Baile de Mago is the musical and dancing expression of Canarian identity. Unlike the romería — a religious procession with floats and offerings — Baile de Mago is first and foremost a stage festival: dance competitions, folk music demonstrations, and a celebration of Canarian popular arts.
The name comes from the word "mago" (Canarian peasant in traditional costume). Participants wear tipicos outfits: for women, striped skirt, embroidered bodice and scarf; for men, linen trousers, white shirt and straw hat.
What You'll See
Dance groups representing different municipalities of Tenerife compete on stage or in open-air plazas. Typical instruments include the timple (small 5-string guitar, the musical emblem of the Canaries), the guitarra, the laúd, the bandurria and castanets (chácaras). The dances — folías, isas, Canarian malagueñas — have roots dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries.
Baile de Mago festivals take place throughout the year, often alongside local patron saint celebrations:
- La Laguna: Folklore Festival, spring — one of the most important
- La Orotava: During the Romería de San Marcos (May), Baile de Mago groups perform
- Santa Cruz: Canaries Week (late May) — concentration of the island's best groups
- Northern villages: Los Realejos, Icod, Garachico — local patron saint celebrations
Performances are free when they take place in plazas. Festivals organized in halls may charge a small entrance fee (€3-8).
| Baile de Mago | Romería |
|---|---|
| Stage festival or plaza | Street procession |
| Dance and music competition | Parade of flower-adorned floats and offerings |
| No religious character | Honors the village's patron saint |
| A few hours, evening | Full day (5-8 hours) |
| Centralized stage | Route throughout the village |
Both traditions often take place during the same weekend of patron saint celebrations, but they are two distinct events.