Una Pequeña Historia de La Trikitixa Inglés

8/10/2019 Una Pequea Historia de La Trikitixa Ingls

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THANK YOU!

Thank you to the worn straps, to that small bellows and all the people that have enabled me to

enjoy musi in this small part o the world"

#y $randather, %om&n Urra'a, who made me listen to the t(int(arris )bells* o a tambourine

or the irst time+

#y mother, Kont(a Urra'a, who passed on to me the stren$th and ener$y o dane, the

movement o those arms in a small kithen in %ekalde+

#y ather and brothers, who have always supported me, ollowed me and heered me on+

#y riends rom the nei$hborhood, %ekalde+ was so luky to have -aki .abaleta and /os0#ar1a 2antia$o 3#otriku4! To$ether we traveled and disovered a small part o 5uskal Herria+

6e shared ar rides, e(itement and e(perienes in trikiti(a territory+ 7unny how somethin$ as

simple and small as this instrument and its world at the time seemed like an immense

universe+

The dane $roup 38eti /ai Alai4, where learned how to play the alboka and almost hidden in

those dressin$ rooms, learned how to play that $reen 9arrina$a that overwhelmed me with

that uni:ue sound+ t was also important to learn how to play the t(istu in %ekalde and also

listen to the irst assette tapes and the new reords+

6hen we started $oin$ to urreta and all those small towns and hermita$es, who would have

thou$ht we had a world ull o stories so lose to home!

Also the e(itement and nervousness when meetin$ my trikiti(a idols" 7asio, ;iti, /oakint(u,

%uino, 2alba< The $reats rom =ipu'koa, like 9aja, 5pelde, #artin, .endoia, Aunt(a, 2akabi,

Oria 8rothers, #alt'eta< Those tambourines brou$ht me loser a$ain to my $randather and

mother" #auri'ia, 9andakanda, turbide, 5$a-a'pi< And the youn$sters o our $eneration like

Tapia, munt'o, .abale, #ai(a, 9eturia, 8eloki< Thanks to all o you beause you have helped

me to keep $oin$, to look or motivation, the ener$y need to keep reatin$+

#y riends and mentors rom Oskorri are in my heart+ There>s no way ould have ima$ined

dierent paths without their valuable teahin$s+

an>t or$et ?abier Amuri'a, /uan #ari 8eltr&n, Tili-o, ;ertika, b@n Koteron, manol Urki'u,

%amos, =arikoit' #endi'abal, Oreka T?+ 6ith all o you >ve learned to know your instruments

and danes, allowin$ me to $ive my own vision+ Also thanks to the reord labels who have

believed in my projets, en$ineers, musiians, produtions assistants< Those that are

sometimes invisible but indispensable to arry out these adventures+


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Thank you also to all the people that at some point have wanted me to play at a loal estivity,

weddin$ or air, or a show, or a ollaboration+ You>re a very important part o my ba$$a$e,

beause trust is somethin$ that $ives you a very speial stren$th, the neessary ener$y to push

that bellows+

n onlusion, thanks to all the riends who >ve met in this reative journey, people who have

always enoura$ed me to keep buildin$ musial universes+

6ith this projet, >m elebratin$ B years o inredible adventures with these tiny aordions+

This is my tribute to the world love so muh+ A dream that e(presses my eelin$s or musi+

>ve played son$s that mean a lot to me+ They are like ma$nets that made me want to learn

them when only had a assette tape+ >ve played them in dierent keys+ >ve taken some

artisti lienses with the strutures and >ve han$ed the established orms, but always with

immense respet to this world and all the people who belon$ to it+ >ve thorou$hly enjoyedmysel and >ve elt really ree reatin$ dierent versions+

6ith the tambourines >ve paid tribute to rhythm, whih is an essential part o trikiti(a+ >ve

played with dierent tambourines rom dierent artisans+ >ve been luky enou$h to ill my

home with tambourines o all shapes and si'es+

7or voals, ormed C2or$inakD, a $roup o youn$ ladies rom the trikiti(a world, to e(press a

metaphor rom when started playin$ trikiti(a and tambourine+ They $ive the e(itement and

reshness o the be$innin$ o a journey+

To$ether with the musi, you will have a book with very brave photos rom $ot' .iarreta and

part o my personal ima$e arhive that >ve olleted in my meetin$s with all the trikitrilaris

that have let a mark on me+ There is also a te(t by /o(ean A$irre introduin$ you to the ators

and atresses o this EBF yearlon$ movie+

t is possible that >ve let out some names when writin$ this thank you note+ >ll probably

remember these names tomorrow or maybe ne(t week+ And there are many others that do

remember but there>s not enou$h room or them in this brie te(t+ 8ut all o you have

inluened me, with your ontributions and riendships, you know you>re always in my heart+

This work is dediated to my hildren" #aren, 2unne y Kerman+

K5;A /UNK5%A G 2O%=NAK

A 8%57 H2TO%Y O7 T%KT?A

5I9>2 #U2J


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Ori$inal blues musi was played in the thirties on the #ississippi river banks, at sordid dives

where low :uality alohol was served+ These plaes, the juke joints, were rejeted and

attaked by the Jhristian blak ommunity who oined blues as the evil>s #usi as opposed

to =ospel =od>s #usi L that was sun$ and played in hurh+

n the be$innin$, Trikiti(a was also suspet o induin$ indeent behavior amon$ people,espeially youn$ people+

The theories about the arrival o the instrument ran$e rom people who laim it was

introdued by ;iedmontese workers who, between EMBF and EF used their e(periene

buildin$ the Alps tunnels to help build the 8easainLAltsasua railroad trak, to people who laim

8ilbao to be the ori$in+ The irst thesis, e(plained by A$uirre 7rano in his book CTrikiti(aD,

ar$ued that it ouldn>t have arrived throu$h the 8ilbao port as trikiti(a has hardly any roots in

the oastline, not to mention the ports and it is well rooted in the interior+ He also says the

ori$ins o soinu ti(ikia )diatoni aordion* are in Jentral 5urope )southern =ermany, Austria

and the Alpine re$ions in $eneral*, areas ar rom the oean whih also disprove the theory o

the e(pansion alon$ the oast+

The irst $raphi reerene to a trikiti(a is a photo$raph rom EMF, taken in Altsasu+

On the ontrary, to 8i'kaian popular musi sholars as Ain$eru 8er$uies, the oldest trikitilaris

are rom 8i'kaia and the irst trikiti(a shop, .en$otita, was opened in 8ilbao+ This small

ontroversy helps an the lames o the enturiesLold rivalry between both territories

8ased on the available inormation, we ould summari'e the history o trikiti(a by sayin$ that

there is an early development in 8i'kaia, almost rooted out by the Jivil 6ar in E and ater

the war it is in =ipu'oa where it is inally reborn around the i$ure o 5l$eta, a master who

tau$ht all the relevant i$ures o the $enre+

n 8i'kaia, we had to wait until the ultural resur$ene ater 7rano>s death or people like

trikitilaris %uino Arrola or tambourine player #auri'ia Aldeiturria$a to return to the sene+

%uino Arrola was BM when he started playin$ the soinu t(ikia a$ain and 7asio was P, and even

so, their ativity was unusually intense+

6hen Kepa /unkera started playin$ trikiti(a )he was EB in EMF*, he ound two reerene

points" one entered on urreta )a meetin$ point o several trikitilaris rom 8i'kaia+ t was there

where he met 7asio, #auri'ia and alboka player 9eon, but also %uino Arrola*, not verydeveloped but with $reat personality and the other were the =ipu'koa lassis who had

mastered a $reater tehnial development+ =ipu'koan trikitilaris already had some reordin$s

and that was an advanta$e or the youn$ trikitilari rom 5rrekalde+

Kepa /unkera remembers that when he was EB, he disovered a new world and beame au$ht

between these two poles" C reali'ed that over here trikiti(a was more personal, it was

onditioned by everybody>s personality and in =ipu'koa they had better tehni:ue and they

knew their instrument better+ 7rom the 8i'kaia trikitilaris, 7asio was the one that $ot to me+ He

was more melodi+ %uino had $reat stren$th and rhythm+ The ontrast between these two

reerenes, urreta and =ipu'koa, was key or me to ind my own identityD, says the trikitilari+


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He started peretin$ his style ater the EM ompetition+ He was the only partiipant rom

8i'kaia+ He played several o his own son$s, that he had spent a ew years workin$ on+ Up to

that point Kepa /unkera, .abaleta and #otriku were very popular in 8i'kaia and had many

ans+ C think in the EM t(apelketa )ompetition* there was a new audiene and that allowed

us to start thinkin$ about new ways+ And just went or it, knowin$ still had a lot to learn+

That t(apelketa helped me $et e(posure or my material+ wasn>t tryin$ to ompete with my

idols+ The at that me and #otriku were rom 8ilbao, that we weren>t euskaldun 'aharras and

we had lon$ hair pu''led them a bit+ The t(apelketa opened the doors to the $reat shool, the

=ipu'koa shoolD+

JA22OJK2 AN =UA%A JI9 TH%55 JO%N5%5 HAT2

The trikiti(a rapidLire e(pansion durin$ the irst deade o the PFth entury )and even beore,

aordin$ to on$oin$ investi$ations in 8i'kaia*, is in diret ontrast with the rusade a$ainst itpromoted by the priests rom their pulpits+

Kiriki-o, writer and hroniler in 8as:ue, let a written testimony rom EEQ in whih he

desribes the air elebrated at the Urkiola hei$hts on the seond 2unday o Otober and he

states that C$a'te aldra asko joan ohi dira bidean soinu joten, dult'aina, pandero, atabal, auspo

soinu eta honelakoeka', ikotika eta ujuka, 'oroL'ororikD+

Also A'kue, who was a priest and even 5ibar soialist Toribio 5t(ebarria, omplain about the

obsenity o the son$s sun$ in these airs+ The youths are liberated rom prejudie by drinkin$

and danin$, and aordin$ to the priests> sermons Cwomen throw themselves in the arms omenD+ That>s why the diatoni aordion reeived pejorative niknames like nernuko

Hauspoa, T(erren Hauspoa and so on durin$ this era+

;riests knew throu$h onession the risks o danin$ at airs and they maintained a belli$erent

position a$ainst trikiti(a in $eneral and lose danin$ in partiular until the si(ties+ #auri'ia

Aldeiturria$a used to say than when her husband, trikitilari 8enant'io 8ernaola CKarakolD, said

in onession that he had played some pasodobles, the priest would threaten him with denyin$

him absolution+ Trikitilari Aunt(a>s mother reeived several anonymous letters that told her

that irst she would lose her son>s soul and then hers+ 5very time he ame bak rom a air he

would ind his mother ryin$+

Aordin$ to /ose /abier Abasolo CTili-oD, promoter o the tributes to the old 8i'kaia trikitilaris

rom ERQ on, the =uardia Jivil also joined the repression a$ainst trikiti(a, but or dierent

reasons than the hurh, some people were ined in Arratia and they even broke some

trikitilari>s bellows+ Obviously, the ines imply the e(istene o snithes+

These sules a$ainst lose danin$ reated some absurd situations, as the ones lived in

