Introduction

1Over the first half of the 20th century, in the remote Portuguese small villages of the mountains of Marão and Alvão, several small orchestras known as tuna1 were created. These instrumental groups mainly included string instruments (plucked and bowed), flute and clarinet. The toque2 – an alternative term used locally to designate the tuna itself, but also the cultural tradition and its specific musical features – played a central role in the festive and ritual moments that punctuated the daily and social life of local communities, as well as representing them when performing elsewhere.

2Due to isolation conditions of the villages, the music provided by the tunas was of great relevance for the social life of the Marão and Alvão communities. These musical groups played in balls, popular theatre, religious festivities, masses, processions, benefice auctions, marriages, and other kind of celebrations. As the tunas used to circulate, performing in villages scattered across the mountains, this tradition was also a link between people through music. Besides that, the manufacture of musical instruments, the learning how to play them, and the musical composition itself were mostly ensured by members of the communities, configuring a kind of musical "ecosystem" (Titon, 2009, pp. 122–123) in each small village.

3The survival of some of these tunas up to the present, conserving old features and still serving their communities, called the attention and interest of scholars and politicians. They saw in the tradition of the toque a precious cultural intangible heritage and a significant trace of the identity of the mountain communities of Marão and Alvão.

4There are references and documents about tunas (some of them were ephemeral), at least since the decade of 1920, but probably before they were already a cultural expression in the mountainous region covering Marão, Alvão, and Aboboreira, in fact, like in many other rural regions of Portugal (Marques, 2019). These groups consisted of exclusively of young men who served their communities as musicians, reflecting the rural social roles and conventions of the time, which discouraged public female participation in musical activities apart from singing.

5From the decade of 1960 onwards, increasing emigration to the countries of central Europe (mainly to France, Belgium, Luxemburg, Germany, Switzerland and United Kingdom) (Malheiros, 2005), the mobilization of young people for the army that was fighting in the Portuguese colonial wars in Africa (Guinea-Bissau, Angola and Mozambique), and technological developments that introduced mechanized processes of musical reproduction (namely LP pickups connected to sound amplification devices) that happened all over the country and also in this region (documented by Nogueira, 2024, p. 101) led to the decline of tuna’s activities and of the events in which they used to perform. This decline of the tunas and the aging of their musicians worsened in the following decades due to various demographic, social, and cultural factors, and to difficulties in intergenerational transmission of traditional knowledge, and the rural exodus from villages to the main cities.

6Although the social centrality of tunas has decreased (and, in many cases, their music has been superseded by the activity of other groups and recorded music), the love and dedication of its members to the toque made it possible to maintain the activity of five tunas up to the present moment (2024). The involvement and commitment of the musicians also led to the recognition of the identity of the toque as a significant cultural value for the municipalities in which these five tunas are located. However, in the medium term, the toque sustainability is strongly threatened, and it is desirable to design and implement a plan for safeguarding it, as we will explore in this article.

7There are many questions and challenges about safeguarding and valorising such a musical and social tradition (involving the dance, the musical composition, the learning of playing instruments, and other issues). Why safeguard and maintain this tradition in low density populated territories? What are the most sensitive features that must be cherished to maintain, sustain, and valorise it? Why? How to find ways of promoting intergenerational transmission?

8In this chapter we propose: (1) a short discussion about the complex concept tuna; (2) a characterization of the tunas under study regarding their instrumental configuration, the musical repertoires they perform, the processes of transmitting the knowledge necessary for musical practice, and the diversity of performance contexts that shape their activity; (3) make an account about the present state of endanger / sustainability of the five active tunas, using a specific tool to evaluate it (Grant, 2014); and (4) reflect about the difficulties of safeguarding the toque and the possible multidimensional strategies involving its members and other local agents contributing to their sustainability (Cooley, 2019; Schippers & Grant, 2016; Titon, 2009). We use, share, and discuss some results of our ethnographic fieldwork, supported also by a literature review (Minhava, 1984; Lopes & Tentúgal, 1989; Neves & Cristóvão, 2001; Sardinha, 2005) and documentary research in tunas and local ethnographers' collections.

