Folclore da Madeira
An important role in the madeirian life plays the
folklore. Actually no day passes on Madeira, on which in any city or small village one does not
encounter the aspiration-groups, which tell with their rhythmic songs from the old time and the cumbersome life. The singers of the small chapels
are supported by instrument groups, which can produce much music with amazingly few instruments. A typical instrument is the
"doll-tree": The dolls are connected with a cord among themselves and
serve the rhythm.
Otherwise a guitar and an accordion is sufficient.
Still something is rather showy, in fact the quite high share
of very young protagonists. Each age is represented in these folklore-groups.
And it is to be seen in the faces of also the youngest that they are with it
with body and soul, even if the temperatures sometimes do not actually encourage to
move too much. And they move really very extensively with these dances. As previously mentioned, these songs tell of
the life on Madeira, and this was, and still is partially quite cumbersome, if
you are not a tourist. The harvest in the small
terrace-fields, that must be brought from very big heights to valley, the care of the few animals on the plateaus, the construction of the
levadas, that was advanced with the slaves, - all that finds expression in
those dances. You can be able to tell it by the look at the protagonists, which situations
they show because of the expressiveness of the dances.
Whoever however now thinks, that it is about a very gloomy
issue, wanders. With all that, the solidarity of the inhabitants from Madeira comes
to expression. In one of the most famous songs, the 'bailinho da Madeira', you hear:
"a Madeira é um jardim como não há outro igual" - Madeira is a garden like there is no other.
Furthermore, one knows to tell also about amusing histories. So
each female tourist should be early warned, if it is about the wedding-dance.
On this occasion it is about a bachelor, who had to ask his adored three times until she finally consented to the
wedding. The third time the next-best female touist is being caught: she is simply moved into the circle.
That is a "sport", that all folklore-groups practice equally gladly, so to speak,
even if you cannot compare them. Each group has its own character as well as in the official dresses, by which an expert can recognize anytime, from which village they come, as in also the
way they interpret the songs.
If thus the young man got a "nao" (no) twice, you should go in cover, if
you are female. Or do simply take part the fun. If you want to surprise the protagonists,
you answer
the question in the purest portuguese "sim" (spoken: ßî, means "yes").
That should provide some surprise. But the men of creation should not laugh
now too gloatingly about the poor, surprised tourist, which is in the middle
of the circle now. If namely the adored has said "yes", everyone is asked to dance
with the group. Whereby "asked" is not the really the way, they do
it - the ladies of the group mix in a lightning action under the standing
around, and whoever looks like being a tourist and has only the quietest breath of "I don't want to" in his face, has
already lost so to speak. All in all a
funny issue.