#adaria$a, an A'koitia nei$hborhood that is ri$ht ne(t to 5l$oibar, at the A'karate hei$hts+

6henever a sheri showed up in A'koitia, where lose danin$ was banned, ouples would

run $i$$lin$ to 5l$oibar, where it wasn>t+


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n Urola they invented the baltseo txikia )minor walt'*, whih onsisted in hu$$in$ your

partner while the trikiti(a son$ was sun$+ t ombined lose danin$ with CseparateD danin$+

8esides the priesthood rejetin$ trikiti(a, we should also add the soial mar$inali'ation

promoted by the authorities, who e(luded it rom estivities and any oiial untions+ The

pampered instrument was t(istu+ n 8as:ue estivities, t(istularis wore kaiku and trikitilareswore blouses, markin$ the dierene between the statuses+

Ain$eru 8er$uies reers to the EFB 8akio patron saint elebrations oiial pro$ram, whih

states" Cater the re$attas are inished )s never been a trikitilari

priest+

Trikiti(a hasn>t been any lukier with elestial sponsors either+ At the be$innin$ o the

seventies, a $roup o trikitilaris deided to hoose the Iir$in o Arrate as their patron saint+

They let a trikiti(a as an oerin$ at her eet+ t didn>t last a week+ Nobody knows who made it

disappear+

#O%5 7%2T NA#52

5ven thou$h the history o trikiti(a is :uite short, it>s ull o le$endary names+ The irst names

known in 8i'kaia, aordin$ to Ain$eru 8er$uies, are" /uan 8autista Uria$ereka )EMP* and

A$ustin 5lorte$i )EM*, rom #arkaida, a nei$hborhood in #un$ia+ t seems more reent

studies are brin$in$ to li$ht more trikitilari names that lived between the two enturies+ n the

Assoiation website, the most veteran known trikitilari is =re$orio Abaro, rom 8ermeo, born

in EM+

Aordin$ to A$uirre 7rano, who wrote a undamental book on this subjet, the irst written

reerenes to trikitilaris by name rom =ipuk'oa $o as ar bak as EFF and they mention

Ormai'te$iko tsua, who played at weddin$s and estivities and also busked or money at the

station and ;edro Urtea$a, rom the Al'ola aser1o, in .umarra$a+ 7ollowin$ we have /os0

Korta C;astorD, C#olloD and #artin Aran'eta+ Around EEM we irst hear about one o the

le$endary trikiti(a men, =ela(to, who orms the 5l$oibar Trikiti(a that year, aompanied by

two emale tambourine players+ A hronile about the 2t+ /ohn bonires on /une PrdEPF in at

5li' Kale in .umarra$a mentions aordionist Kanpa'ar+ /ose Oria and him ormed the irst

stable trikiti(a in 5uskal Herria+ 6e also hear about tsaokorta and ater EPF, the amount o

trikitilaris known by name inreases notieably+

8ut 8er$uies ar$ues that trikiti(a in 8i'kaia was present beore those years+ ;roo o the early

e(pansion o trikiti(a in that territory is the e(istene o the shop .en$otita in Tenderia 2treet

in 8ilbao, whih was also a workshop and they even manuatured instruments, althou$h in


6/52

very small :uantities+ CKepa /unkera owns a trikiti(a manuatured by the %odri$ue' brothers

in the Art(anda workshop around EPF+ 8ut even beore then, .en$otita himsel sold Hohner

brand trikiti(as+ The 5uropean trends arrived in 8ilbao and they e(panded rom here to other

plaes+ 7or e(ample, the 9a Jasilla estivities were renownedD, says Kepa ;ere' Urra'a, who

ollows the steps o Ain$eru 8er$uies in this and other subjets and with whom he>s done

some ield work+ He also adds that the most important inormation disovered by him is the

irst written reerene to trikiti(a+ Ct>s a te(t by historian /uan Jarlos =uerra about the Urkiola

air mentionin$ a Cbrand new aordionD+ t>s a te(t rom EMM+ t>s odd that in a photo$raph

rom that very same year shows a trikiti(a in Altsasu+ And there is a estivities pro$ram rom

8akio in EFB ound by 8er$uies that announes a party with trikiti(a+ These ats prove that

the trikiti(a e(pansion was very ast, althou$h we suspet the oal point was 8ilbao+ The at

that it had an instrument shop proves there was a ollowin$ in that envionment+ =ipu'koa>s

ollowin$ had been so developed at that time, they would have opened a shop in onostiaD+

#aybe as a result o that initial 8i'kaia advanta$e, in Huit'i )Naarroa* or e(ample, their name

or trikiti(a was 8i'kaiLdant'a+ That is, aordin$ to writer Ori(e+

7or /ose /abier Abasolo CTili-oD, promoter o the tributes that would take plae in urreta rom

ERQ on, there are leadin$ i$ures o trikiti(a like 7asio Arandia, %uino Arrola or propia

#auri'ia, that return to the sene motivated by the ultural resur$ene o those years+

Cane ederations are reated, the uran$o 7air, 5' ok Amairu< and it is in this environment

where popular musi )besides trikiti(a we have alboka, dul'aina or t(alaparta* $ets a renewed

momentum+ 6e or$ani'ed the irst tribute to 2erain Aran'eta rom Oromi-o, a nei$hborhood

o urreta, who was a road builder and in EP had reorded an &lbum with 9a Io' de su Amo

in 8ilbao+ 6e reali'ed then that there were veteran trikitilaris livin$ in their ountry houses

that we didn>t know about+ 6e went rom house to house e(tendin$ invitations to the old

mastersD, he says+

8esides Tomas Arri'abala$a C2it'eD, %uino Arrola, 8asilio T(iki )Unda$oitia*, 2alba U$arte, 9uis

8ilbao, #odesto 2olo'abal, 7rutos Aulestialde, 7asio Arandia or #auri'ia, who were born at

the be$innin$ o the entury, Tili-o knew o even older trikitilaris+ 7or e(ample, he knew

tambourine players /uanita and 7elisa 8ermeosolo, rom Nat(itua, who at the time o the

tributes were in their nineties or a trikitilari rom .aratamo, Anton A$irre, lose to EFF years

old who unortunately died beore they $ot to meet him+ He reeived a posthumous tribute+

They also met /uan 5t(ebarri, a trikitilari almost EFF years old who still played with the 2anta

A$eda $roup+ #ost o these trikitilaris had ou$ht in the Jivil 6ar and some o them had

brou$ht their trikiti(as with them+

Kepa /unkera played trikiti(a or the irst time in one o these tributes or$ani'ed by the urreta

estivities ommission+ He went there to play the alboka with the dane $roup 8eti Alai, but in

an intermission he borrowed a trikiti(a to play a son$ and he let the audiene openLmouthed+

Tili-o has a piture rom ER where he is already the trikitilari rom the dane $roup and

sports lon$ hair+ He was only EQ years old+

C7rom EMM on, already PQ years old, Kepa /unkera plays in all the 8i'kaia and most o the

=ipu'koa airs+ n only a ew years he plays all aross the 8as:ue $eo$raphy+ n the town

s:uares he played the lassi repertoire, whih is very vastD, says Tili-o+


7/52

The roster o emale tambourine players is impressive in 8i'kaia+ 8esides the already

mentioned 8ermeosolo sisters, we have %omualda .uloa$a )=aldakao*, 9eona .iarreta )EMMM,

.eanuri*, 7elisa 9ekue )EMRM, ima*, 7rant'iska 9arrina$a )EME, ima*, ;aula 5lorrieta )EFE,

Arratia*, Kattalin Uri$oitia )EMF, 5le(abeitia*, Tomasa 5t(ebarria )EMM, .ollo* or Andresa

barrondo )EF, 5randio =oikoa* and o ourse, #auri'ia )EFQ, .eberio*+ t is rumored that

some o these women drew silhouettes o their boyriends on the skins+

;rimi 5rostarbe )EFR, Arao'* was oetaneous with #auri'ia in =ipukoa+ #anuel 2udupe

C=elat(o .aharraD played with his wie ;ant(ika .ubi'arreta+ Her two sisters #art'elina and

/uliana also played the tambourine, same as #aria 8arrena )Arao'*+ #ar1a 9arra-a$a, la

5t(esakorta>s sister, also played the tambourine+ Also deservin$ a speial mention in this $roup

o emale tambourine players is #ikaela .un'une$i, born in EP in .umarra$a, or havin$

aompanied le$endary 5l$eta or years, as well as also bein$ en$a$ed to him, aordin$ to

Ant(i-e #endi'abal in her book C.umarra$ako Trikiti(aD+ 6e should also say that in #ikaela>s

amily, everyone was a musiian+ Her ather, /o(e Antonio .un'une$i, was a pretty $ood

trikitilari beause he used to play with =ela(o+ Her brother /uan #ari played the trikiti(a and

her sister #arit(u played the tambourine+

7rant'iska Antonia ri'ar, mother de /ose Oria, rom the .umarra$a Trikiti(a de .umarra$a, was

also a tambourine player+

t is evident that tambourine predates trikiti(a+ t had aompanied alboka, or e(ample, and

had been a main solo player in the airs, beause there were women that ould liven up a

dane with just a tambourine and their voie+

5U2KA%A>2 #A;

t is surprisin$ that a orei$n instrument would adapt so easily to this land and in a ew years it

would e(pand to a $ood part o the 8as:ue $eo$raphy+ we take into aount that the same

phenomenon happened in the alpine re$ions thirty years beore and that it atually ousted the

indi$enous instruments, we have to ome to the onlusion that soinu t(ikia had virtues )in the

words o A$uirre 7rano Crihness in dynamis and harmonious raketD* that its predeessors

like or e(ample alboka and dult'aina, didn>t have+

There>s another even more surprisin$ at" the implementation o trikiti(a oinides in $eneral

terms with the 5uskara map, so muh so that or the ollowin$ $enerations, soinu t(ikia hasbeen losely linked to this lan$ua$e+ /o(e #ari riondo started the radio pro$ram C=ure

erromeriakD in EP, in 9oiola rratia+ Herri rratia rom onostia ontinued with C2askiLnaskiD

rom EQ+ 5steban 9arra-a$a was one o the pioneers that kept C2utondoko erromeriakD in

Arrate rratia+ 2ome say this last station broadasted trikitilari reordin$s day in, day outS that

the son$s were repeated but the listeners never tired o them+ n both 9arra-a$a and riondo>s

pro$rams a whole $eneration o trikitilaris was reorded+ All these broadasts were entirely in

5uskara+ n the si(ties, the 9and %overs that travelled the narrow =ipu'koa, 8i'kaia and the

Atlanti Naarroa loal roads played trikiti(a at ull volume rom their opened windows+ 8ut

those were hard times+ n EQ, 9oiola rratia was losed by a $overnment order+ There were

7rano supporters that warned the ele$ation when ertain son$s were played+


8/52

#ai(a 9i'arribar in 5uskadi rratia and /abi Nabarro in 5$in rratia had radio pro$rams rom

E+

TH5 7%2T %5JO%N=2

The irst trikiti(a album was reorded in EPQ by Jolumbia in onostia, and the perormers

were tambourine player /o(e Oria and /ose 9ete C5t(esakortaD+

Another reordin$ pioneer was 2erain Aran'eta, the road worker rom urreta+ The

irumstanes o the reordin$ deserve a ew lines+ As the trikitilari himsel e(plained, in EP

while he was workin$ on a roadside dith, he was approahed by a ar and told that they

wanted to reord an album+ He didn>t even have time to lean up or han$e lothes+ He let his

wheelbarrow and mattok by the dith, alled his sister so she>d join him with the tambourine,

$ot in the ar and went strai$ht to the Albia Joliseum where they reorded the son$s in reord

time+ The label was 9a Io' de su Amo+

/os0 Oria reorded a seond album or Jolumbia aompanied by 5rrota rom 9e$a'pia, and a

third aompanied by 5$i$uren, but the dates are unknown+ 6e only know it was beore E+

8eore the war, 5t(esakorta and #anuel 2udupe C=elat(oD had also reorded slate reords

with the label %e$al+ The .aldibar trikiti(a had also reorded+

t was rom E on that 9oiola rratia started reordin$ =ipu'koa trikitilaris+ /ose #ari riondohad returned rom military servie and started his radio job when 2akabi and 5$a-a'pi showed

up and asked how muh would it ost to reord a ew son$s+ /o(e #ari riondo answered that

in any ase, the radio station would be the one payin$+ Thus, trikitilaris like #alt'eta, .endoia,

5$urrola ather and son, 5pelde, Arbe, 5pelarre, 8itarte or .abaleta started $oin$ to radio

stations to $et reorded+ 8eore this, /esuit 7ather 8er$ara had reorded #i$el 2a$astume and

=illermo Aldalur C;ikuaD, both on aordion and Kandido 8eristain, on aordion and trikiti(a+

n the RF>s, labels like 5di$sa, Herri =o$oa, . and others started reordin$ albums as a

standard operation+

59=5TA, TH5 #YTH

/ainto %ivas C5l$etaD )EFBLEQ* is without a doubt the trikitilari with the most le$end prone

bio$raphy+ He was born in onostia, abandoned at an orphana$e and adopted to the aser1o

nt(u'abal in 8er$ara, althou$h it>s loser to 5l$eta, that>s why he was known as C5l$etaD or

simply nt(u'abal+ He tau$ht two $enerations o trikitilaris ater the war, at least in =ipu'koa+

2akabi started to study under him beore the war+ Tapia, 5pelarre, #alt'eta, Aunt(a, Arbe,

Kataola'a, Urkiole$i, .abaleta, 5rribera, .ialt'eta , 9aja and many others studied under him

and redit him as the main responsible or the survival o soinu t(ikia in =ipu'koa and its

renovation+ 2akabi, or e(ample, attested that Ci it wasn>t or him, there wouldn>t be any


9/52

trikiti(aD+ His mastery also reahed 8i'kaia+ /ulian 9arrina$a rom #unitibar )now he lives in

=ernika*, studied under 5l$eta, who went to his aser1o to impart lasses+

7or lak o a better word, he was the irst soinu t(ikia proessional+ 8eore the war, he had

work as a laborer at several workshops in 5ibar, but he balaned his work with live shows at

arewell parties and airs+ t>s been told that he was a CpianistD at Jasa ;etra or ;etrat(arri, amadam that mana$ed a small brothel in the very republian and pretty osmopolitan $un

manuaturer town+ His repertoire was so vast that he was more than able to entertain a plae

o suh harateristis, but with the trikiti(a, not the piano+ The irst part o his lie was deeply

lined to 5ibar, where he had learn to play his instrument with #i$uel 2a$astume>s ather, the

#a$iian rom Urki, an aordion player who was hired as a proessional by the Or:uesta

Tropiana, mana$ed by a 8as:ue, when he was only E+ Ater the war, 5l$eta didn>t have a

stable home+ He went rom aser1o to aser1o teahin$ trikiti(a lessons+ His ontrat inluded,

besides PB pesetas, ood and board and three i$ars a day+ He didn>t set oot in a hurh, he

was a ni$ht bird and an insomnia )spent most o his time at ni$ht playin$ solitaire* and he $ot

up around noon )somethin$ very rare in a aser1o*+ n the war he volunteered to help ortiy

8ilbao, or whih he ended up doin$ time in the 2anto-a and J&di' prisons, but alle$edly not

or lon$ beause there is a piture o him in EQP between two o his pupils, Aunt(a y 2akabi+

He never married+ His last romanti involvement was with a $irl rom Urret(u that

aompanied him on tambourine+ The break up with this woman aeted him deeply+ 2akabi

invited him to his home but he didn>t aept+ He :uit the trikiti(a sene, retired to onostia

and lived his last years erratially+ 2ome said he lived in an old train arria$e, others at a

homeless shelter+ 2ome o his pupils saw him playin$ at bars+ ;epe Yant'i reorded some son$s

at this latter sta$e o his lie+ ker =oena$a, one o his ans rom the ollowin$ $eneration,

notes that in one o the son$s he han$es the tone ive times and in others he improvises+

Apparently, 5l$eta mana$ed to add two otaves to his aordion keyboard with the help o

#art'elino 9arrina$a+

5l$eta is the prototype o the modern artist with romanti tin$es that sariies his lie or his

art and lives with nothin$ else to hold on to but his musi+ 8ut he was a modern artist

embedded in the rural lose minded world o the postLwar era, whih aentuates the parado(

even more+

T6O 5?T%5#5 JA252

The history o trikiti(a is marked by peuliar ases+ The two people that mark the history o

trikiti(a in 8i'kaia in the past entury were born in the same year, EF, %uino Arrola in the

Andrakas nei$borhood in #un$ia and 8oniaio Arandia C7asioD in $orre, and both had to $ive

up trikiti(a or dierent reasons in their youth to start playin$ a$ain at an advaned a$e, Arrola

at BM years old and 7asio at P, $oin$ on or another two deades without any si$ns o ati$ue+

%uino Arrola, or e(ample, partiipated in more than PF t(apelketas )he won three trophies in

the same day* and 7asio ormed a le$endary trio with 9e@n 8ilbao and #auri'ia that played all

over 8i'kaia a$ain and a$ain+

%uino Arrola learned to play the trikiti(a as a kid+ At a$e EQ he had already played in a ew

airs but $ave up the instrument in his midLteens, apparently or work reasons and doesn>t pik


10/52

it up a$ain until he turned BM, when he suddenly deided to ride his bike to onistia to buy a

9arrina$aL=uerrini+ The ni$ht beore he had been bewithed, starin$ at the trikitilari that was

playin$ in the nei$hborhood party and that sound stirred somethin$ very deep inside that he

thou$ht already dead+ He swithed the anvil at his or$e or the trikiti(a and developed lurry

o ativity until E+

7asio>s ase is similar+ He started playin$ town s:uares at E but then the war broke out and

durin$ the war two o the trikiti(as he had let bak home were stolen+ He started playin$

a$ain around his retirement+ However, it is known that he was a bi$ ootball an and beore

that time he used to travel to the away $ames o the $orre team and played the trikiti(a in the

bus+ Around EM, aordin$ to ?abier ;aya and 7redi ;aia in their book dediated to #auri'ia,

the Arratia trio was already heerin$ the Arratie $ames+ They also ollaborated with the dane

$roups indirri and Andra #ari and perormed at least one a week at the #endi$oikoa

restaurant in At(ondo+

#AU%.A, AN UN#2TAKA895 IOJ5

O all the numerous women that have ormed trikiti(a duos in the past entury and a hal, only

PF are a part o our olletive memory and the most prominent is #auri'ia Aldeiturria$a, who

started sin$in$ and playin$ tambourine at E and reated a le$ay thanks to her personality on

sta$e+

2he was born in .eberio in EFQ to a amily o tambourine players+ His ather, older brother

and maternal unle Jali(to played the instrument+ His unle Jali(to tau$ht her some lessonsbut her essential learnin$ happened on 2unday aternoons, when she pratied on her own at

home+ t seems that kind o learnin$ was very ommon at that time+ ?abier ;aya and 7redi

;aia, in their book CAupa #auri'ia!D, :uote the ase o tambourine player #anu U$arte rom

;lent'ia, who learned how to play the tambourine pratiin$ with the buket when he was

sent out to eth water+

A$urt'ane nt(aurra$a, in the 8ide$ileak issue dediated to the tambourine player, tells that

#auri'ia let home at years old to works as a maid, but three years later she returned to

.eberio where she started workin$ at te(tile atories and playin$ tambourine with trikitilari

/okin =oiti C/oakint(uD+ 6hen she was ER she met trikitilari 8enant'io 8ernaola CKarakolD, withwhom she started to play and would marry seven years later+

CKarakolD was rom Artea and started playin$ trikiti(a while he took are o the $oats+ 9ater on,

while workin$ or Iasonia, he beame riends with trikitilari ;edro Arti-ano CAldaiD, who

would help hannel his true allin$+ His brother /uan C/uan 9odiaD also played the trikiti(a

althou$h in an inverted position, i+e+ playin$ bass with his ri$ht hand and melody with his let,

as he was let handed+ t>s been said that 8enant'io 8ernaola CKarakolD arrived in Artea playin$

the trikiti(a when he returned rom military servie+

The aorementioned ;edro Arti-ano CAldaiD was onsidered by some the best trikitilari o his

time in 8i'kaia+ He played in 8ilbao, where people ormed three dierent irles in 9a Jasilla" in

the irst irle people daned the tan$o and hotis, in the seond there were $atherin$s o


11/52

women rom the 2an 7raniso and adjaent streets and in the third, a trikitilari played jotas y

pasadobles or the euskaldun maids and the small town $uys that ame to the apital ity+ t

was one o the stron$holds o ;edro Arti-ano+

8ut let>s $o bak to Artea+ n the PF>s and F>s, the Artea air started on 2undays at pm, one

the youn$sters $ot out o hurh ater sayin$ the %osary+ #auri'ia played to tambourine whileshe walked rom .eberio to Artea+ 2he was joined by another $irl who also played+ n the ity

s:uare, ;edro 5$ia was waitin$ or them with the trikiti(a and he played the irst son$+ He was

the openin$ at beause the real star o the evenin$ was always CKarakolD and, o ourse,

#auri'ia+ ;eople who attended those danes say that #auri'ia aompanied him in the jotas,

but not the rest o the repertorires+ urin$ the intermissions, 9eon 8ilbao $ot on sta$e with his

alboka and he always partnered with #auri'ia, beause her way o sin$in$ suited this

instrument best+ 8ut obviously, the youn$ people o that time ound the alboka obsolete+