The toque as Intangible Cultural Heritage: The research project

9By 2023, when we began our research work, only five tunas remained active in the region of the Marão and Alvão, namely in the villages of Ansiães, Bisalhães, Campeã, Carvalhais and Soutelo. Aware of the heritage value of these groups and the urgency of their safeguarding, three municipalities – Amarante, Santa Marta de Penaguião and Vila Real – took the initiative to promote the registration of this musical tradition in the National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage (Matriz PCI) of Portugal.

10For that purpose, the aforementioned municipalities, together with the Arquivo de Memórias (literally “Memory Archives”, a regional institution headquartered in Vila Real, dedicated to the study, protection, and dissemination of cultural heritage) formed a consortium and commissioned a scientific research report based on ethnomusicological methodology and fieldwork, to produce the registration request file. The team is constituted by the authors of this chapter – Jorge Castro Ribeiro (University of Aveiro) and Rui Marques (Polytechnic of Porto), both members of the Institute of Ethnomusicology – Center for Studies in Music and Dance (INET-md). The research project was preceded by local discussions among the stakeholders, with commitments made regarding their involvement in the registration process for the Matriz PCI, as recommended by both the national and international regulations (Cabral, 2011).

11In addition to analysing the existing bibliography, discography, and archival documentation, and carrying out field observation of the local contexts, we explored the ethnographic materials of Dr. Salustiano Lopes3 (a retired doctor who since the decade of 1980 has accompanied and documented the activity of the tunas of Marão and Alvão), documented performances and rehearsals of the tunas and interviewed several members of the five tunas still active. In 1989, Salustiano Lopes and the musician Manuel Tentúgal were responsible for the first published LP of music recordings with a booklet about this tradition, O Toque de Carvalhais: Terra do Marão (Lopes & Tentúgal, 1989). About ten years later, the University of Trás-os-Montes (UTAD) produced a short film about the Tuna de Carvalhais and its music (Silveira, 1998) showing the village and the mountains of Marão and Alvão.

Image 1. Historical photo made by Salustiano Lopes of Tuna de Carvalhais while performing open air at “Jogos Populares Transmontanos” (Popular Games of Trás-os-Montes province) event at the city market in Vila Real. The performance is being recorded. July 1980.

Tuna: A complex concept in Portuguese

12The activity of groups and musical associations called tuna has been documented in Portugal since the last decades of the 19th century. Starting from the main Portuguese urban centres, this model of musical and social organization gradually spread to medium-sized cities and towns and, with greater expression in the early decades of the 20th century, to rural areas on their outskirts. In the mid-20th century, the tunas were already widespread throughout the national territory and across various strata of the population.

13Between the late 1800s and the early decades of the 20th century, these groups were characterized by the almost exclusive use of plucked string instruments. Over time, as a result of intersections with other domains of musical practice and the diversity of contexts in which they performed, the tunas were permeable to the introduction of bowed string instruments, as well as wind and percussion instruments, generally associated with other types of musical groups, such as orchestras, wind bands, and jazz orchestras. Currently, the term tuna is used in Portugal to refer to quite disparate musical groups, regarding their instrumental settings, the musical repertoires they perform, the profile of the people who comprise them, and the contexts in which they take part. As such, the term tuna can refer to quite distinct musical groups. Despite this multiplicity, often generating ambiguities, it is the predominance of plucked string instruments that defines them as a performative group, differentiating them from other formations.

The tuna’s tradition in Marão and Alvão mountains

14The toque of the mountainous areas of Marão and Alvão has attracted some researchers in the field of traditional Portuguese music, such as José Alberto Sardinha, who, in 2005, published the book Tunas do Marão, which includes a set of four CD with recordings of pieces of eleven tunas.4 Two recordings of Tuna de Carvalhais (dated 1986) had previously been published by this author in a collection dedicated to traditional Portuguese music (Sardinha, 1997). It should be noted that the tunas from this Portuguese region were already attracting the interest of other authors. We refer to Ângelo Minhava, who, in 1984, published a brief study on the tunas of Ermelo (municipality of Mondim de Basto) and Carvalhais (Santa Marta de Penaguião) (Minhava, 1984); and to José Neves and Artur Cristóvão, who, in a communication presented to the 1^st Congress of Rural Studies, held in 2001 at the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, presented some data on the tunas studied by Minhava, as well as on the tunas from the localities of Pomarelhos and Campeã (both in the municipality of Vila Real) (Neves & Cristóvão, 2001).

