Puerto Soller surrenders to the ‘havaneres’. | LAURA BECERRA
The havanera (aka habanera) can be traced back to the early decades of the nineteenth century in Cuba.
Both song and dance, it was the musical element which lead a Basque composer, Sebastián Iradier, to popularise the song La Paloma and for Georges Bizet to feature a havanera - Love Is A Rebellious Bird - in his 1875 opera Carmen.
From Cuba, there was to be a musical route to Spain and to Catalonia in particular, where havaneres became an element of the Nova Cançó, Catalan new song in the 1950s. In 1966, a small song festival was held in the tiny fishing village of Calella de Palafrugell in Girona (Catalonia). Now an annual event that attracts thousands, this festival cemented havaneres in Catalan folk culture.
Puerto Soller’s annual havaneres gathering isn’t on the scale of the festival in Catalonia, but it is very popular. Held over three nights, the Soller train and tram provide special trips from Palma and back.