When did they start playing the bagpipes in the Praza do Obradoiro?

[dick bird]

Leading off from another thread, which will remain anonymous, I am curious to know when they started playing the bagpipes in the archway leading into the Praza do Obradoiro. They certainly weren´t doing it in the late 1980s, and I don´t remember there being a bagpipe player the first time I strode triumphantly into the Praza in 2012. Bagpipe playing is thirsty work, I have been told, so maybe the resident piper was off boosting their fluid intake, but I´m not sure if they were there in 2015 either. Now they seem to be a regular feature, a feature I suspect the Xunta tourist office may have a hand in, but does anyone know who the players are, how they get the gig and when they started?

 

[Anhalter]

The pipe player was there when i walked in the first time in 2019. I would not be surprised if that thing started some years earlier.
After having walked in a few more times now, I am not so sure if I really like it. But i can see how it is nice for the first timers...

I would guess as with most places it is some kind of license you acquire from some kind of authority in SdC.

 

[trecile]

The pipe player was there when i walked in the first time in 2019.

There was a bagpiper there my first time in 2016.

 

[caminka]

The bagpiper was there in 2022, he was also there in 2016, I am pretty sure he was there in 2012, he may have been there in 2009 but I dragged myself into SdC half sick and don't remember much at all, and I don't remember if he was there in 2005.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

And there was one playing on my first Camino in 2015...nothing beats the happiness I felt that first time!

 

[J Willhaus]

I've been there when it was a guitarist so maybe they also switch out with other buskers.

 

[mspath]

There was no bagpiper at the end of my first camino in 2004 nor for any of the next years through 2014. However the cathedral bells always sounded wonderful.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I don't remember one in July 2015. When did you get there in 2015 Chris?

There was one near the 100 km mojone though (a kilometer or so away).

 

[Stivandrer]

There was no bagpiper at the end of my first camino in 2004 nor for any of the next years through 2014. However the cathedral bells always sounded wonderful.

Odd, he was there June 1st, ´14!!

 

[Camino Chrissy]

I don't remember one in July 2015. When did you get there in 2015 Chris?

There was one near the 100 km mojone though (a kilometer or so away).
View attachment 179175

I didn't see your guy, Rick, but I walked through on May 16, 2015 and heard the bagpipes loud and clear. I guess he was taking his del dia lunch break when you passed by.

 

[JLuis]

There was one player there in 2001, September 9.

 

[John Crawford Howell]

A piper was there in early June, 2017.

 

[Desert Bruce]

There are a number of pipers that rotate playing in the arch, as well as other musicians. They sign up on a schedule that is kept in a space in the rock behind where they play. So I learned on a walking tour of the Plaza.

 

[chook]

Heard a bagpiper in September 2005 and each time since as I’ve arrived at the cathedral the nasal droning has been a familiar welcome.

 

[Rex]

There was a bagpiper there playing “Amazing Grace” when I finished in October 2013. It was my late father’s favorite hymn and made me think of him as I walked those final steps in the gentle rain.

 

[Guy Strachan]

Leading off from another thread, which will remain anonymous, I am curious to know when they started playing the bagpipes in the archway leading into the Praza de Obradoiro. They certainly weren´t doing it in the late 1980s, and I don´t remember there being a bagpipe player the first time I strode triumphantly into the Praza in 2012. Bagpipe playing is thirsty work, I have been told, so maybe the resident piper was off boosting their fluid intake, but I´m not sure if they were there in 2015 either. Now they seem to be a regular feature, a feature I suspect the Xunta tourist office may have a hand in, but does anyone know who the players are, how they get the gig and when they started?

There was definitely a piper there when I finished my first Camino in 2013.

Being Scottish it seemed like an appropriate welcome!

Been one there aswell every other subsequent time I've passed through

 

[sillydoll]

There is a previous thread about the gaita players here https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/curious-about-the-bagpiper-in-santiago.74249/

 

[Keyser]

There was a piper playing on our first Camino in 2010. Mostly they play the Galician pipes called Gaita Gallega. Some play the Scottish war pipes (bag pipes). One of the current pipers is a lady from Ireland.

