This paper explores “traditional” music and dance expression in Galicia, along with contemporary conceptions of “authenticity” in current forms of musical transmission and practice. It examines how “traditional” culture is passed down through “formal” instruction in urban cultural centers and associations, particularly in Santiago de Compostela, and is enacted both in participatory music and dance gatherings, known as foliadas, as well as in staged folkloric performances. The study also considers the repertoires of this cultural knowledge, which are based in recollidas - the documentation of “informal” music, song and dance practices of os vellos (elderly generations) in rural communities. Given that os vellos represent the origin and revered repository of Galician music and dance expression in its “organic” and “informal” state, the present paper examines how younger generations involved in urban foliadas perceive the documentation, transmission and execution of these “authentic” expressions. The issue brings forth the ongoing debate between the dichotomies of rurality versus urbanity and informal versus formal cultural transmission. Drawing from ethnographic fieldwork and interviews with foliada participants in Santiago de Compostela, this paper explores both a pride in contemporary forms of cultural expression and a nostalgic yearning for how os vellos once played music and danced. Thus, this paper will discuss complex themes such as “tradition,” “contemporaneity,” “authenticity,” and the contradictory ideologies that surround them. It will also address inconsistencies between mourning the loss of “traditional” expressions of venerable vellos and the methods used today to “save” tradition. Ultimately, this paper aims to delve into the historical perceptions of “authenticity,” notions of musical mourning, and contemplate the contemporary practices surrounding the safeguarding of Galician music and dance.
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| Objeto : | : | SIBE Junior - Comunicación |
| Idioma del texto completo | : | inglés |
| Comentario | : | Kalee Rose Prendergast is a PhD student and grant-holder at NOVA FCSH, INET-md. She completed a B.A. in Spanish from the California State University, Fullerton (2014), including one year study abroad at the University of Granada, Spain; and an M.A. in Ethnomusicolgy from NOVA-FCSH (2022). Her dissertation, “‘Cantarte, hei Galicia, na lengua gallega': Music, dance and the normalization of the Galician language in Santiago de Compostela” was inspired by the interplay of the musical and sociolinguistic phenomena witnessed during her five years living and working in Galicia. Her research reflects on cultural “identity” embedded in Galician music and dance gatherings (foliadas), and the interrelationship these environments have with Galician language use. She was awarded the title ‘honorable mention' for the Galician translation of her master's dissertation at the ceremony for I Prémio Internacional de Estudos Galegos through the Universidade do Minho (CEHUM). Selected parts of this research have recently been presented in the chapter: “Así fai o quen ben baila : Galician dance and cultural identity”; a contribution to the book “Beyond sentidiño: New Diasporic Reflections on Galician Culture”, published by Routledge. Most intrigued by correlating debates regarding “authenticity” among the transmission of musical and linguistic expression, she plans to continue exploring the interrelations of these identity markers in her Doctoral thesis. In addition to her academic achievements, she has led Galician music and dance workshops at the Centro de Estudos Galegos at Universidade Nova de Lisboa, and is a member of the Xuventude de Galicia - Centro Galego de Lisboa, where she plays, sings and dances in formal performances and informal gatherings, often engaging in discussions about Galician culture. |
| Temáticas | : | Educación formal e informal: transmisiones del conocimiento musical/Educação formal e informal: transmissões do conhecimento musical |
| Contraseña | : | tradition ; contemporaneity ; authenticity ; cultural transmission |
| PDF version | : |  PDF version |