Trikiti(a was more powerul, more polyphoni and it suited the rhythms that ame rom the

ity better, like pasodobles+

n any ase, the trio that would make history in popular musi started ormin$ in the Artea

s:uare in the PF>s+

One married, #auri'ia and CKarakolD kept playin$+ They were a re$ular i(ture in the Iir$en

del Jarmen estivities in .ornot'a, 2an Antonio in Urkiola, 2an 7austo in uran$o or 2an ;edro

in ima, as well as many other danes in other towns and nei$borhoods+ ;eople daned in

these airs or hours+ t is said that in =arai they watered the surroundin$s o the 2an #i$uel

hurh in the mornin$ and even doin$ so, by ni$ht the $rounds had already dried up and the

dust made it hard to see+

#aternity was a very short hiatus in the ativity o this tambourine player, beause the ouple

still ulilled their ommitments while she held her youn$est in her arms+

8ut the most dramati hiatus in #auri'ia>s lie took plae" the war+ 2he let the aser1o where

they lived in .eanuri to return to her mother in .eberio with their M year old son+ 6hen the

asist troops approahed the town, she led to 2omorrostro, where unle Jali(to lived and

rom there to Jantabria+ #eanwhile, her husband was arrested when he was tryin$ to lee to

parralde+ urin$ the war years, nobody remembered the trikiti(a+ 6hen her husband

returned home, he was denied a job at Iasonia, laimin$ he had ou$ht or the republian

side+

Aordin$ to 7redi ;aia and ?abier ;aya>s book, she starts playin$ a$ain in EQ aompanyin$

her husband CKarakolD, irst in nearby nei$borhoods or in t(erribodas )pi$ slau$hters*, until

airs start happenin$ a$ain+ Around EQ albokari 9e@n 8ilbao joins the ouple to orm the trio

that made history+

6hen her husband died, she joined the C7asioD Arandia trio )when he died, 8asilio Unda$oitia

joined in* and played all alon$ the 8as:ue $eo$raphy, oinidin$ with the rebirth o 8as:ue

ulture+ t was PF years o uninterrupted ativity, without a doubt #auri'ia>s $olden years+

2he prepared her perormanes to the last detail+ 2he dessed as a baserritarra+ 2he was ready

to leave a ouple o hours in advane and she was always on time or her perormanes+


12/52

8eore she went on sta$e she would perorm an almost ma$i ritual" she spread newspaper

sheets in a orner, set them on ire and strethed the skin o the tambourine with the heat+

One, in the 5rmitabarri nei$hborhood o .eberio, #auri'ia started the perormane on time

by hersel and the trikitilari that was supposed to play ;edro Arati-ano Aldai, arrived later+

2he illed the sta$e with her presene and onveyed enormous ener$y+ #auri'ia had a deep

voie and she started sin$in$ in the low ran$e to inish the son$s in the hi$h end+ 2he said she

imitated 9e@n 8ilbao>s alboka+ t is also ?abier ;aya and 7redi ;aia>s opinion that at least in the

rhythm and the inal part o the son$s, she used the alboka as a model+ 2ome youn$sters say

she san$ out o tune+ The vast majority says the ontrary+ 6hat is very lear is that her voie

had primitive resonanes and e(uded wild stren$th+ 7rom the si(ties onwards, she da''led all

the youn$ musiians she met+ Her voie an be heard in several albums o the time, like

Kortatu>s debut album Kortatu, CT(ikit(uterikD by ker =oena$aS CNondik jo #auri'iaD, by

Kepa /unkeraS CA$ur #auri'iaD by the $roup Ur$abe, another by munt'o or C8i'kaiko trikiti(aD

by ?abi Aburru'a$a+ 2he also let Q albums where she is one o the main perormers" CHerrimusika sorta+ EB ArratiaD, CHerriko musikaD, rom ERR, C5uskal Herriko soinu tresnakD, by

8eltran, y C#auri'ia, 9eon, 7asio eta 8asilioD, rom EMR+

2he san$ in 8 lat, very loud and stron$+ t was the ideal way o sin$in$ to attrat people to the

irles that orm in the danes beore the war+ Her perormanes oten lasted or hours+ 2he

went bak home playin$ and sin$in$ and remembered how she spent several hours awake in

bed $oin$ throu$h the ima$es o the day+

Amon$ all the other emale artists, #auri'ia was the most reo$ni'ed by the youn$er

$enerations+ A $ood part o her areer oinided with the development o %ok %adial Iasoand some o the leadin$ i$ures, like /osu .abala or 7ermin #u$uru'a, have praised her and

alled her Ca punk rom other timeD, whih is pretty muh sayin$ she was a punk avant la

lettre+

8etween EQF and EF there is a setbak in the world o trikiti(a+ 8eause o the smear

ampai$n on 5uskara, up until the F>s #auri'ia san$ her son$s in 2panish+ n an interview with

5uskadi rratia in EMB she stated that she didn>t know how to speak 2panish but she sun$ in

that lan$ua$e+ The ;aya brothers tell the story o a bertsolari rom =et(o, Asensio

8idaurra'a$a, who improvised in 5uskara amon$ riends but san$ in 2panish in the town

s:uare+ n the si(ties she swithed to 5uskara and started sin$in$ traditional son$s+

urin$ those two postLwar deades, musiians started abandonin$ the diatoni aordion or

the hromati, inorporatin$ ashionable styles and ompositions to their repertoires"

rhumbas, habaneras and ranheras+ Around ERF this proess was inverted and aordion

players who had learned to play with the hromati, swith to the diatoni+ Jompetitions are

reated+ There is an album released or eah ompetition and radio stations and 5T8 help

spread the word o the trikiti(a+ The irst ompetition )ERF*, elebrated in the ;la'a de la

Trinidad in onostia durin$ the 5uskal /aiak pro$ram, surprised everyone and proved the

enormous popularity o the instrument+ Tikets were sold out and an avalanhe o people tore

down the entrane $ates+ There were more than P+FFF people at the enlosure and manymore in adjaent streets+ n the MF>s, the ompetitions mana$ed to $ather M+FFF ans in the


13/52

Ielodromo )yle trak*+ The trikiti(a shools )at one point, #artin A$inalde had QB students

in his M shools* helped stren$then the popularity+

%O#AN U%%A.A AN KONT?A U%%A.As unle and mother

Kont(a Urra'a )Kepa /unkera>s mother*" C would have liked to study musi and sine ouldn>t, enoura$ed my hildrenD+

Kepa /unkera has onessed several times than when it omes to tehni:ue he ows a lot to the

$reat trikitilaris rom =ipu'koa, but when it omes to his sense o rhythm and the stren$th o

his perormanes, it all omes rom his hildhood+ His mother, Kont(a Urra'a, was a dane

partner to T(ilibrin )2ilvestre 5le'kano*, un albokari, koplari and dant'ari born in $orre in EEP

who inessantly promoted popular ulture ater the war+ One o the most vivid ima$es Kepa

keeps rom his hildhood is his mother danin$ in the kithen at home, at =oya street in

5rrekalde+

L Your husband was your nei$hbor sine you were a hild+ Jould this be a Cstairase

loveD

That>s how it was+ 6e both lived in the same buildin$, number R =oya 2treet, he lived on the

$round loor and me in the ri$ht side interior apartment on the irst loor+ t>s a pity that he

isn>t here now+ He>s been in the hospital or a ew days with bronhitis+ 6e>ve known eah

other sine we were kids+ urin$ the war, ;edro was in 8el$ium+ He was one o the many

hildren ostered by amilies rom that ountry+ n at, his adoptive amily still keeps a lose

relationship with him+ 6e visited them a ouple o times and they visited us+ They loved him

very muh+ The last time they ame, they said ;edro was still a son to them, me a dau$hter

and our hildren were like their $randhildren+

L

Your ondness o trikiti(a omes rom your ather, %oman Urra'a, who played the

tambourine+

#i ather was rom .ollo but was born in #iravalles+ He spoke 5uskara but mother was rom

2antander, didn>t speak it and we lost it+ #i ather played the tambourine and he was best

riends with trikitilari 2alba U$arte and also T(ilibrin, one o the ounders o the dane $roup

8eti Alai rom 8asurto+ belon$ed to that dane $roup and when T(ilibrin started partiipatin$

in jota ompetitions, he asked me to dane with him+ was his dane partner or years+

L 8ut did you dane beore joinin$ 8eti Alai

Yes, yes+ At home we all loved to $o to the airs and parties we or$ani'ed in the ountry on

2undays+ 6e had a riend that had a ountry house lose to the 2an %o:ue hurh, on the way

to ;asa$arriS several amilies $ot to$ether and there was always a trikiti(a around+ Trikitilari

2alba U$arte lived in 5rrekaldeberri, ri$ht aross our house+ He was rom Oro'ko and knew my

ather sine they were kids+ They were a trikiti(a ouple who always played amon$ people, on

the street+ They never set oot on a sta$e or a bandstand+ 7or e(ample, we>d $o to the 2anta9uia air but we would $o many amilies to$ether, with all the kids and we>d brin$ all the ood+


14/52

Obviously there was danin$ in these $atherin$s, but started danin$ more ormally at 8eti+

And with T(ilibrin only daned the jota and it was wonderul+ He was older than me, there

was a bi$ a$e $ap between us+ He was the dane teaher at the dane $roup+ n at, he also

tau$ht in other $roups he started in other 8ilbao nei$hborhoods+

L

6hy you hoose him as a dane partner

$uess it>s beause he stood out+ t was ama'in$ to see him dane the jota+ He went to many

ompetitions+ 9ater on my mother passed away and there were times when #aite U$arte,

2alba>s dau$hter, stood in or me+ 6e didn>t always dane the jota+ One they sta$ed C9as

estampas vasasD by =uridi and remember joined the perormane at the Ayala Theater+

L

7or e(ample, Kepar remembers that when he was a hild, one 2unday aternoon his

$randather and 2alba ame down to the nei$hborhood, went into a bar and played

several son$s that he heard aptivated rom the street+

That was a sene that happened oten+ They would ome down rom or e(ample 2an %o:ue

or the ountry house where we went every other 2unday+ #y ather elebrated everythin$

with the tambourine+ t was normal or the amilies to $o bak home and or them to stay

playin$ musi at some nei$hborhood bar+

L ;edro and you $et married and move to his apartment or yours

#ine, beause my ather was a widower+ 6e still have the apartment but we>ve moved to

.eberio with our dau$hter beause >m a bit tired o all that+ %ekalde is very speial to us and

>m thrilled that my hildren are proud to be rom that nei$hborhood, it>s deeply in$rained in

us, like the Athleti )smiles a$ain*+

L

Kepa spent several years in .umaia , where ;edro was in har$e o the onstrution o

two otta$es+

6e spent three years in 'umaia, livin$ in a house in ront o the 2an /uan ountain+ love that

town+ Kepa was two and a hal and #aria was si( months old+ ;edro was the oreman o the

workers that built the two otta$es that are near the li$hthouse and a ew more urther down+

