Authentic traditions: Castells, alias human towers.

We were so lucky that we could participate in some trials of Castellers de la Vila de Gràcia.The atmosphere and the people are very welcoming and friendly. Parents and children, young and old practising together for the same goal. Children running around, everything looks like a family day event but at the same time they are so well organized. Let’s get a closer look on this authentic tradition.

The word “castells” means castles. The tradition of building castells for the first time was documented in 1712, near to Tarragona. Nowadays you can catch them in large squares during festivals.

According to Wikipedia, on November 16, 2010, castells were declared by UNESCO to be amongst the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Hierarchy of the castell

“The technique of building a castell is frequently trained. Each casteller has his own position and function within the castell, even if the pinya seems to form at random to an outsider. Once the pinya is set up, the members of the manilles climb up in a pre-defined order and form the first rings. The strongest have to carry most of the weight at the bottom, and the lightest go up into the tower.

Finally, the “anxenta” climbs up to the top and remains there only for a few seconds to raise his or her arm to salute the crowds. The tower is crowned and the goal is almost reached. The castell now has to be de-constructed without falling apart, a procedure as tricky and trained as the build-up. Nowadays, children often wear a foam-padded helmet.

There are some special variants, in which the trunk is built in the opposite order. A level is set-up and then lifted up from below, where the next lower level is formed.

During the building process, a flute and a drum play the “Toc de Castells”, a melody that is to indicate the different construction phases of the tower and to stir up the emotions and which also accompanies the castellers upon their entry and exit to the scene.”- http://barcelona.de/en/barcelona-castellers-human-towers.html

If you want to know about this beautiful tradition, we recommend you the official webpage of Castellers de Barcelona.

From the point of view of the children on the top: