XXXVI Certamen de Tunas de Málaga ,La Plaza Virgen de la Peña con ,Mijas Pueblo ,April 13, 2024

Mijas host the 36th Malaga Tunas Contest in a two-day event that will bring together twelve groups and more than 170 musicians in their ‘tunas’. coinciding with the celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Tuna de Medicina de Málaga. The event take place on Friday April 12 and Saturday April 13 and include parades, performances, a contest and many more surprises. A ‘tuna’ is a group of university students in traditional university dress who play musical instruments and sing serenades. The tradition originated in Spain  in the 13th century as a means of students to earn money or food. Nowadays students don't belong to a "tuna" for money or food; rather, they seek to keep a tradition alive, for fun, to travel a lot and to meet new people from other universities. In Spanish the word “tuna” refers to a group of students, all dressed up in traditional costume who sing their serenades to lovely, modern day maidens just as others have done in centuries past. Nowadays tuna still dress up in all the traditional gear – the tight waistcoat, traditional pants, the banner and often the cape. They also still play stringed instruments and might have a tambourine or an accordion along as well. And they still sing their serenades as they did in the past. The tunas are famous for their serenades in Andalucia Modern evolution aside, the heart of the tuna spirit is still alive in that many a tuna has his eye on a girl who will be at the party. And if she’s lucky, at the end of the group’s performance, he’ll throw her his cape and she’ll catch it. Mijas Pueblo is a small village up in the mountains not far from the Costa del Sol. It is considered to be one of Malaga’s most beautiful pueblos blancos (white towns)