The otta$es were or the ompany bosses, one or %etola'a and the other or Asumendi otro+

The otta$es were a ni$htmare" in order to take the materials to the site, they had to do it

throu$h the Talaiamendi meadows+ t>s a pity my husband isn>t here! He loves to talk about

that onstrution+ 6e beame suh lose riends with the T(ortena amily who rented us the

house durin$ those three years that we ame bak every year or summer vaation+ 5very time

see a story about .umaia on TI $et emotional+

L How many hildren do you have

Three+ Kepa is the oldest, then omes #aria and the youn$est one is Asier+

L Kepa admits that it>s somethin$ that omes rom you+ think he says he tries to do

with the trikiti(a what you did danin$+


15/52

Yes, that>s true, he says that+ He is selLtau$ht+ Now there are shools where you an learn, but

bak then there weren>t any+ He learnt with a assette player and bit by bit+ 6hen he learnt a

son$, would dane and tell him it was ok, $ave him my approval+ >ve always loved to dane+

also daned beore Kepa started with the trikiti(a+ #y husband doesn>t+ 5very time heard

musi in a s:uare, $ave him the oats, ran throu$h the rowd and daned with anyone+

L There>s a moment when you deide Kepa has to study the aordion with ;ei-a+

Kepa was M or when he started studyin$ musi theory and aordion+ 6e bou$ht him a

seond hand aordion, a small one beause he ouldn>t play a lar$e one+ 8ut he didn>t like it+

sat beside him, to push him, but he protested and said he wasn>t $oin$ to $o anymore+ think

he doesn>t like to be in ront o sheet musi+ The day he said he wasn>t $oin$ bak $ot very

upset and went to his teaher+ He said he was a very apable kid and that he would ind his

own way+ n hi$h shool he was a strai$ht A student+

L

How is Kepa id he stand out or his tenaity, his will power

don>t know how he is )smiles*+ He>s a dierent $uy+ remember in the ndaut(u shool there

were teahers who on$ratulated him and $ave him A>s, in omposition, or e(ample+ He>s shy,

but thanks to the trikiti(a he>s opened up a lot+

L 6hen did Kepa start to push the boundaries o trikiti(a How did you eel about it

2ine he $ot suh $ood $rades, wanted him to study musi+ remember one day took him to

the dentist and he told me not to worry, that sine he liked triki so muh and elt so happy, he

would end up makin$ money with it and should let him be+ He spent endless hours playin$

assette tapes+ t was unbelievable+ remember one day when 2alba was at home, he listened

to everythin$ that Kepa played and said" He>s already opied me+ 2alba played only a ew

son$s, but when he did, he did it with $reat stren$th and the sound he ahieved was very

speial+ 2oon reali'ed Kepa would make it+ You ould tell when he went to the ompetitions+

5ven beore that+

L Have you ever daned to your son>s son$s Kepa says his son$s are trikiti(a, sine

you>re able to dane to them+

That>s true+ Now >m MP and >ve stopped danin$, but it>s true+ The thin$ is he has turned

trikiti(a around, but there are thin$s he>s done that love+ love the son$ CUriondoD, would

listen to it all day lon$+ #y son in law Kepa ;ere' Urra'a says Uriondo is a plae near .eberio

where our last name omes rom+

L Usually the youn$er siblin$s are the artisti ones+ 6hat about your other two hildren

#aria studied musi and then she studied psyholo$y and musi eduation+ 2he was a musi

teaher or several years but she>s reently :uit, sayin$ it>s very hard+ >ve enoura$ed all o

them to study musi e(ept the youn$estS ouldn>t CbreakD him+ tried with dierent

teahers but it didn>t work out+ The youn$est one, Asier, studied business administration and is

workin$ in his area o e(pertise+ think musi is a wonderul thin$+ would have loved to study


16/52

musi and sine ouldn>t, >ve enoura$ed my hildren to do it+ #aybe when Kepa hears this

he>ll lau$h, but love musi+

TH5 =%5AT 2TA%2

TH5 T%KT?A 5 .U#A%%A=A

The Trikiti(a de .umarra$a were pioneers in several aspets+ t>s been said that they were the

irst to brin$ the trikiti(a rom the aser1o to the streets, the irst to reord an album and also

the irst to start usin$ 2panish in their son$s, ollowin$ a trend that started beore the war+

/o(e Oria>s mother, 7rant'iska Antonia ri'ar, rom the Olarte aser1o in .umarra$a, was

already known as a tambourine player+ Aordin$ to Ant(i-e #endi'abal in her book

C.uma$arrako Trikiti(aD, she was the one entertainin$ the $roups o women that $ot to$ether

to do volunteer work+ urin$ their breaks, 7rant'iska Antonia would play the tambourine and

sin$ son$s while the rest o the women daned+

/o(0 Oria, 7rant'iska Antonia>s son, inherited her love or musi+ n an eature rom EPF, he

appears partnerin$ with Kanpa'ar and years later he partnered with other musiians+ His name

is mentioned in the irst trikiti(a album reorded in EPQ, to$ether with 5t(esakorta+ Thus was

born the Trikiti(a de .umarra$a+ Oria was PQ years old and /o(e 9ete C5t(esakortaD was E+

At 5li'kale street in .umarra$a there was a bar that was paked with parishioners on 2unday

mornin$s while the sermon was takin$ plae, and then ran bak to the hurh when they heard

the or$an playin$+ This was the bar where the Trikiti(a de .umarra$a was onsolidated+ The

mother, 7rant'iska Antonia, would listen to her son>s perormanes orm her bed, when he

returned rom a air and went into the bar to end the day+ /ournalists rom that era )Ant(i-e

#endi'abal has several statements* deine him as a natural born entertainer, and very

nau$hty+ This is one o his son$s sun$ in 2panish" CAyer me dijiste :ue hoy hoy me dir&s :ue

ma-ana y ma-ana me dir&s :ue de lo diho no hay nadaD )yesterday you said today, today

you>ll say tomorrow, and tomorrow you>ll say that you didn>t say anythin$ at all*+ Another one

in 2panish" Cien :ue asar yo tambi0n me asar1a si la vida del asado uera omo el

primer d1aD+ ) would $et married i married lie was like the irst dayD+ And the last one

Cebajo del delantal tienes el t(it(ilimurdi y un poo m&s abajo :ui tolis peata mundiD+

)under your apron you have your t(it(ilimurdi, and urther below :ui tolis peata mundi*

6hen 5t(esakorta was P he had to :uit playin$ and take up e(ile in Ar$entina, or reasons

that some hronile alled CnonLonessableD+ Apparently he impre$nated a $irl and the

soiety o that era punished them both, the $irl o ourse and also the trikitilari+ They

elebrated a arewell dinner at a bar in .umarra$a and and /o(e Oria kept playin$ the

tambourine and sin$in$ with other trikitilaris like 5rrosta, =orri' or Karlos 5$i$uren+

There were also some setbaks with /o(e Oria>s ne(t partner, 7elipe #ondra$on C5rrostaD

rom 9e$a'pia+ He worked at ;atriio 5heverria and his boss told him to hoose between his

job or the trikiti(a+ He didn>t have a hoie but to anel some o his ommitments+

/o(e Oria should be reo$ni'ed as the irst who mi(ed tambourine with trikiti(a+ 8eore him,

there were several emale tambourine players who or$ani'ed shows without trikiti(a+ Ater


17/52

him, we had to wait until 2akabi or the relationship between tambourine and trikiti(a to be

normali'ed+

8eore the ivil war, /o(e Oria already had three albums under his belt, one with 5t(esakorta, a

seond with 5rrosta and a third with 5$i$uren+ These amous verses are rom that time" CAl

entrar en .umarra$a ha naido una la$una donde se ba-an las $uapas por:ue ea no haynin$unaD )there is a la$oon in .umarra$a where the pretty $irls bather, beause there are no

u$ly ones*+ /o(e Oria was a nationalist and he reorded many son$s with abert'ale ontent+ His

third album, the one he reorded with 5$i$uren, had problems with the ensorship bureau+

urin$ the ivil war he was a member o the Amayur battalion+

8ut he also aompanied 8eni$no 8ere'ibar CKanpa'arD rom 5lorrio, Kandido 8eristain rom

A'koitia, Alejandro Telleria C=orri'D rom Ant'uola and /o(emiel Orma'abal+ The ollaboration

with the latter was ruial or the Trikiti(a de .umarra$a>s areer, as it allowed them to

onnet with the postLwar $enerations+ This trikitilari tau$ht /o(e Urtea$a, /o(e Oria>s nephew,

how to play, who would beome a key player in the ollowin$ $eneration+ 8eore his death inEQF, /o(e Oria was luky enou$h to see his nephew /o(e on sta$e playin$ the tambourine+ Ten

years later, our brothers rom the Urtea$a amily would relaunh the Trikiti(a de .umarra$a

brand, and they would later on e(periene their $olden a$e+ n EBR they reorded a$ain or

Jolumbia+ This album inluded a amous son$ dediated to the dau$hter o the 5usebio, owner

o the bar where they used to $et to$ether" CKalebarrendik hasita 5li'kaleraino e' da$o

neska polita$orik 5usebioren alaba bainoD+ 6hen the album was released, 5usebio>s

dau$hter, =urut'e, had already $otten married and her husband treated them to dinner+ These

were the post war years and the =uardia Jivil was wathin$ them+ 6hen they played in a bar,

they let someone outside as a lookout in ase they ame+ n the Ki'kit'a air, the =uardia Jivil

ored them to play pasodobles+ Ant(i-e #endi'abal has $athered ountless anedotes about

the Trikiti(a de .umarra$a+ They played nonstop or hours and there were times when people

had to help /o(e Urtea$a so he ould urinate while still playin$+

His trikiti(a teaher, /osemiel Orma'abal, was also a amous loal personality+ He owned the

sabel restaurant in .umarra$a and the =olden disothe:ue+ 7or EF years, the orhestras that

perormed in town ended up playin$ impromptu shows in his lub+ n EB when one o the

brothers, na(io, let the $roup, /o(emiel Orma'abal returned to the Trikiti(a de .umarra$a

2AKA8, ON5 O7 TH5 =%5AT2

7austino A'pia'u $ot his sta$e name 2akabi at the aser1o where he was born, hidden in the

oothills o the 'arrait' ran$e, lose to the Aittola 8erri restaurant, on the road rom

#adaria$a to 9astur+ He was the youn$est son o a very amous healer o the area, so muh so

that a dotor rom A'koitia )Art'ua$a* who had one reported him to the authorities )he did $o

to prison* had to resort to him when one o his hildren $ot sik+

2akabi was born in EE+ At EF years old he went to a 6hit 2unday air in 'arrait' with his

ather and he was hypnoti'ed by the sound o the trikiti(a+ He learned to play his irst notes

with his unle Anton 8alt'ola and then ontinued learnin$ with #adari(a T(ikia )/ose #anuel