15The tunas of the Marão and Alvão mountains have also been documented in sound recordings and images since 1987 by Salustiano Lopes, who, in 2001, founded the Arquivo de Memórias. Through publication of recordings and other initiatives, this cultural association advocated the cultural value of the toque and called attention to its importance by the uniqueness of its social role and its musical features as a local tradition.

16The musical groups to which our study refers have been generally designated as tunas rurais (meaning “rural tunas”). In the early 21st century, this designation was widely disseminated, for example, in the title of a CD released by the Arquivo de Memórias (2003) – Tunas Rurais do Marão e Alvão – and in the mentioned book by José Alberto Sardinha (2005).

17This designation – rural tunas – is also part of the name of an annual meeting organized since 2016 by the municipalities of Amarante, Santa Marta de Penaguião, and Vila Real with the collaboration of the Arquivo de Memórias – O Toque: Encontro de Tunas Rurais do Marão e Alvão. During fieldwork, we also heard some musicians refer to their groups as rural tunas, possibly reproducing a designation coined by ethnography and disseminated by local intellectual and political authorities. However, it seems to us that the use of the concept of "rural" aims primarily to signal a distinction from the so-called tunas académicas (musical groups composed by students), which are more numerous and more widely known, spanning across the entire country in Portuguese higher education institutions.5 Anyway, the term "rural" applied to these specific tunas seems to emphasize their strong connection to the life of the mountain communities in which they are implanted and, simultaneously, underline a differentiated cultural practice relative to other regions of the country.

18In the mountain villages of Marão and Alvão, among the musicians and other members of the communities, the word toque designates the tuna as a music group and, by extension, its specific musical features (see below), that are aurally recognizable. Because of the clarity and general use of this emic definition, it seems preferable to refer both the groups and its musical tradition as the toque.

The toque, its music and community framework

19The fieldwork has allowed us to identify some features shared by the tunas that remain active in 2024, which are based in five villages: Ansiães (in the municipality of Amarante), Bisalhães and Campeã (in the municipality of Vila Real), Carvalhais and Soutelo (in Santa Marta de Penaguião). These groups are made up of a variable number of instrumentalists (ranging between 8 and 15), most of them are men over 60 years old (there are a few women in the tunas of Bisalhães, Campeã and Carvalhais), residents or natives of the mountain villages of Marão and Alvão, and without experience of formal music learning during all their lives. Currently, tunas face difficulties in recruiting new musicians. For this reason, some instrumentalists, by solidarity, support, and complicity with the masters and other musicians, play in more than one tuna.

20Each one of the mentioned tunas is led by a mestre (literally master), which is a central figure in the group’s activity and in the sustaining of the toque tradition in Marão and Alvão mountains. A master’s authority is recognized both by musicians and the communities for the ability to manage musical and logistical aspects of the activities. Currently, four mestres (masters) are men, and Tuna da Campeã is led by a woman. Besides playing along with other musicians,6 they are responsible for choosing the repertoires to be played, the roles and instrument performed by each musician (since some of them can play more than one instrument) in rehearsals and public performances. Masters also take charge of logistic details of tuna’s activities, such as musical instruments repair and maintenance, rehearsal location and scheduling, travel, uniforms, commitments with concert organizations and dialogue with institutions). Eventually the masters are assisted by family and close friends and neighbours, and supported by local institutions representatives (parish, parish council, festivities committees and municipal authorities). Nowadays, masters remain of great importance. We realized during our fieldwork that some of their traditional roles are no longer carried out permanently, such as renewing (whether composing or arranging music) and teaching the repertoire, teaching instruments, and the musical conducting itself during the performances.