 

[Theatregal]

Oct. 13, 2012

View attachment M4H06098 (1).mov

 

[trecile]

I've been there when it was a guitarist so maybe they also switch out with other buskers.

I have also seen a guitarist and violinist playing there.

 

[JennN]

There was someone playing the bagpipes my first time there in November 2001. Fifteen years later when I finally made it for the second time, and as the emotion was building coming closer to the cathedral, I heard the bagpipes again. Well that’s all that was needed for the tears of joy! Long live the bagpiper!

 

[t2andreo]

Someone was there, playing his GAETA - not a bagpipe - in late May 2013 - when I first arrived off the Camino Frances. There are structural differences between the classic Irish, Scots bagpipes and the Galician gaeta. I believe the gaeta is considered the forerunner of the bagpipe.

As I am not a musician, and cannot carry a tune in a bucket, I defer to those more learned for a description of the differences between the historical Galician gaeta and the bagpipes.

Hope this helps.

Tom

 

[-karioo-]

The bagpipes sounded beautifully in September of 2012

 

[MariaSP]

I went to college in Santiago in the 90's and there were "gaiteiros" around the cathedral already. Maybe not every day or for so many hours, But it was happening already. In fact, the boyfriend of one of my friends used to play there sometimes, whenever he needed some extra cash.

Nowadays, there are a few of them, who take turns, as this article explains: https://www.elcorreogallego.es/sant...ardia-musical-catedral-santiago-89690786.html

 

[Rmarkob]

I think I heard that there is a rotating group of musicians from a local music school that sign up. In addition to pipers I also saw a harpist once. On the day after I arrived in Santiago for the first time in 2021 I was hanging around the plaza to greet some arriving friends and noticed there was no piper for an hour or two in the afternoon. I felt badly for first time pilgrims who didn’t get to experience the music.

 

[David Tallan]

There was a bagpiper there my first time in 2016.

There was a bagpipe player for me in 2016, too, but I don't remember one in 1989. I'm sure that narrows it down a lot.

 

[Rebekah Scott]

When I came into the plaza in May 2001, a woman was there, singing an aria from "The Magic Flute."

 

[Anamiri]

I have also seen a guitarist and violinist playing there.

And in 2019 there was a woman singing opera in the afternoon, by the morning the piper was back

 

[henrythedog]

Might one ask ‘when will they stop?’

 

[Rebekah Scott]

Might one ask ‘when will they stop?’

I'm never quite sure if people give them money to encourage them, or maybe to make them go away?

 

[Jeff Crawley]

There certainly was on 16th October 2001. I walked into the plaza with a young German pilgrim and she said "They must have heard Roland (a Scottish Presbyterian minister walking with our "shoal") is arriving and they've laid it on in his honour!"

 

[Jeff Crawley]

I'm never quite sure if people give them money to encourage them, or maybe to make them go away?

The latter.

 

[Jeff Crawley]

Leading off from another thread, which will remain anonymous, I am curious to know when they started playing the bagpipes in the archway leading into the Praza de Obradoiro. They certainly weren´t doing it in the late 1980s, and I don´t remember there being a bagpipe player the first time I strode triumphantly into the Praza in 2012. Bagpipe playing is thirsty work, I have been told, so maybe the resident piper was off boosting their fluid intake, but I´m not sure if they were there in 2015 either. Now they seem to be a regular feature, a feature I suspect the Xunta tourist office may have a hand in, but does anyone know who the players are, how they get the gig and when they started?

FAR too early in the morning.

 

[Rebekah Scott]

Supposedly the archbishop of Santiago lives in the adjacent building. He clearly enjoys very good sound-proofing!

 

[henrythedog]

There’s a tiny bar not too far from the busker; obviously family operated by a couple of octogenarians.

Last time there I asked ‘when did they start playing the gaitas?’

‘Which gaitas?’

 

[Bradypus]

There certainly was on 16th October 2001. I walked into the plaza with a young German pilgrim and she said "They must have heard Roland (a Scottish Presbyterian minister walking with our "shoal") is arriving and they've laid it on in his honour!"

For some reason I have had it in my mind for a long time that my second Camino was in 2002. But your post prompted me to look again at my Compostela for that walk. Sure enough it says 16 October 2001! And although I had a solid Presbyterian upbringing by that point I had defected to the Anglicans...

 

[Trekker One]

I don't mind bag pipes at all when played well and performing an actual song, but I haven't encountered well played bag pipes on my six trips into Santiago. Bag pipes don't lend themselves well to jazz.
On a positive note though, I've never encountered a snake in Santiago so the bag pipe playing does seem to have a positive effect in this regard...

 

[Jeff Crawley]

For some reason I have had it in my mind for a long time that my second Camino was in 2002. But your post prompted me to look again at my Compostela for that walk. Sure enough it says 16 October 2001! And although I had a solid Presbyterian upbringing by that point I had defected to the Anglicans...

View attachment 179186

What a coincidence! Can you believe it's been 23 years? I've been reading my journal this past week - shocking how naïve I was then.

 

[Bradypus]

What a coincidence! Can you believe it's been 23 years? I've been reading my journal this past week - shocking how naïve I was then.

I found my 1990 Camino diary last year when putting all my house contents into storage. I thought I'd lost it years ago. A little sobering to realise that the person writing was less than half my current age! On my first solo journey abroad. No live music on that first arrival in Santiago but a souvenir shop in the Praza da Quintana was playing a tape by the wonderful Galician group Milladoiro. A young woman in front of me turned to her partner and said "They have music like this in Scotland." Exactly my thoughts at the time! I bought a tape of their "O Berro Seco" album. Now available on YouTube. Listening to it even now takes me straight back to that time and place.

 

[grayland]

There was one there in 2008-2009 and every Camino since (about 13 times I think)

 

[Jeff Crawley]

I found my 1990 Camino diary last year when putting all my house contents into storage. I thought I'd lost it years ago. A little sobering to realise that the person writing was less than half my current age! On my first solo journey abroad. No live music on that first arrival in Santiago but a souvenir shop in the Praza da Quintana was playing a tape by the wonderful Galician group Milladoiro. A young woman in front of me turned to her partner and said "They have music like this in Scotland." Exactly my thoughts at the time! I bought a tape of their "O Berro Seco" album. Now available on YouTube. Listening to it even now takes me straight back to that time and place.

Wow, 1990. Just 4918 Compostelas issued!

 

[Bradypus]

Wow, 1990. Just 4918 Compostelas issued!

Indeed. Looks as though this year will be about 100x that number.

 

[jimmyc]

He was there is July 2015 when I arrived.

 

[dick bird]

Sounds like it is an informal system that grew up out of busking in the 1990´s with busking in the arch a regular thing by 2001. I had a friend who busked in London underground stations way back in the 70´s and they had the same system, intending buskers would meet together and arrange who had the pitch and for how long. If anyone has any more info, please share it. I´d love to know more.

 

[Ellen Gotts]

Was there 2013 when I arrived after my first Camino . Remember it well. So special.

 

[cecelia]

Definitely there is 2003. What an amazing welcome - it brought tears to my eyes! (I didn't ask my pet snake what she thought of it though Trekker One)

 

[Optimistic Traveler]

Might one ask ‘when will they stop?’

We celebrated the completion of our camino in 2018 by staying in the Parador. Turned out, our room was very close to the bagpiper! We fell asleep listening to those dulcet (?) sounds!
Those bagpipes did not get in the way of our getting a good night's sleep - we have no clue when he stopped playing !

 

[John Hungerford]

There was a bagpiper playing in 2009.

 

[JillGat]

My father-in-law started a bagpipes program at Carnegie Mellon University. https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/15/...rent-beat-when-bagpiping-becomes-a-major.html
Even though my heritage is Scottish, I was never a big fan. But I get chills when I hear the plaintive bagpipes in the tunnel before the cathedral in Santiago.

 

[Vacajoe]

My grandfather came over from Portugal in the late early 1910s. At our annual festa West Sacramento, he always insisted on having bagpipes in the procession because it reminded him “of the old country.” What a treat for me to hear them and think of my Papa as I finished my first Camino years ago.

 

[Jeff Crawley]

Sounds like it is an informal system that grew up out of busking in the 1990´s with busking in the arch a regular thing by 2001. I had a friend who busked in London underground stations way back in the 70´s and they had the same system, intending buskers would meet together and arrange who had the pitch and for how long. If anyone has any more info, please share it. I´d love to know more.

I know that Dublin has it strictly regulated. Grafton Street is THE place, you are allowed a one hour slot and have to have a city licence.
There's some incredible talent performing there including Allie Sherlock who has been busking on a Saturday for eight years now. She's 19!

Allie Sherlock

I would assume that in earlier times Santiago would have attracted street entertainers such as troubadours and jugglers as well as the more commonplace cutpurses and ladies of negotiable affection . . . I really must read the Canterbury Tales again!

 

[Scott Sweeney]

There was a bagpiper there my first time in 2016.

There was the bagpipe player in 2013. I couldn't tell you of it was the same person or not.

 

[Flog]

They are paid employees of the Junta, all of them. They regularly rotate and play to a schedule.

 

[Theatregal]

They are paid employees of the Junta, all of them.

I'm curious how you know this?

 

[sinein]

Cue memories of highland games and finishing the camino - a very emotive combination!

 

[dick bird]

They are paid employees of the Junta, all of them. They regularly rotate and play to a schedule.

There’s a link in post 24 that says otherwise. Incidentally, it is Xunta, with an X.

 

[dodo]

There was a bagpiper playing in 2009.

Yes, there was when I came in as well. The sound of the Gaita from afar then and every time since has moved me to tears. I´m one who donates money for them to never stop greeting us.

 

[Pelegrin]

They are paid employees of the Junta, all of them. They regularly rotate and play to a schedule.

Saying Junta for Xunta is similar ( not the same) as saying Ourselves for Sinn Féin.

 

[Flog]

Apologies, my grasp of Spanish and indeed Gallego is appalling at the best of times. Xunta, of course!


Ach, go raibh míle maith agat

 

[dick bird]

Apologies, my grasp of Spanish and indeed Gallego is appalling at the best of times. Xunta, of course!


Ach, go raibh míle maith agat

Tá fáilte romhat.

 

[howardd5]

Leading off from another thread, which will remain anonymous, I am curious to know when they started playing the bagpipes in the archway leading into the Praza do Obradoiro. They certainly weren´t doing it in the late 1980s, and I don´t remember there being a bagpipe player the first time I strode triumphantly into the Praza in 2012. Bagpipe playing is thirsty work, I have been told, so maybe the resident piper was off boosting their fluid intake, but I´m not sure if they were there in 2015 either. Now they seem to be a regular feature, a feature I suspect the Xunta tourist office may have a hand in, but does anyone know who the players are, how they get the gig and when they started?

I remember the playing of th Gaeta on my first Camino back in 2002 at the arch leading to the Plaza. The name Gaeta is the equivalent of the bagpipe in Scotland but much older. The historical name is derived from Spanish for Cat and the scratchy drone sounds like a cat in heat.

 

[Flog]

Or a cat being strangled.. not that I've ever actually heard a cat being strangled or anything, but anyway...

Some of the players are better than others..

 

[Jeff Crawley]

I was talking about this thread with a friend and fellow ex-pilgrim last night and this morning she sent me this:



So not "one of us" then?

 

[An Tincéir]

Leading off from another thread, which will remain anonymous, I am curious to know when they started playing the bagpipes in the archway leading into the Praza do Obradoiro. They certainly weren´t doing it in the late 1980s, and I don´t remember there being a bagpipe player the first time I strode triumphantly into the Praza in 2012. Bagpipe playing is thirsty work, I have been told, so maybe the resident piper was off boosting their fluid intake, but I´m not sure if they were there in 2015 either. Now they seem to be a regular feature, a feature I suspect the Xunta tourist office may have a hand in, but does anyone know who the players are, how they get the gig and when they started?

Since at least 2009

 

[t2andreo]

I'm never quite sure if people give them money to encourage them, or maybe to make them go away?

It has been my understanding, for some years now, that the city government maintains a rota of "approved" performers for the archway on the stairs coming down from Rua de Acibecheria into the Plaza do Obradoiro.

In prior years, when I have been there there volunteering for several weeks, I've seen the same people performing at regular times. It is as if they are scheduled to provide entertainment on a planned schedule. If someone knows otherwise, or has a source, please pitch in.

Thanks

Tom

 

[Theatregal]

It is as if they are scheduled to provide entertainment on a planned schedule. If someone knows otherwise, or has a source, please pitch in.

@MariaSP provided an article that explains the system in post #24.

 

[WayWalker]

Leading off from another thread, which will remain anonymous, I am curious to know when they started playing the bagpipes in the archway leading into the Praza do Obradoiro. They certainly weren´t doing it in the late 1980s, and I don´t remember there being a bagpipe player the first time I strode triumphantly into the Praza in 2012. Bagpipe playing is thirsty work, I have been told, so maybe the resident piper was off boosting their fluid intake, but I´m not sure if they were there in 2015 either. Now they seem to be a regular feature, a feature I suspect the Xunta tourist office may have a hand in, but does anyone know who the players are, how they get the gig and when they started?

Was there when I walked through in 2013. I love the rich Celtic history of Galicia and Austurias.

 

[Kathor1]

dickbird ... seem to be a regular feature, a feature I suspect the Xunta tourist office may have a hand in, but does anyone know who the players are, how they get the gig and when they started? Hey, why not be honest and direct? Talk to the Xunta tourist office, or talk to the musicians in person. Why the concern of bagpipe music and a 'nefarious suspicion'? Is the 'Praza do Obradoiro' exclusive to a certain kind of music? Maybe your big deal is a big nothing.

@Mg. McKay, you may not have read any of the 66 replies in this thread, including posts from forum member @MariaSP who lives in Santiago and has a friend who once played the bagpipes under the arch of the Obradoiro square to earn some extra cash.

Santiago is not different from other towns with a similar appeal: the activity of street artists including buskers are regulated by the town administration of Santiago de Compostela. This is a known fact. Someone mentioned Dublin with a similar regulation for the main area of the town that attracts numerous visitors like the Obradoiro square in Santiago does.

In earlier years, busking activity and other artistic street activity like the "living statues" was a free-for-all in Santiago. For at least 10 years now, it is regulated: The bagpipers have to apply for a licence. There are between 12-20 musicians who have such a permission to perform. They arrange among themselves who plays when during the permitted time slots of the day.

The thread is an opportunity to share in which year pilgrims heard the sound of the bagpipe upon their arrival in Santiago for the first time and how they perceived it.

Enjoy !

 

[Kathor1]

Just for clarification: It is not the Tourist Office and not the Xunta but the Concello of Santiago who regulates the activity of street artists. Here is a link to the Normas Reguladoras da Realización de Actividades Artísticas na Vía Pública promovidas por Particulares which is publicly available on the website of the town administration of Santiago:

HOME | Concello de Santiago de Compostela

www.santiagodecompostela.gal

And for the list of all such regulations since 2013:

https://transparencia.santiagodecompostela.gal/descargas/es/521

 

[Circle56]

Leading off from another thread, which will remain anonymous, I am curious to know when they started playing the bagpipes in the archway leading into the Praza do Obradoiro. They certainly weren´t doing it in the late 1980s, and I don´t remember there being a bagpipe player the first time I strode triumphantly into the Praza in 2012. Bagpipe playing is thirsty work, I have been told, so maybe the resident piper was off boosting their fluid intake, but I´m not sure if they were there in 2015 either. Now they seem to be a regular feature, a feature I suspect the Xunta tourist office may have a hand in, but does anyone know who the players are, how they get the gig and when they started?

We got to the square on Oct 30, 2015 and bagpiper was there. I thought it was wonderful.

 

[Pelegrin]

I remember the playing of th Gaeta on my first Camino back in 2002 at the arch leading to the Plaza. The name Gaeta is the equivalent of the bagpipe in Scotland but much older. The historical name is derived from Spanish for Cat and the scratchy drone sounds like a cat in heat.

I read on Internet that "Gaita" comes from Germanic "Gaits" ( goat) because the bag is made of goatskin. So, you could better say " Goata" instead of " Gaeta".

 

[Kathor1]

A question raised in this thread was:

Is the 'Praza do Obradoiro' exclusive to a certain kind of music?

The answer is: Yes, it is exclusive to certain kinds of music!

I ploughed through some of the regulations to be able to have a fact-based and informed opinion before writing an answer. It is hard for me because the regulations that are accessible online are written in the Galician language. Some of the rules for individual musicians (exceptions are made for one-off concerts on stage on special feast days or for other special events) are:

You cannot make music just about anywhere on the Obradoiro square. You need an authorisation from the town's administration. You need to be in the spot that has been declared as a spot for busking and has been allocated to you.

The spot under the arch (Arco de Pazo de Xelmirez) is the most desirable for the street musicians. Only live performances are allowed without technical amplification. The kind of instrument used and the style of music performed must be approved by the town administration. Other regulations such as those on noise pollution and sound emission and sound reception in the immediate environment must be complied with. And apparently only either bagpipe music or lyric song are allowed in this specific location. Which is probably why no pilgrim in this thread reported that they heard a guitar, a flute, an accordion or a violin under the Arch of the Gelmirez Palace.

This is not a case of the Camino providing for the pilgrim ... the town administration provides for you.

 

[Jakobsvejen.dk]

His father was there in 31st of Mai 1997. Now its next generation.

 

[DonnaS18]

A question raised in this thread was:


The answer is: Yes, it is exclusive to certain kinds of music!

I ploughed through some of the regulations to be able to have a fact-based and informed opinion before writing an answer. It is hard for me because the regulations that are accessible online are written in the Galician language. Some of the rules for individual musicians (exceptions are made for one-off concerts on stage on special feast days or for other special events) are:

You cannot make music just about anywhere on the Obradoiro square. You need an authorisation from the town's administration. You need to be in the spot that has been declared as a spot for busking and has been allocated to you.

The spot under the arch (Arco de Pazo de Xelmirez) is the most desirable for the street musicians. Only live performances are allowed without technical amplification. The kind of instrument used and the style of music performed must be approved by the town administration. Other regulations such as those on noise pollution and sound emission and sound reception in the immediate environment must be complied with. And apparently only either bagpipe music or lyric song are allowed in this specific location. Which is probably why no pilgrim in this thread reported that they heard a guitar, a flute, an accordion or a violin under the Arch of the Gelmirez Palace.

This is not a case of the Camino providing for the pilgrim ... the town administration provides for you.

It’s their home - not sure I’d want amplified music being played outside my residence every day either.
Personally I love he Celtic pipes. it’s a very emotional experience every time I complete the Camino. I don’t believe you’d get that same vibe from a pop band.

 

[Kathor1]

The point is that the regulations stipulate, among other things, that the music must be live. It reminds me of the many times when I enter a church (outside of mass times) and I am greeted by Gregorian chant or organ music or similar music appropriate for the environment. Then I quickly realise that it is taped music. In such circumstances, I'd rather not hear it, beautiful as it may sound.

 

[Jeff Crawley]

The point is that the regulations stipulate, among other things, that the music must be live. It reminds me of the many times when I enter a church (outside of mass times) and I am greeted by Gregorian chant or organ music or similar music appropriate for the environment. Then I quickly realise that it is taped music. In such circumstances, I'd rather not hear it, beautiful as it may sound.

When I worked at Rabanal way back in 2002 the day started with a solo Gregorian chant off of a CD player in the Hospitalero office and we'd slowly crank up the volume to full blast as a "subtle" hint to get our guests on the road (and out of our hair). Convinced many a gullible pilgrim it was Xavier from the monastery next door singing live.