Aranbarri*+ On 2unday mornin$s he went to R am #ass and then took lass in A'koitia>s

#adaria$a nei$hborhood, where he would later perorm in the aternoon+ t was this trikitilari


18/52

who reommended he went to see 5l$eta+ 2akabi was only E, but he had already seen 5l$eta

perorm in the New Year>s air in 5l$oibar and was very impressed by him+ 5l$eta lived in 5ibar

and the trip was sort o a small odyssey" an hour and a hal walk rom the aser1o to the

A'karate hei$hts, there he>d take the M am bus rom A'koitia to 5l$oibar, where he>d take the

train to 5ibar+ 5l$eta $ave him double lessons, one beore lunh and one ri$ht aterS he would

then take the pm train bak but this time he>d have to walk M kilometers rom 5l$oibar to the

A'karate hei$hts beause the bus didn>t run in the aternoon, and then the hour and a hal to

the aser1o+

He repeated this journey about ten times, but this was E and the war interrupted the

relationship between 5l$eta and his irts pupil+ 5l$eta volunteered to serve on the ront and

2akabi, now PF years old, stayed in the aser1o and was later reruited+ He ou$ht in

5(tremadura and #adrid, was wounded twie and lost the trikiti(a he had brou$ht rom home+

t would take a while beore they started the lasses a$ain, in EQF+ This time 5l$eta went to

his aser1o+ This was probably the irst stay o many, as he spent several years $oin$ rom

aser1o to aser1o+ 5l$eta had EP pupils, but 2akabi was his avorite+

2akabi partnered with tambourine player 5$a-a'pi )/ose #ari Urbieta* in EQB+ t was a stable

partnership, as it lasted more than F years+ t was almost an e(lusive ontrat+ urin$ those

years they went to the airs in 5$a-a'pi>s 9ambretta+ The tambourine player worked at the

5$i$uren lathe atory in .estoa and had to work overtime to ompensate or the time he took

o to perorm+ 2ome days he worked up to E hours+

n EBR 2akabi met 9aja at the Korostite air, at the hillside o the 'arrait'+ He was only E

years old but he already stood out or his talent+ Aordin$ to -i$o Aranberri in his book

C2akabi+ 2oinu t(ikiaren handitasunaD, 2akabi told 5l$eta" C6e>d better retire, this kid is omin$

up stron$D+ Years later they would play to$ether many times+ They were obsessed with :uality+

2akabi ould handle himsel with musi theory, althou$h poorly+ He studied under the

ondutor o the A'peitia orhestra, A'peitia, /ose #ari Altuna C;uiniD, and so did 9aja+ 8oth

ou$ht to di$niy trikiti(a+

The airs he played weave a dense web over the =ipu'koa map" #adaria$a, #artirieta,

Komunsoro, .urrunt'ola, 5rre'il, 8idania, =oia', 2anta 5n$ra'ia, 5rdoi'ta, turriot', 2an ;edro

de Aia, Urteta, 9aurkain, orio, A$ina$a, Usurbil< His style was ele$ant, polished and very

tehnial+ n many o these towns the estivities would be$in in the mornin$ with passaa$lia

and inish with the dane around three in the mornin$+

n ERF, 2akabi and 5$a-a'pi won the irst trikilari ompetition )Trikitilarien 9ehen T(apelketa*

althou$h there had been others beore the war+ t was held on 2eptember Ethand by si( pm

they had sold out all the tikets+ Two thousand people $athered in onostia+ #any o them

ame rom the Urola valley as all o the si( duos that entered the ompetition ame rom that

area" the .endoia brothers, the 5$urrola brothers, the 5pelde 8rothers, llarramendi and

manol turbide, 9aja and 8eraste$i and 2akabi and 5$a-a'pi+ These last two won the t(apela,

but the award or best musiian went to 9aja+ The newspapers rom that time boyotted the

event+


19/52

The seond edition o the t(apelleta took plae the ollowin$ yeart, but 2akabi deided not to

enter+

He retired at F years old, he had problems with rheumatism+ 8ut beore leavin$ the sta$e

they reorded the album C2akabiL5$a-a'pi trikitilariakD+ 2akabi let a mark in some o his

pupils, like munt'o )/uan %amon A'pitarte*+ ;eople said his style was inluened by his master,5l$eta+ They also say there was a ompetition in the BF>s 2akabi didn>t want to enter, but

5l$eta si$ned him up and the pupil beat the master+

TH5 =59AT?O2, A YNA2TY

#anuel 2odupe C=elat(o .aharraD )EMMM* was a trikitilari that started a dynasty whih has

ontinued until the present day+ Aompanied by his wie /uliana 5snaola, who played

tambourine, travelled throu$h a $ood part o 8i'kaia and =ipu'koa and was onsidered bymany as the best trikitilari beore the war, beause o his tehni:ue and he>s ability to write

new son$s in a time where the trikitilari>s repertoire was very mea$re+ 2ome o his son$s are

still perormed today+

=elat(o .aharra reated his own repertoire but he also reated a amily o artists+ His three

sons 9orent'o, /ose and ;edro have been trikitilaris and daners+ The most amous is ;edro

C=elat(o =a'teaD )EPM*, who opted or the piano aordion but still wrote son$s that ould be

played with a soinu t(ikia+ He>s travelled the ountry or B years, BF o them with a band

ormed by sa(ophone and drums named ja''bana, ater the perussion instruments brand+

Travelin$ with all the instruments made it hard to perorm in nei$hborhood parties+2ometimes they shipped them in advane and then went by train, but others they had to arry

them on donkeys+ #anuel 2odupe>s three dau$hters were daners and they daned in many

ompetitions+ #anuel 2odupe died in EB+ He went to his aser1o, A$arre in the 5l$oibar 2an

9orent'o nei$hborhood to have his piure taken+ He went bak home playin$ a birikilketa and

suddenly he elt sik+ He died soon ater+ 7or more than a deade he belon$ed to the most

revered trikiti(a trio to$ether with 5l$eta and youn$ 2akabi+

#A9T.5TA, ON5 O7 TH5 7%2T ;%O7522ONA92

He was one o the irst proessional trikitilaris who dediated his time e(lusively to his

instrument, at least or a ouple o deades+ At irst, he tried to balane a job in a atory at

7orjas /uaristi with his trikiti(a ommitments, but it beame impossible and he deided to

leave the atory+ He live the $olden a$e o airs in =ipu'koa, durin$ the BF>ss and F>s+ He was

a top rankin$ trikitilari to$ether with 2akabi until 9aja burst into the sene+ He $ot married in

E and returned to a atory job at 7undiiones .ubilla$a in A'koitia, but a serious aident

at work made him leave his job a$ain+

He lived in the Alt'ibar nei$hborhood or many years, ri$ht by the 9andakanda and .abale

aser1os and not ar rom Umansoro or munt'o+ we widened the perimeter, we would ind

other names like .endoia, 5pelde, 'er or .abaleta+ 6e>re talkin$ about one o the bi$$est

onentrations o trikitilaris and panderojoles in the history o trikiti(a+


20/52

6riter and journalist /uan 9uis .abala says in his book C#alt'eta, soinu bete bihot'D, that the

trikitilari and his brother /usto traveled oten to the aserio where they were born, #alt'eta

5t(et(o, whih is now demolished in their %enault M+ The trikitilari was holdin$ her dau$hter

#amen in his arms, and ri$ht there, in ront o the demolished walls, he played his piee

CHamabost hamasei urteD+ t was obviously an e(erise in nostal$ia+

/uanito =arate C#alt'etaD had been born in that aser1o, in A'koitia>s Urrate$i nei$hborhood,

in EPQ+ Nearby there were aser1os like =oenat(o, 5u'kit'e and Uitte+ The latter was the

birthplae o many trikitilaris like 5u'kit'e, maternal $randather o bertsolari and journalist

?abier ;ere' C5u'kit'eD and harriLjasot'aile )stone liter* /uan /ose Unanue is rom =oenat(o+

#alt'eta was a haunted aser1o+ Two ormer $enerations had played the dul'aina+ As told by

the trikitilari, his ather kept several musi instruments in an en$raved bo(, rom a violin and a

$uitar to lutes, tambourines and dul'ainas+ They never saw a trikiti(a there, but his ather

laimed he used to play it in his youth, beore he started with the dul'aina+ 6hen he ame

bak rom 2unday mass, he used to have some broth with a $lass o wine and then sat in thebalony lookin$ out with his dul'aina and played it sotly+ His son remembered some o the

son$s he heard at home and inluded a biribilketa by his ather in the album he reorded in

EME, when he was F years old+ /uan #ari 8eltran ound our dul'aina players niknamed

#alt'eta 5t(et(o+ Three o the trikitilari>s unles ormed a dul'aina $roup that perormed at

weddin$s+ To omplete the piture, one o his $randathers>s brothers, 9orent'o =arate, was a

bertsolari+

His admiration or =elat(o .aharra )#anuel*, who played in the nearby airs, or$ed his allin$+

At EB years old he worked makin$ haroal and with the money he obtained he bou$ht his irst

trikiti(a+ Trikitilari /ose #ari Arabarri C#adari(a TrikiaD went with him to the 9arrina$aL=uerrini

atory and he also tau$ht him his irst lasses+ On 2unday mornin$s, #adari(a T(ikia went

rom A'koitia, where he lived, to #alt'eta where /uanito and his riend 5u$enio Alberdi

C.abaletaD)who also beame a trikitilari* were waitin$ or him+ 8oth started playin$ when they

were around EM years old in the nearby airs, in rukurut'eta, ;olL;ol, 5losua, .ar$uate,

Urrate$i or in Ai'purut(o+

urin$ his military servie he met a trikilari rom Orio that had studied under 5l$eta and when

we returned home, he $ot in touh with the master+ 5l$eta spent ive weeks at #alt'eta

5t(et(o+

#alt'eta lived the $olden a$e o airs in the BF>s and F>s, beore the irst disothe:ues

opened+ n 5rre'il there were our airs eah 2unday )at the s:uare, 8enta 8erri, .urrunt'ola

and 9ete*, another our in Aia )Urdaneta, Alt'ola, Aia 8ehea and 2an ;edro*+ 5losua,

rukurut'eta, =orla and Oleta held lar$e airs+ 2ometimes they kept the trikitilari or days+ n

Alt'ola, or e(ample, #alt'eta used to stay or seven days+ There are airs like the A$i-eta in

.umarra$a in whih #alt'eta hast played or B onseutive years+ Up until the BF>s they used

to play without tambourine+ 9ater on he was aompanied by 'er, 9andakanda, turbide,

8idani, 5$a-a'pi, 5$urrola and his own dau$hter #amen, who aused a stir beause o her

style o playin$ )Chanka eta buruD* at the inals o the EMF ompetition+ Apparently, /oseba

