The copla (popular folk song) is one of the most characteristic musical genres in Spanish culture, emblematic of its music. On occasion reviled for its typicalness and regarded as another example of what has disparagingly been called “españolada” (a clichéd image of Spanishness), this exhibition not only aims to return the copla to its proper place in the history of popular customs but also to show its connection to great poets, authors of some of its lyrics, given that originally this musical genre used a traditional metric form of Spanish poetry. The exhibition also coincides with a clear trend to recover these types of songs and the renewal and updating of its themes and melodies by artists such as Concha Buika, Diana Navarro and Pasión Vega who have also included them in their recordings.
The purpose of this exhibition is to highlight the way in which the copla has evolved, from its birth among the people and as a song transmitted by word of mouth to its most elaborate manifestation as part of other shows such as revues or musical dramas, sometimes inspired by stories of love and love lost that appear in the words of the. Stories censured due either to their erotic content or their social criticism, underlining the hypocrisy of the time but also of their power and capacity to transmit ideas. A kind of song sung mainly by women but which, when sung for the first time by a man, Miguel de Molina, posed the question of gender.
In order to highlight the richness of the world of the copla, this exhibition has been divided into different sections, approximately following a chronological order starting from its origins at the beginning of the 20th century until the present day, each one named after some of the most famous of these songs. Each section includes graphic, audio and audiovisual documentation, most of which belong to the collections of the Spanish National Library. It is also interesting to see the way in which recording has evolved, from paper rolls for Pianolas to gramophone records to the CDs of today.