Popular music and La Palma folklore
Since 2014, Los Benahoare has revived the musical legacy associated with Felipe Vargas and expanded it through Canarian folklore, boleros and new songs built from La Palma texts and roots.
The name Los Benahoare was associated with the musicians who accompanied Felipe Vargas de Paz, an important figure in La Palma folklore who died in 1995. In January 2014, former members of that ensemble reclaimed the name and launched a new project. Under Fernando Felipe Martel’s direction, more than twenty experienced amateur musicians came together to recover that repertory and create new work.
The group’s importance lies in connecting two periods of La Palma music. It recovers songs performed by Felipe Vargas and pieces that had been forgotten or remained unpublished, while also composing from texts and poems mainly connected with La Palma. The current ensemble thus turns an artistic archive into living repertory.
Its musical core combines traditional Canarian folklore and bolero. Antología del Folklore Canario, released by the historic ensemble in 1971, brought together aires de lima, folías, malagueñas, Santo Domingo, polka, isas and sirinoque. The contemporary project retains this base and adds new songs rooted in La Palma’s literature and memory.
The group holds a festival dedicated to Felipe Vargas and uses concerts and recordings to return lesser-known repertories to the public. Former members contribute direct memory, while the creation of new songs prevents the revival from becoming only a reconstruction of the past.
The historic ensemble releases a broad repertory of traditional island genres.
His legacy becomes central to the group’s later revival.
Former members reclaim the name and form a new ensemble.
The annual event consolidates the tribute and dissemination of his repertory.
