- If one visits any of the eight
Andalusian cities during the Holy Week festivities, they will witness
extravagance to extreme, but especially in Seville, where no expense is spared.
Seville is
transformed into a colourful podium during this week of spiritual mayhem and
the city shuts down in order to accommodate the hundreds of thousands of people
that attend the processions.
- Most
people who experience Easter in Seville for the first time are overwhelmed by
the opulence of the floats. Much skill and precision are required to guide
these beautiful icons around the narrow streets, especially around the
cathedral and the Santa Cruz district. Some of the nazarenos - the
penitents dressed in robes and pointed hats - will embark on their long
journeys barefoot and chained at the ankles.
The only sound one hears during a silent
procession (lo and behold anyone who talks as the procession passes) is the
shuffling of esparto shoes and the rattling of the canopy that covers the
image. During processions with musical accompaniment, the pall bearers will
sway the float in time to the music and this is generally considered an art
that is at its best in Seville.
With
the exception of the silent processions, most will include a marching band. The
sometimes, mournful sound of the brass and drums can impart a feeling of great
apprehension. The music that accompanies the figure of Christ is usually more
sombre and consists of a death-like rhythm accompanied by soft wind
instrumentation; while the accompaniment of the Virgin is most often an
elaborate fanfare of excitement.
Military
or police bands consisting of trumpets, cornets, bugles, tubas, trombones and
percussion became a standard element of the processions in the 19th century.
Today’s bands are not necessarily linked to the military or police, although
they still perform in traditional military-style uniforms.
The core events of Holy
Week are the elaborate processions, which set off from their home church and
embark on a journey that can take up to twelve hours, passing through the
cathedral, before returning to their own church. The
only down side of this incredible display of devotion to Catholicism is the
fact that the shortest of distances can take hours to complete, due to the
streets being packed with spectators.
The women are attired in black and crowned
with ornamental hair combs (peineta) and trailing lace shawls (mantillas), giving them an air of nobility. During the daytime, it is traditional
to wear a much smaller comb, but at night, the grandest and most decorative
combs are sported.
The austere attire is complemented with
silk or lace gloves, strings of pearls and broaches of precious stones - a
demonstration of the stateliness that Sevillians display at Easter.
From the new book - Seville: a legacy of enchantment
Available from Amazon Order here
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