Tapia asked #alt'eta i he ould play with his dau$hter or the inals+ The ather said she was


21/52

too youn$, but then han$ed his mind and thou$ht that i /oseba Tapias was interested in her,

then she should play with him, not /oseba+

There is also a stran$e anedote related with the ivil $overnor at the time, ;edro #anuel

Ariste$ui, a member o UJ born in run who was smitten by the $irl ater she perormed at an

inau$uration+ There were admiration letters, presents and even a phoneall+ The $overnorpromised her he would $et her boyriend e(empt rom military servie, but he died in a

terrorist attak while bein$ an ambassador in rak+ #amen played with his ather until she

turned E and she is eatured as a panderista in the three albums reorded by the trikitilari,

one or . and two or 5lkar+

n EM they moved rom A'kotia to Hondarribia, where his dau$hter opened a trikiti(a shool

where #alt'eta tau$ht some lasses+ Amon$ the alumni o the shool are bertsolari hampion

Amets Ar'allus who aompanied his sister tsaso playin$ tambourine+

#alt'eta died PFF, at a$e MP+

AUNT?A>2 6A9K2

Antonio Arana$a CAunt(aD was born in the .ubiondo house at Kalebarren 2treet in Urrestilla in

EEF+ He>s one o the ew trikitilaris o his $eneration that didn>t ome rom a aser1a+ Ater

the war he opened a restaurant that is still run by his sons nowadays+ The nikname ame rom

a bet his $randather won" he had bet that he ould limb up to a bar ounter in just one jump+

He jump twie and reeived the nikname CAhunt'aD )$oat*+

Antonio Arana$a CAunt(aD bou$ht his irst trikiti(a in A'peitia, at the =uibert department store

)he used to spend a lot time o $lued to the store window* or QF pesetas+ He tried to learn

how to play on his own and when he reali'ed he wasn>t improvin$, he went to one o the $reat

preLwar trikitilaris, Kandiko 8eristain rom A'koitia+ Kandiko had won the 5uskal /aiak

ompetition three times, onostia in E, 5rrenteria in EQ and 8er$ara in EB+ Kandiko

8eristain knew musi theory and played two or three instruments in the loal band+ Ater

takin$ lasses rom him or si( months, he went on to study under Antton 8alt'ola rom

.estoa, and 5l$eta+ The lasses took plae at the pupil>s home in a losed room and they lasted

many hours+ Aunt(a also bou$ht a $ramophone to listen to the ew reords available at that

time+ They were piees by 5t(esakorta, =elat(o y Kanpa'ar, whih he learned by repetition,

with some additions o his own+

n EQE his mother reeived an anonymous letter blamin$ her or her son>s behavior+ As he

told /o(e #ari riondo, his mother asked him in tears to stop playin$ the trikiti(a, as the soul

was more valuable than money+ This anonymous letter was written beause o the bur$eonin$

suess o the 9andeta air+ na'io 8ere'iartua, owner o a bar in A'peitia>s 9andeta

nei$borhood proposed Aunt(a to elebrate a air eah 2unday on the open ield he had ne(t to

the bar+ This nei$hborhood was very onvenient or the trikitilari and sine the money

olleted at the air would be or him, he $ladly aepted+ The air started at our in the

aternoon and inished around dinner time, when the trikitilari returned to the bar and kept

playin$ there+ There was a air or si( or seven 2undays and the attendane $rew e(ponentially


22/52

until the letter arrived and Aunt(a had to ave in to her mother>s wishes+ The letter had

ahieved its $oal+

8ut by then Aunt(a was already amous and known in airs and bahelor parties+ At E years

old he had played in the .estoa 2pa, in the blak tie parties that took plae in the 2an #i$uel

estivities to bid arewell to the summer vaationers+ The oins he reeived as paymentimpressed him so muh that when he $ot home, he woke his mother up to show them to her+

Ater he turned EQ he was alled to play at the bahelor parties in the nearby towns+ The

parties took plae in the atti o the aser1os, more than a hundred people attended and they

lasted or several days+ 8esides ash, he was sometimes paid in $oods+ He would ome bak

home with bread, beans and sometimes even hikens whih helped a lot in the amine years

ater the war+

5ven thou$h in the BF>s the popularity o the bahelor parties and weddin$s that re:uiered the

presene o a trikitilari delined, the airs kept $oin$+ Aunt(a played at the airs in Urrestilla,

O-at', Nuarbe, Arat'Lerreka, Arriaran, #at(inbenta, 5'kio, Urki, 2antama-a, Ki'kit'a, 8ei'ama,8idania, =oiat', 5rre'il, turriot', .urrunt'ola, 8enta 8erri, 5tumeta, 5rdoi'ta, 5losia$a,

;ut'umenta, ;a$ot(eta and many more+ He also had re$ular ommitments at Naarroa and

parralde+

The means o transportation at that time had nothin$ to do with the present ones+ n turriot',

or e(ample, besides the air in 2an /os0>s day, the teens in the nei$borhood or$ani'ed roast

lamb ban:uets si( times a year+ The trip to turriot' and bak was an athleti eat" he rode a

biyle to 5rre'il, went to R am mass, limbed to .elatun and then went down to turriot'+ t

was more than two hours o rossLountry walk with a trikiti(a on his shoulders+ Aordin$ to

riondo in the book CUrrestillako Trikiti(aD, in a air he would make three times as muh money

as in the atory job+ n a air in .elatun his net earnin$s amounted to three thousand pesetas

ater payin$ the tambourine player and the olletors+

There were speial airs, like the one on 2anta 9u1a in .umarra$a+ 7or years, 5l$eta, 2akabi and

Aunt(a played in the s:uare mornin$, aternoon and evenin$ or two days+ Aunt(a laimed

they ould play or three hours without repeatin$ a sin$le piee+ 8ut it wasn>t improvised

repertoire+ A month beore they would meet at Aunt(a>s restaurant to prepare the

perormane+ At the other orner o the s:uare there was another trikitilari playin$ aordion,

but he wasn>t very popular+

8oth Tri(iti(a de .umarra$a and Urrestila )Aunt(a and turbide* were the irst to have re$ular

ommitments at parralde+ Aunt(a went or more than thirty years to the estivities in

Ha'parne, 8aiona, 5'peleta and onibane =ara'i+ One at the 8aiona 5uskal /aiak, the

or$ani'ation took him on a ride throu$h the town streets in a onvertible+ That was the most

$lamorous perormane in Aunt(a>s lon$ areer+

Aunt(a also visited Naarroa towns re$ularly like ru-ea, 9eit'a, 9esaka, 8akaikoa, 5li'ondo,

9i'arra or Kortes+ He usually traveled by motoryle+ He went to ru-ea or QF years with his

buddies+ They would save money durin$ the year to spend a ew days in sanermines+ He used

to remember oten how a bull sared him to death while runnin$+


23/52

Unlike other trikitilaris, he didn>t want his hildren to ollow his path+ He used to tell them how

hard it was to spend three days away rom home with only a ew hours o sleep, arrive home

and then $o to work at the atory without any rest+ He worked in the A$uirre Hermanos

urniture atory in A'peitia+ He told /o(e #ari riondo, that aordin$ to his aountin$ books,

in EBF he made more money with the trikiti(a than at the atory+ 8ut there ame a time

when the amily restaurant re:uired his ull attention+ He :uit his job at the atory and also

stopped playin$ the trikiti(a until he transerred the restaurant mana$ement responsibilities to

his hildren+ Ater a twentyLyear hiatus, he started perormin$ a$ain+

To$ether with turbide he reorded an album or . in ERB and ollaborated in a ew others,

amon$ them a J released by a =erman 9abel, 5rde %eords in EE+

Kepa /unkera visited him oten, as did other youn$ men who were studyin$ the instrument,

and the veteran trikitilari ollaborated in one o his reordin$s+

He was an avid hiker+ 7or e(ample, he partiipated in several timed twelve hour treksor$ani'ed by 9a$un Onak rom A'peitia+ Aunt(a mana$ed to omplete one o those treks at RE

years old+ The trek departed rom A'peitia, limbed 'arrait', then went down to 9asau, then

limbed Ai'arna, 5turneta and 5rnio to ontinue throu$h Urraki and desend to A'peitia a$ain+

He had hiked rom Urrestilla to onostia about ive times in the last years+

Ater the war, the Jarlist militiamen onisated his trikiti(a and he onsidered it lost or years+

One o those militiamen, probably re$retul, wrote him a letter tellin$ him the instrument was

in #adrid+ Aunt(a i$nored the letter, but months later he reeived a paka$e with the trikiti(a+

t was a piee he>d bou$ht at the .en$otita shop in 8ilbao+ Aunt(a thanked him and treated

him to lunh in his restaurant+ 8ut the history o that trikiti(a doesn>t end there, it was stolenrom his ar in a trip with his son to 8arelona+

Aunt(a died on 2anta 9u'ia day in PFEE and aordin$ to statements made by his sons on /o(e

#ari riondo>s book CUrrestillako trikiti(aD, up to his last moments he was still movin$ his

in$ers, like he was relivin$ the .umarra$a airs+

9A/A>2 T?A;59A2

The ase o -aki =armendia C9ajaD is similar to bertsolari Andoni 5$a-a>sS amassin$ t(apelas

beore retirin$ rom ompetition+ 6hen asked about this subjet, 9aja tries to add them up but

is not sure" he ould have won ei$ht or nine, year ater year, in the hampionship inals in

onostia+

9aja must have been a preoious trikitilari+ They say 2akabi met 9aja in EBR, when he was E

)he had been born in EQQ* and he was already playin$ at the Korostieta air, at the hillside o

the 'arrait'+ 2akabi told 5l$eta" C6e>d better retireS this kid is omin$ up stron$D

-aki =armendia 9aja has no knowled$e o this anedote beause he didn>t live it C bu$$ed

2akabi to $ive me lessons but he told me that between the atory job and the airs, he hardly

had any time let and it was him who alled 5l$eta, who by that time had retired to the

homeless shelter in Tolosa, to ome to our aser1o, to 9aja, to $ive me lessons+ was EB at thetime and was 5l$eta>s last pupil+ remember he ame rom Tolosa by bus and arrived at the


24/52

aser1o with a ba$ o lothes and the trikiti(a on top o the donkey my mother used to $o to

the market+ He spent about our months in our house+ Then he let or onostia+ ;eople saw

him playin$ at 8ar 8asarri and others, in ront o a i$ar bo( where he kept the oins+ 8y the

time 5l$eta ame to teah me, had already played a ouple o years at the Korostieta ar,

whih was relatively lose to his homeD, he says+

-aki =armendia 9aja inherited his ondness or trikiti(a rom his ather+ His ather played the

trikiti(a and he had two bertsolari brothers who san$ in the nei$hborhood bars, A'anekoa y

