Traditional music
Besides opening your ears wide in the streets of Funchal, there is no better way to discover the folk and traditional music of the archipelago than by listening to Xarabanda. Founded in 1981, the group has a quasi ethnomusicological goal: the collection, preservation, reinterpretation and diffusion of Madeira's musical traditions. Its compositions offer an unparalleled panorama of the archipelago's musical heritage, especially its first album Tocares e cantares tradicional da Madeira. His albums are also an opportunity to hear all the typical instruments of the island, starting with the braguinha (or machete), a small guitar ancestor of the ukulele, and the brinquinho. The latter is a particularly curious percussion instrument, a sort of cousin of the tambourine. It takes the form of a tree of miniature folkloric dolls holding castanets and bells, all of which are operated with vertical movements. It is not uncommon to find nine-string viols, accordions, drums or triangles in folk orchestras.
If some traditions are inexorably lost, others manage to be preserved (notably, once again, thanks to the help of Xarabanda). There are different types of traditional songs, which were not really invented by the Madeirans, but rather adapted from the multiple influences that the archipelago has known over the centuries: the charamba, partially improvised - possibly of Arab origin and once so little practiced that it was on the verge of extinction -, as well as the mourisca and bailinho sung and danced. We should also mention the agricultural work songs, once very common, but now disappearing.
Traditional music is everywhere in Madeira: at home, at parties, on every street corner. And if some events are dedicated to it - such as the Regional Folklore Festival of Santana and its 48 hours of festivities - it also gives rhythm to most of the big events and various festivities. For example, one is sure to hear great bands at the Funchal Flower Festival, a major event in the archipelago and a true festival of colors and perfumes, at the Feira Da Cana de Açucar, an annual sugarcane fair held in the village of Canhas, the very popular Saint John's Day festivities, the Atlantic Roots Festival, a beautiful event dedicated to world and traditional music, as well as the Madeira Music Festival which takes place in some of the most beautiful places in the capital(Baltazar Dias Municipal Theater, College Church, Santa Clara Convent..). It is also worth noting that the Centro Cultural John Dos Passos de Ponto do Sol is a residence for folklore groups and the municipal band.The Fado
Although far from the mainland, Madeira is a true Portuguese region where, as in the rest of the country, fado is played and listened to. Originating from the Portuguese metropolis - especially Lisbon and Coimbra - Fado expresses that uniquely Portuguese feeling of saudade. Full of melancholy, nostalgia and hope (the essence of saudade), fado has made a place for itself in Madeira, adapting to the soul of the place. A great performer of Madeiran fado is Maximiano de Sousa (1918-1980). He became famous under the name of Max, and was one of the most popular fado singers from the 1940s until today in the whole of the Lusophonie.
If serendipity often proves to be the best guide to finding fado (as in Lisbon), the restaurant Sabor A Fado has made a specialty of programming it (as the name suggests). Nestled in the old town of Funchal, this family-run house welcomes resident artists, guests and even some up-and-coming talent.Classical music
All Portuguese heritage aside, there is no scholarly musical tradition of its own in Madeira. That said, it is important to mention a great figure linked to the island: Pedro Camacho (1979). A contemporary composer of classical and religious music as well as film and video game music, Pedro Camacho is known for his Requiem to Inês de Castro and his soundtrack for the game Star Citizen. Born in Funchal, this gifted musician is one of the most followed Portuguese figures in scholarly music and one of the few great Madeiran names in contemporary music.
Similar to Camacho's aesthetic, Madeira offers an event that one would never think to find on an archipelago of this size: Madeiradig. An international digital arts festival based in Calheta since 2004, the event brings together the best of internationally renowned artists in the fields of electronic, scholarly, contemporary and avant-garde music. A little piece of the future in a paradisiacal landscape.The dance
Madeira's folkloric dances evoke different episodes of its history. Some, like the Punta do Sol dance, symbolize the time of slavery. Others, more joyful, recall the time of the grape harvest, such as the Baile Pesado where the dancers mime in their movements the treading of the grapes or the transport of the sacks. The most famous is undoubtedly the joyful bailinho das camacheiras, a very popular couple's dance with a regular rhythm, possibly originating in the Algarve. Almost as widespread, the chamarrita is danced in a circle and has palpable Moorish origins. More rare is the danca de espedas, a dance of swords from Ribeira Brava.
An event where you are sure to find folkloric dances is the Madeira Carnival, a must on the archipelago with numerous dance troupes parading through the main avenues of Funchal.