21Regarding the instrumental set, string instruments are prevalent: plucked instruments such as guitars (in Portuguese, violas ou violões), banjos7 (or banjolins) and mandolins, as well as bowed instruments, namely violins and cello. The most common wind instruments are the clarinet and transverse flute. Although the tuna’s instrumental set is not standard, several musicians, their audiences, and other agents such as local authorities or scholars, argue that the tunas should be based exclusively on the aforementioned stringed instruments, as we could notice during fieldwork. Nevertheless, the instrumental configuration of the tunas, in the present context, is more flexible.8 The presence of human voices in the tunas is occasional and is mainly related to performances in masses, informal social gatherings mediated by music, and in a few specific pieces of the repertoire.

22The music played by tunas is essentially structured in melodic lines (eventually in simple counterpoint) played in unison or at the octave (or occasionally in parallel thirds), by violins, mandolins, banjos, flutes, and clarinets – also called instrumentos cantantes (meaning singing instruments) (Lopes & Tentúgal, 1989), while violas and cello provide rhythmic-harmonic accompaniments. Both the melodic lines and the rhythmic-harmonic accompaniments present specific features during the performance, that seems to be unique of this tradition and create a distinctive sonority of the toque tradition. In what concerns the first, the melodic lines, they may be object of ornamentation or may use specific agogic gestures. The singular tone of toque comes from the mandolin and banjo, combined with violins, besides the timbre of the clarinet, sometimes played in high register, that stands out of the group sonority. The accompaniments played in the violas, using a particular technique on the right hand, stresses the chords rhythmically and design diatonic passages in the low strings played with the thumb, contributing for the characteristic sound of tunas, and clearly marking its rhythmic balance suitable for dancing. The presence of the cello enriches the sonorous frame of the toque with its rhythm and the bass notes which helps to create a distinguished sonorous atmosphere of the groups.

23The musical repertoires of the tunas that are still active include various instrumental pieces, mainly dances, with proper names and which, for the most part, are stylistically classified through designations such as "march", "waltz", "tango", “counterdance", “ribaldeira", "mazurka", “polka”, “pasacale”, "double step", among many other. They also include some popular songs in instrumental arrangements. In most cases, the authors of the pieces included in the tunas' repertoires are not identified, although the musicians assume that a considerable part of it was composed by the former masters. The circulation of masters and other instrumentalists among different tunas (and even other kinds of musical groups, such as wind orchestras), both in the past and in the present, contributed to the circulation of musical pieces. Some ended up being adopted in the repertoire of different tunas, although played with small differences.

24The most common repertoire transmission process seems to be the individual self-learning, by memory and imitation of the masters or of more experienced musicians. The learning processes of instrument technique and repertoire usually do not resort in written music. In our fieldwork, we came across the use of conventional musical notation only by the three women of Tuna da Campeã, who play clarinet and transverse flute. Two young violin players from Tuna de Carvalhais use a writing system based on letters or names of musical notes, created by a former master of that tuna. The other musicians all played “by ear” and memory.

25In the past, as pointed above, the tunas of Marão and Alvão played a central role in the festive and ritual moments that punctuated the daily lives of the mountain communities. They provided music for masses and religious processions, but also for balls organized for entertainment and conviviality, many times during auctions or in musical visits to the houses of the villages, to get money for community purposes, such as festivities or communal works.

26The music was a pleasant complement of social activities that allowed the proximity and conversation between young men and women from the villages. The tunas used also to serve and complement amateur popular theatre. Currently, some of these performance contexts still exist but have become much less frequent and, due to the depopulation of the region, have also lost participants. However, in special festivities during summertime or Easter, many people from villages such as Ermida, Soutelo and Ansiães, currently emigrated abroad, return for holydays and the activities of the tunas of Soutelo and Ansiães can reach and also involve some of these community members.

Image 2. Tuna da Campeã playing at the local procession of Corpus Christi feast, in June 2023.

