zambra

Under the name of zambra is known in two distinct Andalusian music genres:

  • The first belongs to the ritual of the gypsies of Granada.
  • The second, a theatrical style created by Manolo Caracol for their shows, with which aimed to recreate the Moorish atmosphere of the caves of Sacromonte, thus exploiting the exotic atmosphere that much like the Spanish public in the fifties.

The Granada version is part of the ritual music of the gypsies of Sacromonte and integrates three main dances : “the alboreá ” “the cap ” and “the fly “. Each of which symbolizes a time of gypsy wedding.

The name zambra derives from the Arabic word zamra (flute) or zamara (musicians). It usually appears cited in the literature of the seventeenth and eighteenth with genres such as zapateado, zarabanda and fandango as own genre of the Moors of Granada. Many of these, during the persecutions of XVII, join bands Gypsies who inherit the tradition of zambra and recreate a proper gypsy show. The very popular in the shows of the 50s and 60s of XX century, caracolera zambra is inspired by a type of music which highlights the exoticism as defendant at the time, evoking the atmosphere of the gypsy caves of Sacromonte.