«Libertad sin ira», indignation in (the) Transition: Political (re)appropriations and sonic stories of an anthem for democratic Spain (1976-2017)

  • Diego García-Peinazo Universidad de Granada
Keywords: Popular music, politics, Spanish Transition to democracy, anthem, intertextuality

Abstract

«Libertad sin ira» («Freedom without anger») is probably one of the most emblematic songs related to Spanish transition to democracy. Recorded and performed by the band Jarcha, this track has managed to articulate, over the last forty years, opposed discourses and practices which are linked with important political and social events. Following methodological approaches from music analysis and politics, intertextuality in recorded popular song, as well as theoretical approaches to the cultural construction of the idea of Transition to democracy and its different narratives, this paper examines examples of musical re-appropriation and musical instrumentalization of this song since its release in 1976. After dealing with the principles of a political analysis of music in «Libertad sin ira», it is summarized the main continuities and ruptures in its presence in different contexts, such as the mobilizations against the kidnap and murder of Miguel Ángel Blanco by ETA to the demonstrations against the anti-terrorist policies of ex-president J. L. Rodríguez Zapatero’s two terms, the 15M movement or the so-called Catalan procés. There is no consensus, however, around the interpretation of the song ideologies, since «Libertad sin ira» has been also criticized from the point of view of contra-hegemonic narrations of the so-called cultura de la Transición. This paper shows, through a plural range of memories and discourses around «Libertad sin ira»—which include from re-appropriations and intertextual strategies to denials and exclusions—the central role of this song as an «anthem» of democracy Spanish in a constant negotiation of meanings.

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Published
2020-05-25
How to Cite
García-Peinazo D. (2020). «Libertad sin ira», indignation in (the) Transition: Political (re)appropriations and sonic stories of an anthem for democratic Spain (1976-2017). Historia y Política, 43, 361-385. https://doi.org/10.18042/hp.43.12