The music of the
Canary Islands reflects its cultural heritage. The islands used to be inhabited by the
Guanches
The Guanches were the indigenous inhabitants of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean some west of Africa.
It is believed that they may have arrived on the archipelago some time in the first millennium BCE. The Guanches were the only nativ ...
which are related to
Berbers; they mixed with Spaniards, who live on the islands now. A variant of
Jota is popular, as is
Latin music
Latin music ( Portuguese and es, música latina) is a term used by the music industry as a catch-all category for various styles of music from Ibero-America (including Spain and Portugal) and the Latino United States inspired by Latin Amer ...
, which has left its mark in the form of the
timple
The timple is a traditional five-string plucked string instrument of the Canary Islands. It started being manufactured in the 19th century.
In La Palma island and in the north of the island of Tenerife, many timple players omit the fifth (D) ...
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
.
There has been a strong connection with
Cuban music
The music of Cuba, including its instruments, performance, and dance, comprises a large set of unique traditions influenced mostly by west African and European (especially Spanish) music. Due to the syncretic nature of most of its genres, Cuban mu ...
, Venezuelan, Puerto Rican, and other Caribbean countries both through commerce and migration.
Popular dances from the Canary Islands include:
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Isas
*
Tajaraste Tajaraste (From Berber TAJARAST) is combined music and dance typical of the Canary Islands, (Spain). It is specific to the islands of Tenerife and La Gomera
La Gomera () is one of Spain's Canary Islands, located in the Atlantic Ocean off ...
*
Baile del Candil
*
Baile de Cintas
*
Danza de Enanos
*
El Santo Domingo
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Tanganillo
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Folias
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Malagueña
Of these, the
Isas, a local variation of
Jota, are the best-known and most characteristic of the Canary Islands. They are graceful music, with much variation between islands. In some places, a ''captain'' leads the dance and organizes others in a chain as the dance grows more and more complex.
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 ...
arrangements are very common. Instruments include charangas,
timple
The timple is a traditional five-string plucked string instrument of the Canary Islands. It started being manufactured in the 19th century.
In La Palma island and in the north of the island of Tenerife, many timple players omit the fifth (D) ...
s (similar to a
cavaquinho /
ukulele
The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings.
The tone and volume of the instrumen ...
),
castanets,
pandereta
This is a list of membranophones used in the Caribbean music area, including the islands of the Caribbean Sea, as well as the musics of Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Belize, Garifuna music, and Bermuda. It only includes membranophones that are ...
s,
lauds and
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
s. A peculiar ensemble in
El Hierro
El Hierro, nicknamed ''Isla del Meridiano'' (the "Meridian Island"), is the second-smallest and farthest-south and -west of the Canary Islands (an autonomous community of Spain), in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa, with a populatio ...
island is made of
pito herreño players (a wooden transverse flute) and drums. Some ritual dances in
Tenerife
Tenerife (; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the archipelago. With a land area of and a population of 978,100 inhabitants as of Janu ...
island are led by a
tabor pipe
The three-hole pipe, also commonly known as tabor pipe or galoubet, is a wind instrument designed to be played by one hand, leaving the other hand free to play a tabor drum, bell, psalterium or ''tambourin à cordes'', bones, triangle or other pe ...
player. Joyful music for carnival lies to a big extent on
brass bands and Latin American patterns.
Canary musicians
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Brandania
*
Pedro Guerra
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Rosana
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Valentina la de Sabinosa
{{Music of Africa
Canary Islands
Canarian culture