Group of instruments of the cobla. Folk and ethnic music lived alongside the orchestral music of the 19th century. Photo by Rafael Vargas.
While orchestral and theatrical music was developing in the 19th century, the different forms of popular music - flamenco, boleros, sardanas, fado, tango and so on - enjoyed a parallel development that saw them interact with each other. Social change at the end of the century inspired Europe to look again at its traditional music and those of other countries as a source of inspiration and new musical languages. The result was a series of nationalist, impressionist and folk-based works. Choirs and instrumental groups - like the Catalan cobla de sardanes, xeremies, rondalles, gralles and other local forms - changed and adopted the languages and techniques of other types of music, which has enabled them to survive to the present day and offer us oral traditions on historical interpretation that were thought to be lost.