;ikuanekoa+ 8ut the amily bertsolari who made history was the $randather beause he

starred in a small hallen$e with the $reat T(irrita+ Alle$edly, $randather was takin$ a herd o

pi$lets to town and rossed paths with T(irrita, who asked them i they wei$hed a lot+

=randather replied Cthey would wei$h a lot i they were like youD, makin$ un o the

bertsolari>s wei$ht+ 7rom that inident ame the verses ound in T(irrita>s bio$raphy+

C#y older sister also played the trikiti(a+ 2he was better than me+ 5l$eta one said he would

have preerred to teah my sister+ 2he had an e(ellent musi ear+ 6hatever piee we were

playin$, she would sin$ it rom upstairsD, he says+

5l$eta wasn>t 9aja>s only teaher beause he also studied musi under the A'peitia band

ondutor, /ose #ari Altuna+ C studied with him or three winters, when the workload at the

aser1o is li$hter+ He tau$ht me musi theory amon$ other thin$s+ 8y then used to play a lot in

weddin$s+ used to $o to Ar'ak restaurant, or e(ample+ 7rom time to time an inspetor would

show up askin$ to see my musiian ard+ Obviously didn>t have the ard and had to $o

home+ lost a ew weddin$s beause o the damn ard+ deided had to prepare or the e(am

to $et the ard+ studied with /ose #ari Altuna and went to take the e(am to the onostia

Jonsevatory beore a jury omprised o 8ello ;ortu and 7raniso 5sudero, no less, and other

people representin$ some #inistry rom #adrid+ One o the parts o the e(am onsisted in

readin$ sheet musi and playin$ it with the trikiti(a, with the added diiulty that they weren>t

in the same key, the trikiti(a was in 8 7lat and the sheet musi in =+ had prepared the Turkish

#arh or my perormane with the trikiti(a and they were very impressedD, he remembers+

5(perts laim 5l$eta and 2akabi were the bi$$est stars o the post war era and 9aja added one

more step to the ladder o evolution+

9aja is very humble about this+ Ct>s always easy to add another step when you know in depth

what your predeessors have done+ knew in depth what 2akabi had done+ tried to assimilatewhat he>d done and add somethin$ elseD, he says+ He added so muh to 2akabi>s le$ay that

when the irst hampionship in onostia is held in ERF, 2akabiL5$a-a'pi won the t(apela, but

the best trikitilari award went to 9aja and the best tambourine player award went to manol

turbide+

9aja has played with ountless tambourine players+ He played with 8eraste$i or many years,

with 5t(eberrit(o, with .abale, later with manol turbide and inally with 9andakanda+

He>s probably the trikitilari who>s won the most t(apelas at the Trikitilari hampionships+ 6hen

asked about the subjet, he starts ountin$" it ould be ei$ht or nine+ He has a split t(apela

with #artin beause their sores were tied, the year ater he plaed seond ater #artin )it>s


25/52

the only seond plae he>s had*, beause in all the other editions he ame bak home with the

t(apela+

He reorded his irst &lbum with turbide in Herri =o$oa, he reorded another ive with

9andakanda, he also released CA'ken ja''banaD )with sa(ophone and drums* and one o his

piees is in the t(apelketas ompilations+

9aja met Kepa /unkera when he played aordion at the 8eti /ai Alai+ C6e went to many 8i'kaia

towns" 5lant(obe, barran$elu, 9a$a or 9aida and there we would run into the 8eti /ai Alai $uys+

8oth Kepa /unkera and .abaleta played the aordion+ They used to stare at us+ 9ater on we

played oten at Aia, in Aristerra'u+ He was a very smart kid and he played our piees very well+

He was one o our ans rom that time, and now he>s a $reat artist+ He doesn>t play the trikiti(a

like us and he doesn>t prepare or a our hour lon$ show< he>s dierent, he>s rom another

world+ He does keep the beat but his ima$ination runs wild+ n the be$innin$, when he used to

play the airs in 8i'kaia and =ipu'koa and released his irst album, VKepa+ .abaleta eta

#otriku>, a beautiul reords, they were more in synh with usS .abaleta played the base notesand Kepa did his own thin$+ He does as he pleases and he never repeats the parts+ He is

without a doubt an improvisation $enius+ He wasn>t luky at the t(apelketas, he didn>t even

win a sin$le t(apela and think that also ontributed to stren$then his ways+ The unny thin$ is

that he took really $ood piees to the ompetitions and years later the students re:uests his

piees and not so muh Tapia>sD, he says+

ask him i he>s ever played /unkera>s piees COne he answersL+ There was a estival in

Tolosa and Kepa and #utriko had to anel at the last minute+ The presenter, think it was

/o(e #ari riondo, looked at us and asked i anyone was brave enou$h to play his piees+

remember played a ew and was pretty suessul+ Kepa was adored amon$ youn$ trikitilaris

and ansD+

9ately he>s had a loser relationship with #otriku+ %eently they played to$ether in

Aristerra'u+ C;eople said we made an odd ouple, beause he san$ everythin$ in 5uskara

without really speakin$ it and spoke to him in 2panish without really knowin$ the lan$ua$e,

but despite everythin$ it looked like we understood eah other+ 6e usually $et to$ether at his

wie>s aser1o in .ornot'a+ 6hen 9andakanda told him he was $oin$ to retire rom the

tambourine and enoura$ed him to take his plae, he $ot really e(ited and pratied so

thorou$hly that in the irst air we played to$ether we had more than enou$h piees+ He an>t

play a lot beause o his job, but he>s thrilled to play every one in a while+ He enjoys the

tambourine a lotD, he says+

remind him that ater the 2an /ose day estival in A'peitia he played with Kepa at the

;astorkua restaurant, CThey said it would be $reat i dierent trikitilari $enerations $ot

to$ether to play, the youn$er ones with us, 9andakanda and me+ 6e played with Kepa and

#otriku and we aused a small ommotion with pitures and ellphone videosD, he

remembers

9aja still plays every day but not on a i(ed shedule Cto learn some new piees or $o over

some old onesD+ He lives in a new house ne(t to his amily, a ew meters away rom the aser1o


26/52

where he was born, now turned into a restaurant+ He>s tau$ht some o the youn$ trikitilaris

that are now on the oreront like munt'o, 9urdes Alkorta, 'er or A$urt'ane 5lustondo+

He is still teahin$+ His students ran$e rom EP year old kids to elderly people who have

learned over F piees+ The students reord 9aja while he plays the piees very slowly and then

pratie at home+ CThere are students that have learned the whole piee in a week+ Nowadaysthere are trikiti(a shools in every town and nei$hborhood+ 2ome o my students are people

determined to have me teahin$ themD+

They have two sons that play the trikiti(a+ One o them plays with him at weddin$s at

#endi$oiko, in At(ondo+ He>s been doin$ it or over twenty years+ One o the house>s

speialties is servin$ the ood to the rhythm o the trikti(a Ca do'en o $irls ome out while

we>re playin$ and we disappear one they>ve served all the tables, only to reappear with the

ne(t ourseD+

TO#A2 2O%A9U.5 C5;595D, A ;5%#AN5NT 2#95

There are misterious and intri$uin$ smiles, like #onalisa>s, but there are also honest and lear

smiles like 5pelde>s, who always has a smile on his ae, espeially i he>s playin$ musi+ He was

born in the 5pelde aser1o in A'koitia+ t>s the last aser1o alon$ the road rom Ak'oitia to

#artirieta+

the Trikitilaris Assoiation had to trae a route or a walkin$ tour o trikiti(a, they would have

to hoose this A'koitia nei$hborhood+ 6alkin$ up to the nei$hborhood hermita$e is immersin$

onesel in the history o the trikiti(a+ Out o the F aser1os that orm the nei$hborhood, the

irst on the road rom A'koitia is munsoro )munt'o*, birthplae o a trikitilari+ The third one is5$urrola, birthplae o a panderojole who played with /ose #ari 5pelde, Tomas> ather+ 6e

also ind aser1o .endoia, birthplae o the brothers o the same name and also aser1o #uno,

where /ose #ari 5pelde was born, and urther up #ontte, home o one o the $reatest

dult'ainero dynasties in the ountry+ This doesn>t mean there weren>t any musiians in the

other aser1os+ There were trikitilaris in 2usteta, risarri or Urtea$a, but they didn>t perorm in

publi+ There were dul'aineros in Korta and 5t(et(o too+ Tomas 2oralu'e C5peldeD stands me

orreted sayin$ we>re talkin$ about the past, it>s not the same anymore+

C used to tell my ather was the real 5pelde beause had been born in that aser1o+ He had

been born in #uno and moved here when he married an 5pelde+ n at, his riends alwaysalled him #unoD, says Tomas 2oralu'a, the present 5pelde, and adds that when the

t(apelketas be$an and he partiipated with his brother 9u'iano and his ather with 5$urrola, in

order to avoid onusion they started allin$ his ather 5pelde .aharra and him just plain

5pelde+

?abier =ant'arain, diretor o Arteleku, dediated a book to 5pelde .aharra )C5pelde+ #ende

baten soinuaD* in whih he maniested his astonishment at the emer$ene o trikiti(a in

A'koitia and the surroundin$ area in the irst deades o the PFthentury+ He remembers it as

one o the most intense ultural phenomena o the time, surprisin$ly under the rule o a

atholi undamentalist politial party+


27/52

Tomas> $randather played the dul'aina and he was a bertsolari+ 7ather and son used to $o to

the 2anta 9uia air in .umarra$a+ The ather improvised bertsos while the son played musi+

n the EPF>s trikiti(a substituted dul'aina+ Trikitilaris like 5t(esakorta, 8elt'iur, Kantera, =orri'

or Kanpa'ar would $o to #artirieta+ 5pelde .aharra bou$ht a seond hand tri(iti(a in A'peitia

when he was E, and bou$ht a seond one when he was EM at 9arrina$a in onostia+ 2ine hebou$ht that trikiti(a until the war broke out, 5pelde .aharra played all the airs in the area, but

espeially Ai'purut(o>s+ He would perorm solo, but he always arried a tambourine in ase

someone elt like playin$+

His son Tomas was born in EQB and he learned how to play the trikiti(a at home, selLtau$ht,

without the help o any teahers+ Althou$h 5pelde .aharra hardly played at home, he was

determined to teah his oldest son, but he didn>t improve+ t was then that Tomas piked up

the trikiti(a or the irst time+ CYou were born or thisD, said his ather, when he saw how well

he did+ The oldest brother started playin$ tambourine+ CAll >ve learned, did listenin$ to others

like #alt'eta, 9aja or 2akabi, who ame to the nei$hborhood otenD, he says+

The 5pelde dynasty ontinues with Tomas> nephews+

He>s partiipated in t(apelketas and has played with several panderojoles, but he>s been

playin$ with manol turbide or almost thirty years+ CThere have been times when we>ve

played to$ether E days in a row+ 2pendin$ so muh time to$ether, you end up workin$ well

Documents

Una Pequeña Historia de La Trikitixa Inglés