The Viola da Terra (Guitar of the Land), or Viola de arame (Guitar of wire), is a traditional instrument from the Azores, and did you know that in 2019 it received the brand certificate of Azores?
This instrument is played in several playful occasions like the foliões of the Holy Spirit, and also in other music styles like folclore groups, and also it’s importante to highlight some azorean musicians that like Rafael de Carvalho, Renato Bettencourt, and others, and it’s one of the biggests symbols of azorean culture and identity!
The Viola da Terra has many characteristics that makes it fulled of symbology, amongst them, it’s notewhorty the two hearts, which represents the heart that stays and the heart that emigrates, then the «umbilical cord» that unites with the tear of «saudade» (to miss somebody or something», also seen as the ace of diamonds, representing the search for fortune, and seen in reverse it’s possible to see the crown of the Holy Spirit!!
In the saddle (area where the strings are placed) there are represented in the extremeties two azores, a reference to the home of the emigrants, and lastly, a draw wich reminds the plants and the Nature and also the wheat, a very important cereal and very cultivated in the past in the Azores!
Last modified: 29 de December, 2021
