Musicians, composers, poets...
Déodat de Séverac - 1872-1921. This composer, who died in Céret, expressed his love of the region in an opera, Le Coeur du Moulin, and in several collections of beautiful piano music.
Pablo Casals 1876 -1973. The famous Spanish cellist who revolutionized the history of this instrument because of his modern way of playing it fled Franco's regime in 1939 and settled permanently in Prades en Conflent. He created the famous Festival in 1956. The master does not move anymore; the artists and the world will come to him.
Jordi Barre 1920- 2011. When the vineyards surrounded the city (until the 1950s), Catalan was the language of all and even the language of the vine, according to the elders. This need to rediscover one's roots may have led the northern Catalans to take up Jordi Barre. The singer of the Nova Cancó catalana passed away at the age of 91 and his crooner's voice still gives you the chills. The man with 200 compositions has left a great void.
Cali. This young musician from Vallespir has succeeded in Paris but has not forgotten his Catalan country. After a youth scouring the bars of the department with his group Tom Scarlett, Bruno Calicciuri (that's his name), a talented composer, was able to impose his style and win the heart of a large public.
Gérard Jacquet. Author, composer, interpreter, poet and storyteller, Gérard Jacquet was, for many years, host on France Bleu Roussillon. His songs for living and laughing are a reflection of our life here, of the village squares, of the old people who type the cardboard and of the grannies who talk in front of the doorsteps. Defining himself as a soca, a stump, with long and deep roots, he remains one of the main transmitters of our traditions.
The sardana
Les Havanères
The Havanères are a musical genre born in Havana around 1830 and assimilated here to the songs of sailors. During the 19th century, many Catalans left to try to make their fortune in Cuba (nowadays, many Cubans bear Catalan surnames, such as Partagas, the world-famous cigar brand). Those who regularly made crossings between the old continent and the Caribbean, aboard ships whose holds were overflowing with rum and tobacco, brought back with them, on each trip, a bit of the islands' culture. In 1905, when the war between Cuba and Spain broke out, they were forced to leave the island, taking with them in their memories these swaying songs with melancholic accents mixed with gaiety, sarsuelas, which sometimes remind us of fado, flamenco and African rhythms. The terms approached turn mainly around the sea, the sailor, his environment and especially the woman. Accompanied by guitar, accordion and double bass, the havaneres are passed on orally until they become anchored in the Catalan culture.
The Catalan Rumba
Just like the sardana or the havaneres, the Catalan rumba is part of our cultural heritage and is without doubt the one that appeals to the widest audience. It is a mixed music with a touch of salsa, mambo, flamenco and a sprinkling of rock, jazzy, and even more if you like... it is an international success. Born in the 50's, in the districts of Barcelona, and more exactly in the district of Raval, the paternity is attributed to two gipsy musicians " Orelles " and " Toqui ", but it is under the impulse of the great musician Pedro Pubill Calaf (1935-2014) known as Peret, that it will take its universal dimension. Peret is, in fact, the inventor of the famous "ventilador", a technique that consists of hitting the guitar body with the right hand while plucking the strings in a rhythmic movement reminiscent of the blades of a fan. On August 9, 1992, Peret's rumbas animated the closing ceremony of the Barcelona Olympic Games in front of a billion television viewers. In France, it is in Perpignan, within the gipsy community of the Saint Jacques district that the Catalan rumba is introduced at the beginning of the 70s. It did not take long for it to spread like wildfire in the Saint Mathieu and Haut Vernet neighbourhoods, giving rise to a poignant and muscular Perpignanese rumba with a vibrant and authentic rhythm defended with a talented passion by local groups. A source of inspiration for many artists, there is a plethora of groups with worldwide success that mix Catalan rumba with other musical genres today. It should be noted that for the past ten years, a file has been under study for its recognition as UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage.
