Meet the artist special: Muchacho & Los Sobrinos from Barcelona
From Spain to Førde :
The boy from the gypsy quarter
It's raining heavily in Barcelona. Miguel Serviole shrinks under the green umbrella, unaccustomed to the weeping sky, but suddenly he brightens up: - Look, there's mom!
We walk along the street id´Hostafrancs in Barcelona where Miguel and the others in the band Muchacho & Los Sobrinos grew up, by the well-known landmark Placa d'Espanya.
On hot summer days, the family used to bring food and spend several hours around the cooling waters of the Font Màgica - the Magic Fountain - which was built for the 1929 World's Fair. The large plaza is an attraction for tourists visiting Barcelona, but it is also the garden of resident gypsies and other city dwellers who grew up in the heart of the great metropolis.
We are invited into the warmth
Vocalist and guitarist Miguel shows us around the paradise of childhood. This is where we bump into Mom; a small but unwavering woman with a fixed gaze. We are at the family-run pizza restaurant La Pizza Loca. In Norwegian it means something like "the crispy pizza", probably in a double sense. Our arrival arouses curiosity. There is laughter and loud voices and an endless line of espresso cups. First-class coffee, that being said.
Soon his brother Enrique will also appear. He plays in the band and will be joining in. Førde in July. Mom, on the other hand, has to stay home and make sure everyone is okay. That's Mom's job.
In with breast milk
The family is the unifying point in Gypsy or Romani culture, whether it is Romania, Spain, or India, where they are said to originate. Music is a natural part of everyday life. Everyone in the family plays an instrument, sings or dances. It is in the blood, a rhythm as natural as the beating of the heart.
- It's not like grandma or uncle sits down and teaches us younger ones notes or guitar chords, says Miguel.
- We see, hear and imitate the elderly. We learn to dance before we learn to walk, smiles Miguel. Muchacho among friends.
The band members of Muchacho & Los Sobrinos are either related or close friends from childhood. Everyone has nicknames. In the nine-man band, there is a Rocky and a Rambo and a Mosquetón ("carabiner"). Muchacho simply means "boy".
- It's a nickname we got growing up. Everyone called me Muchacho, and it's stuck with me. Rambo liked to fight. Mosqueton got the name from his grandfather, but no one knows why, says the 37-year-old boy from the gypsy quarter.
Muchacho and his brother Enrique
Round rumba
The music of the Catalan gypsies is different from that of Andalusia. It is tropical rumba, not fiery flamenco.
Rumba music is a natural part of weddings and other family celebrations. But the daily music - everyday music - is found in the local Protestant church.
"Many people go to church almost every day. This is where the music happens," says Muchacho.
The Catalan gypsies stand out in several ways, according to our friend Mariela, herself a gypsy from Cuba. She is accompanying us as an interpreter and allowed herself a personal observation about similarities and differences.
- Gypsy culture is first and foremost a way of life, a philosophy. Everything revolves around the family. We take care of the elderly and provide them with care at home, just as they took care of us when we were little. We have this in common. But I have the impression that the Catalan Gypsies are calmer than other Gypsies. They are more like other settled people.
Laugh or cry?
Muchacho & Los Sobrinos' music is young and urban. The lyrics are partly in Spanish and partly in Catalan. The lyrics can be harsh, for example they make fun of greedy landlords who charge too much for rent, but they stay away from big politics.
- I don't want to mix flags and I don't mean anything about the Catalan secession from Spain. When I play, I want to make friends, not enemies. I want the audience to react - with tears, dancing or laughter - it doesn't matter what. As long as they get something out of the music.
Text and photo: BlackStarJournal