The musical director of the Murga Los Nietos de Kika, Sergio León, marks the entry of about thirty men who, with a carnival whistle in hand, met this evening in a municipal theater in Arucas (Gran Canaria, 38,400 inhabitants) for the dress rehearsal guide before the start of the carnival. “In it we give President Torres and the girls [por chicharrero, el calificativo que reciben los habitantes de Santa Cruz de Tenerife y, por extensión, los de toda la isla]says proudly Orlando Jiménez, 69 years old, president of the formation for 47 years.
The Nietos de Kika Afilarmónica is the second oldest murga of the archipelago, created in 1976 “in the image and likeness” – a term used by Jiménez – of the dean NiFú-NiFá of Tenerife (who in turn by the chirigotas of Cádiz) , which dates back to the 1950s, a murga is now considered an afilarmónica (a term invented by NiFú-NiFá himself in the 1950s when the civil governor banned the festival and all associated terms such as murga). wins the competition three consecutive or five alternate years. Both the members of the group and the President himself cannot hide the excitement of the return of the most important festival of all celebrated on the islands. “This year is undoubtedly something very special,” emphasizes Jiménez. “We love carnival more than ever.”
That excitement can be felt the same way in the streets of both capitals after a year of suspension – 2021 – and another at half throttle – 2022 pushed back into the summer. Cristina, a waitress on one of the terraces that crowd the Parque Santa Catalina, the epicenter of the Gran Canaria Carnival, a few meters from the main stage of the celebrations, explains it perfectly. “My child, this year we swapped the masks for the masks [persona disfrazada con la cara tapada] and that’s good for the mind and for business,” he affirms with an ironic smile.
The economic question is not insignificant: according to figures from the town halls, each of the two carnivals has an economic effect of between 35 and 40 million euros. But for the Canary Islands it is often about more than just money. “The essence of Carnival is socializing, much more than big galas,” explain sources from Santa Cruz City Hall. “And at few parties there is as much contact for a canary as at carnival. That’s why the break was so painful for us.”
Rehearsal of the murga Afilarmónica Los niitos de Kika, on Friday 3 February at the Nuevo Teatro Viejo in Arucas.
Carnival in the Canary Islands has its roots in the decades following the Castilian conquest in the late 15th century, with the first direct mentions dating back to the late 16th century. Various historians, such as Israel Campos from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, point out that the settlement of merchants of Italian origin formed the seed of the celebrations. “Carnival was definitely Venetian back then,” he explains. In the 19th century, the festival takes a turn with the appearance of private companies organizing parades of the little masks. The historian continues, writings from the 18th century were recovered, in which the bishops ask the population to behave decently during the carnival.
In 1917, according to Santa Cruz Corporation sources, a key event occurred when the gunboat Laya, with a crew from Cadiz, docked in Santa Cruz Harbor. This contact formed the seed for the emergence of the Murgas, the island translation of the Chirigotas of the Andalusian city. The tradition of electing a queen dates back to the 1930s; the comparsas based on the parties of Rio de Janeiro in the 1960s. The Franco regime initially banned the celebrations and “later attempted to baptize them as a winter festival”. Both times without much success, Campos recalls.
The best known internationally is the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife (205,000 inhabitants), brought to the center of the city with the advent of democracy. It was declared a Festival of International Tourist Interest in 1980. In 2019, the last year of full normality before the Covid, the event brought together more than 400,000 people for the concert offered by the Dominican Juan Luis Guerra in the capital. This year, the city government has invested about 3.2 million euros in organizing New York-themed parties.
The celebrations officially kicked off in the city on January 20th. The Murgas final took place on Friday February 3rd with the Trapaseros winning in Interpretation. However, its highlights are yet to come: the Gala de la Reina on February 15th, the Daytime Carnival on February 19th and the Coso, a huge parade of floats that runs along Avenida Anaga on February 21st. . The importance of these celebrations for the city has led the government team of José Manuel Bermúdez (Coalition of the Canary Islands) to propose to the groups taking part in the celebrations – about 6,000 people – to receive the Canary Islands Prize 2023 within the framework of the altruistic modality and solidarity actions.
The carnival in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (population 380,000) has exploded in popularity since the 1990s, although in recent years it has met with opposition from local residents who are trying to evict it from the city center – “Maybe” , explains Israel Campos, “a sign that unlike Cadiz, the locals don’t see it as their own” -. It was declared a Festival of National Tourist Interest in 2017, mainly promoted after hosting the Drag Queen Gala since 1998, which according to the City Council is a pioneer in the world. Despite protests from residents, Inmaculada Medina, Councilor for Public Services and Carnival, claims that “it’s part of the identity of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, an open and cosmopolitan city.”
The investment by the government team of Mayor Augusto Hidalgo (PSOE) has regained the splendor of yesteryear and is between 3.5 and 4 million euros (not counting the contribution of the sponsors). The main events of the celebrations in Gran Canaria, which have the theme of the New York disco Studio 54, are the Gala de la Reina (February 24th), the aforementioned Drag Queen Gala (March 3rd) and the Great Parade in the whole city (March 4th).
The Murgas final in Gran Canaria is scheduled for Saturday the 18th and for this event Los Nietos de Kika are preparing four songs as well as the presentation and the farewell. All for the love of art. “We have everything there,” says Orlando Jiménez, pointing to the stage with his chin, where the Afilarmónica sings to the Canary President Ángel Víctor Torres. “We have doctors, anesthesiologists, plumbers… and even two retirees. Some arrive stained from the piece, but samples are not lost. Carnival connects us all”.
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