit song (''retirada'' or ''despedida''). These get played on the radio during the Carnival period and some of them, such as the Saludo Araca La Cana 1937, are cherished by Uruguayans as cultural icons.
''Murguistas'' dress in elaborate, colourful, jester-like costumes. Staging is sparse with minimal use of props. The singers tend to be foregrounded with the percussionists at the back or off to the side of the stage.
The musical style or rhythmic structures of the murga is sometimes incorporated into Uruguayan popular music. Examples of artists who have included murga in their arrangements are
Jaime Roos
Jaime Roos (born November 12, 1953 in Montevideo) is an Uruguayan singer, composer and record producer. In 2000, he won a Silver Condor Award for Best Score Musician in El Amateur. He has French blood from his father's side. His grandfather mig ...
,
Rubén Rada
Omar Ruben Rada Silva (born 16 July 1943) is a Uruguayan percussionist, composer, and singer. He is closely associated with candombe, a genre built around a chorus of ''tamboriles'', Uruguayan barrel drums. Rada has recorded more than thirty albu ...
,
No Te Va Gustar
No Te Va Gustar, also known by their initials NTVG (English: You Won't Like It), are a rock band from Uruguay. The members are: Emiliano Brancciari (vocals and guitar), Guzmán Silveira (bass and backup vocals), Diego Bartaburu (drums), Gonza ...
,
Máximo Diego Pujol , and
Alejandro Balbis
Alejandro Ernesto Balbis (Montevideo, December 4, 1967) is a Uruguayan singer, composer, guitarist and producer.
Biography
Early life
Alejandro Balbis took his first steps in music at a young age, taking guitar lessons with Jorge Lazaroff, ...
. It has also been incorporated by some Argentine artists, such as
Bersuit Vergarabat
Bersuit Vergarabat is an Argentine rock band that formed formally in 1987.
History
The previous name of the band (from 1987 to May 1989) was ''Henry y la Palangana''. By the end of 1989, the band had changed name several times, adopting nonse ...
,
Los Auténticos Decadentes
Los Auténticos Decadentes (Spanish for "The Authentic Decadents") is an Argentine band that mixes ska with Latin American rhythms. The band was formed around the year 1986 by Cucho and Nito, who invited Gastón to join them.
Their first hit was ...
, and
Los Fabulosos Cadillacs
Los Fabulosos Cadillacs is an Argentine ska band from Buenos Aires.
Background and style
Formed in 1985, they released their first album, ''Bares y Fondas'' (Bars and Boardinghouses), in 1986 and have since released fourteen more albums. They ...
.
A very famous song involving a Murga is the song "
El Matador" by Los Fabulosos Cadillacs. It also incorporates the use of a
whistle
A whistle is an instrument which produces sound from a stream of gas, most commonly air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a small slide whistle or nose flute type to a lar ...
, a very common element in the Argentine Murga.
References
See also
*
Rondalla
The rondalla is an ensemble of stringed instruments played with the plectrum or pick and generally known as plectrum instruments. It originated in Medieval Spain, especially in the ancient Crown of Aragon: Catalonia, Aragon, Murcia, and V ...
*
Candombe
''Candombe'' is a style of music and dance that originated in Uruguay among the descendants of liberated African slaves. In 2009, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) inscribed ''candombe'' in its Repres ...
{{Authority control
Argentine folklore
Argentine music
Dance in Argentina
Argentine dances
Uruguayan folklore
Uruguayan styles of music
Carnivals in Uruguay
Carnivals in Argentina
Carnival music