27Over the last few years, the recognition of the tuna’s heritage value by municipalities and other entities has led them to gain new performance contexts in parties and civic gatherings, as well as in cultural presentations promoted by municipalities, usually outside their villages and communities of origin.

The present state of endanger / sustainability of the five active tunas

28The debates promoted in the first phase of our research project, during which we prioritized the consultation of the protagonists of the tunas' activity – particularly their masters and other members – allowed us to identify the main factors that may threaten the viability of the tunas of the mountain communities of Marão and Alvão, namely: (1) the insufficient human renewal of the tunas, considering the advanced age of the majority of their musicians, and the difficulties in attracting new members, particularly children and young people; (2) the loss of relevance of the events and contexts in which, in the past, the tunas played a central role, resulting in a decrease in opportunities for public performance; (3) the lack of regular rehearsals; and (4) the weakness of the process of transmission of repertoires and instrumental playing techniques.

29For the account of the present state of endanger / sustainability of the five active tunas we developed a study based on the Music Vitality and Endangerment Framework (MVEF), proposed by ethnomusicologist Catherine Grant (Griffith University – Australia) in the book Music Endangerment: How Language Maintenance Can Help (Grant, 2014). This framework aims to quantitatively measure the degrees of musical vitality and the risk of endangerment or unviability for musical genres worldwide, across different cultures and societies. This assessment tool provides the possibility of comparability regarding the vitality and the risk of unviability among different evaluated musical practices, identification of threat and fragility factors, as well as robustness and virtue factors. The assessment (Table 1) addresses twelve factors related to sustainability, vitality, risk, and danger of unviability of musical practices, each scored from 0 to 5. The total sum of scores obtained for each of the 12 factors can vary between 0 and 60 points. With these being the minimum and maximum extremes, they respectively indicate whether a given musical practice is closer to a situation of danger and total unviability or to fully guaranteed sustainability.

30In the case of the tradition of the tunas of Marão and Alvão, given the specificities of each of the five currently active tunas – Ansiães, Carvalhais, Soutelo, Bisalhães, and Campeã –, it was decided to individually assess each of them, and, from there, the average offered by the entirety of this tradition was found. Following a methodology that seeks to mitigate some subjectivity of individual assessment, this evaluation was carried out by two evaluators. Thus done, the assessment allows refining the numerical results through averages between the two assessments. The year 2023 was taken as a reference. Next, quantitative results are presented, followed by a qualitative analysis and interpretation.

Table 1. Evaluation of the set of five active tunas in 2023, by factors

31The overall average score of applying this table is 31.1 points, out of a possible maximum of 60, which means slightly above half of the scale. This indicates that the tradition of the toque of the Marão and Alvão, as a whole, is active but, due to the lack of intergenerational transmission, it is undeniably "threatened," and very close to being "definitely endangered". Its contexts and functions are "static" and limited; the musical genre has weak presence in the media (including social networks) and in shows within the music industry domain. The tunas have light support through generic policies for cultural expressions, mainly through local authorities, which is of great importance for their present sustainability. Local communities support the maintenance of these groups, but support from relevant elements outside the community is weak. Finally, there is adequate and quality documentation (such as recordings and musical scores) on tuna practices, which can be a powerful aid in their transmission for the future.

32The overall balance of tuna’s vitality is very weak compared to what would be desirable to ensure its medium and long-term sustainability. Seen from the perspective of the risk of danger and unviability, the numerical result of the evaluation is high, suggesting that it will worsen if safeguarding measures are not taken to reduce the main factors directly related to this risk, namely the renewal of music repertoires, musical practices and performative contexts, the involvement, participation, and visibility in the media (including social networks and shows related to the music industry) and, finally, the dynamization of knowledge and skills for tuna musical practice. Despite everything, there do not seem to be signs that this practice will become unviable in the short term. The definition of valorisation and safeguarding strategies for the toque constituted the next step of our project.

