Torneu-vos cant Honors Folklorist Palmira Jaquetti's Pyrenean Legacy
Meritxell Nus's novel draws from Jaquetti's 1920s diaries to fictionalize song-collecting missions and mountain life in Catalonia's Pyrenees,.
Key Points
- Novel based on Jaquetti's diaries from 1925 song-collecting trips in Pallars Sobirà and Vall d'Aran.
- Portrays Jaquetti as courageous folklorist, teacher, and advocate against child illiteracy.
- Blends real journeys—like donkey treks to Port de la Bonaigua—with fictional scenes.
- Revives overlooked pioneer, capturing 1920s-1930s Pyrenean folk spirit.
Meritxell Nus, a writer from Estac in the Pallars Sobirà, has published *Torneu-vos cant* with Pagès Editors to honour folklorist Palmira Jaquetti and the Pyrenean communities that shaped the region a century ago. The novel draws from Jaquetti's diaries, compiled during her song-collecting missions for the Obra del Cançoner Popular de Catalunya starting in 1925, transforming their anonymous voices into a fictionalised narrative.
Set primarily in Arties in the Vall d'Aran—where Jaquetti began summering after the war—the story unfolds as the protagonist reflects on her life from this Aranese village. Nus emphasises that Jaquetti's diaries reveal deep admiration for Pyrenean people, a sentiment the author echoes in her work. She describes the notebooks as "a marvel" for their precise accounts of mountain life in the 1920s and 1930s, capturing the folklorist's sensitivity, respect, and humility towards locals.
The book weaves Jaquetti's biography with episodic tales from her diaries: adventurous and bittersweet stories of discovering the Pyrenees while gathering songs. These offer vivid snapshots of the era, from journeys by "camió de la llum" to the Port de la Bonaigua, to escapades across the Pallars and Alt Urgell. While rooted in Arties, passages also shift to Barcelona. Nus blends factual elements with fiction, inventing scenes and characters that align with Jaquetti's real paths and mentions.
Jaquetti emerges as a multifaceted, courageous figure: folklorist, teacher, composer, poet, and educator who traversed Pyrenean villages on donkey-back in the 1920s. Nus portrays her as a culture enthusiast committed to learning, sharing knowledge, and addressing inequalities. She railed against child illiteracy, writing indignant letters to the Education Ministry, and hosted Aranese girls pursuing studies in Barcelona or patients seeking better medical access.
Through *Torneu-vos cant*, Nus revives a long-overlooked pioneer, celebrating her legacy and the enduring spirit of Pyrenean folk.
Original Sources
This article was aggregated from the following Catalan-language sources: