La Sierra Minera de Cartagena-La Unión en las coplas y discografía del cante minero-levantino (I)

Abstract

The Sierra Minera de Cartagena-La Unión, a fundamental reference in the geography of flamenco, is one of the cradles of the cante minero-levantino (mining-levantine singing). Many of its lyrics, transmitted by songbooks and discography, recreate scenes of everyday life as a snapshot. With the Sierra Minera as a backdrop, they include toponyms of the area, such as Herrerías, La Unión, Cartagena or Portman. Also names of mythical artists such as Rojo el Alpargatero, el Pajarito or the trovero (improvising poet) Marín. Many of them stand out for the hypercharacterization of their lexicon, related to the semantic field of the mine and its trades, its tools or its infrastructures. And some of them recall historical events, such as the famous miners’ strikes that took place at the end of the nineteenth century and the first decades of the twentieth century, which were harshly repressed. In short, they constitute a valuable testimony of undoubted documentary value.