Strangely, I would like to start by talking about something the novel does not explicitly contain: music. As a visitor to the Canaries, I imagine you might enjoy discovering a bit about Canarian culture, and a key element of that is music. I’m neither a historian nor a musicologist, but I’ve included two subtle musical references in the novel that play a role in the story.
The first reference is the song ‘Sombra del Nublo,’ penned by Néstor Álamo in 1936 and adopted by the Cabildo as the Anthem of Gran Canaria in 2008. Néstor Álamo, a journalist, writer, and composer of popular music, is fondly remembered across the island with numerous statues, plaques, and places bearing his name. You’ll encounter two of his statues throughout the novel.
The song is a tribute to Gran Canaria’s iconic landmark and the peasant lifestyle that thrived under its shadow. For my money, the finest rendition of ‘Sombra del Nublo’ is the studio recording by Los Sabandeños, our most renowned folkloric ensemble, featuring the legendary Canarian tenor Alfredo Kraus.
Sombra del nublo
Riscales los de tejeda
Cadenas de mis montañas
Montañas las de mi tierra
Montañas las de mi tierra
Besos de mujer canaria
Queso tierno y recental
Vino caliente de abajo
El gofio moreno oliendo
¡Qué más puedo desear!
El agua por el barranco
Y mi amor en el telar
Sombra del nublo
Altar de mi tierra maga
Hay nieve y sol en la cumbre
Cumbre de mi gran canaria
Cumbre de mi gran canaria
Sombra del nublo
Altar de mi tierra maga
Hay nieve y sol en la cumbre
Cumbre de mi gran canaria
Cumbre de mi gran canaria
Roque nublo, roque nublo
Lírica piedra lunar
Si a tu sombra yo he nacido
Quiero vivir a tu sombra
Y a tu sombra quiero amar
El alma eres de mi tierra
Fuego y lava junto al mar.
Shadow of the Nublo
Across the cliffs of Tejeda
Across the mountain ranges
Mountains of my homeland
Mountains of my homeland
The lips of a Canarian woman
Fresh cheese and lamb
Mulled wine from the lowlands
The smell of toasted gofio
What else can I wish for!
The water down the ravine
And my love at the loom
Shadow of the Nublo
Altar of my peasant homeland
It’s sunny and snowy in the highlands
Highlands of my Gran Canaria
Highlands of my Gran Canaria
Shadow of the Nublo
Altar of my peasant homeland
It’s sunny and snowy in the highlands
Highlands of my Gran Canaria
Highlands of my Gran Canaria
Roque Nublo, Roque Nublo
Lyrical moon rock
As I was born by your shadow
By your shadow I shall live
By your shadow I shall love
You are my land’s soul
Fire and Lava by the sea.
To quell any inter-island rivalries, considering that Los Sabandeños actually hail from Tenerife, let me also share this live version by Los Gofiones, the equivalent group from Gran Canaria.
The Fire Demon 