Oral Musical Traditions of the Balearic Islands

IB3, a public television network of Spain’s Balearic Islands, has produced a new Catalan program dedicated to the Islands’ oral music and dance traditions. The program, called Aire, examines a unique tradition in each episode—such as el cant redoblat, els cossiers, and les gloses—looking at its historic place in the Islands and how it has evolved in the modern era. For example, episode 9, on el cant redoblat, visits with local musicians and scholars to provide an overview of the tradition and showcases the broad range of the style with several performances, from the truly traditional to modern rock.

The Foundation for Iberian Music’s director, Antoni Pizà, served as a consultant for the series. He is interviewed in episode 13, Caçadors de Cançons (Song Hunters), which will air on January 23rd. The series unfortunately does not (yet) have subtitles available, but Catalan speakers should check out this enjoyable series. We think that it does an excellent job making scholarly work accessible. Episodes that have already aired can be streamed on IB3’s website, or on YouTube.