It has to do with people's lives: Some thoughts about the valorisation and safeguarding processes of the toque

33The multitude of musical actions that shape the activity of the tunas and their strong connection to the localities that contextualize them – and that they represent – anticipate the advantages of basing the definition of a safeguarding plan on a holistic vision of this universe of musical practice, envisioning it as a cultural "ecosystem". Quoting ethnomusicologist Jeff Todd Titon,9 we must promote music cultures by “enhancing habitat conditions under which people are able to continue to make diverse musics in different ways and for various reasons” (Titon, 2009, p. 129). Furthermore, the toque tradition must be supported on the involvement and commitment of local agents and structures. These are, moreover, fully established guidelines, both by the legislation that frames Intangible Cultural Heritage (Cabral, 2011) and by the ethnomusicological literature of reference, of which we highlight the works of authors such as Timothy Cooley (2019), Catherine Grant (2014), Huib Schippers (2010, 2019), Schippers and Grant (2016), and Jeff Todd Titon (2009).

34After a full year of fieldwork, having closely observed the activity of the five tunas that are still active, and having listen many of its practitioners concerns about the future of the toque, we considered it useful to systematize the factors likely to threaten the viability of this musical tradition.10 Taking as a starting point the conceptual framework proposed by Huib Schippers and Catherine Grant (2016) regarding the sustainability of musical cultures, we grouped these factors within five main domains, namely systems of learning and teaching music, musicians and communities, contexts and repertoires, infrastructures and media and the music industry. For each of these broad domains, we suggested specific measures to be implemented.

35At the time of writing this article (March 2024), the definition and practical implementation of a safeguarding plan to the toque are being the subject of extensive discussions involving the research team members and the stakeholders in the field, including tuna musicians, other local cultural associations, as well as representatives of municipalities, parish councils and educational institutions, including music schools.

36Other members of the communities have also shown a desire to contribute to the discussions, sharing their feelings and ideas about toque’s past, present and future. This desire is particularly revealed in moments when music resonates in people's memories and bodies. Let us share one of these moments. In December 2023, we were invited to present our research project at a musical meeting held in the village of Ansiães, in which the five tunas performed. The event also included moments for the intervention of people from the audience. At a certain point, Mr. Arnaldo Carvalho asked for the floor, revealing his strong connection with the toque: “I'm not a player, I've never been a player, but I'm a son… a good part of my family is here”. He continued: “When the Tuna de Ansiães, or any other tuna, starts playing, my first reaction is to jump into the yard, take a maiden's hand… and dance!”. Moving on, Mr. Carvalho expressed his view on this musical tradition: “All of this is history, all of this is memory, all of this is experience […] it has to do with people's lives: with the past, with the present, and even – why not? – with the joy of the future”.

37Envisioning the registration of the toque in the National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage as a major step, providing visibility and recognition to “a heritage that is being forgotten, is fading away”, this enthusiast advocated for the need to encourage young people to join the tunas, to ensure the continuity of this musical tradition. He appealed to the commitment of all tuna musicians, local political leaders, and young people in the communities, who, in his words, “have to continue all this beautiful, wonderful heritage of our ancestors”. "For this purpose," he added, “we need the support of all institutions in the localities where these tunas still continue to bring us joy, as they did today”. Indeed, the gathering ended with around 45 musicians from the five living tunas filling the stage, and many couples dancing, in a remarkable moment of joy and celebration of the toque.

Image 3. Encounter of the five active Tunas (Ansiães, Bisalhães, Campeã, Carvalhais and Soutelo) in December 2023, in Ansiães.

38This debate will now be expanded, in meetings held in the other groups' home communities: Bisalhães, Campeã, Carvalhais and Soutelo. The ongoing discussions aim to encourage local communities’ participation, in order to collectively outline possible pathways to strengthen the sustainability of the toque tradition. Indeed, we share Titon’s perspective, when he argues that “best practices arise from partnerships among ethnomusicologists, folklorists and music culture insiders (community leaders, scholars, and musicians), with sustainability interventions aimed directly inside music cultures” (2009, p. 119).

39Some short films with the five Tunas are available here: https://www.youtube.com/@arquivodememoriasassociaca9518/videos