Semana Santa in Mula

Easter Week in Mula includes the Tamborada

Once heard, never forgotten!

The Semana Santa celebrations in Mula combine the typical religious processions found throughout the Region of Murcia with the Night of the Drums (Noche de los Tambores). This begins on the Tuesday of Easter Week at midnight and continues until Wednesday afternoon, with a marathon mass drumming session in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento: this has become a renowned tourist attraction, bringing in more and more visitors every year until the tradition was interrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.

The traditional celebration of Easter in Mula goes back to medieval times, when the Passion of Christ was represented theatrically in order to communicate the message of the Bible to the mainly illiterate inhabitants, as used to happen in medieval England with the Passion Plays and Mystery Plays. The drums appear to have been added to the celebrations during the 19th century, although no documentation sheds too much light on how and why this came to be so. Indeed the first written records of the drummers come from occasions when they were banned!

In other parts of Spain the use of drums has been connected with the symbolic driving out of the devil, or of bad luck. Nowadays though, they add noise to the colour that already exists in the processions, with processions of images and tableaux including the Samaritana, the Procession in Silence, the Santo Entierro and the Resucitado, all of which wind their way through the steep streets of the town below the castle. The processions all remain within the old quarter of the town, which while adding atmosphere to the occasion also adds to the physical effort required to manoeuvre the heavy "tronos", the Cuesta del Caño being particularly steep and difficult to navigate.

The most important moments of the week are generally agreed to be the Tuesday morning, Good Friday morning and Easter Sunday until the afternoon, but no day is without its procession and accompanying crowds.

The most ancient procession is that of the Samaritana on the Wednesday afternoon, which dates back to 1606, when it was first held by the Brotherhood of Nuestra Señora del Carmen. Other notable processions are on the Thursday evening, when the sculptures paraded are especially impressive, Friday morning, when the procession is held in silence, and on the evening of Good Friday, when almost all of the tableaux are the work of the famous artist Lozano.

It is also worth noting the tunics worn by those carrying the "paso" (or sculpted tableau) of Jesús Nazareno, which sallies forth on Thursday evening. These have been passed down through the families of participants and some of them are more than 50 years old.

Since 1997 the Easter Sunday procession has featured a tableaux carried only by women, which is rather unusual in the male-dominated world of the religious guilds!

Main churches:
Iglesia de Santo Domingo Guzmán
Ermita de Nuestra Señora del Carmen
Real Monasterio de la Encarnación

Processions Schedule

Domingo de Ramos (Palm Sunday)

9.45: The blessing of palms and the liturgical procession takes place, leaving from the Iglesia de San Miguel Arcángel to the Iglesia de Santo Domingo Guzmán.

Arriving in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, there is a reception for Jesus Triumphant and the various sculptures paraded. During the "encuentro" there are fireworks and a concert given by the musical bands of the town, after which the images return to their churches.

10.30 Mass in the Church of Santo Domingo, followed by the Procesión de Jesús Triunfante y Santiago Apóstol.

Pasos:

1. Jesús Triunfante, José María Molina - 2002
2. Santiago Apóstol, Cuenca Santo - 2002
3. María de Cleofás, Cuenca Santo - 2006
4. San Juan, Sánchez Lozano - 1961
5. Virgen de la Paz, Sánchez Lozano - 1962

Route: Iglesia de Santo Domingo de Guzmán, Calle Santo Domingo, Calle Martín Perea, Calle del Jardín, Avenida de los Mártires, Calle Ollerías, Avenida Emeterio Cuadrado, Calle Boticas, Plaza del Ayuntamiento.

Return route: Calle Boticas, Calle Martín Perea, Calle de Santo Domingo to the church of Santo Domingo de Guzmán.

Martes Santo, Easter Tuesday: La Noche de los Tambores

At midnight on Tuesday night practically the whole town gathers in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, dressed as Nazarenos wearing tunics and bearing their drums. Everyone waits in absolute silence until the bells ring out at midnight, then all begin to bang their drums in unison. The Nazarenos with the most strength continue to play right up until 16.00 on the Wednesday afternoon in an event known as the "tamborada".

Miercoles Santo, Holy Wednesday

The "tamboristas" with most stamina continue to play until 16.00.

20.00: The Procesión de La Samaritana, from the church of Nuestra Señora del Carmen, held by the oldest of the Mula brotherhoods.

This particular procession involves negotiating the "gradas" or steps, which lead up to the church, a steep and unforgiving climb for the weary bearers as they negotiate the tight turns.

Pasos:

1. La Samaritana, Sánchez Lozano - 1946

2. Oración en el Huerto, Sánchez Lozano - 1953

3. El Prendimiento, Sánchez Lozano - 1952

4. Ecce Homo, Sánchez Lozano - 1946

5. San Pedro, Sánchez Lozano - 2008

6. San Juan, Sánchez Lozano - 1944

7. Virgen de los Dolores, Sánchez Lozano - 1956

Route: Church of Nuestra Señora del Carmen, Calle Santo Domingo, Calle Martín Perea, Calle del Jardín to the corner with Calle Boticas, where the monument to the Mula Semana Santa is located, Calle San Miguel, Calle Doña Elvira, Calle Mayor, Calle del Caño, Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Return via Calle Martín Perea, Calle los Sastres, church of Nuesta Señora del Carmen.

Jueves Santo, Maundy Thursday

19.30: Procesión de Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno, from the church of Santo Domingo de Guzmán. The origin of the brotherhood involved in procession, the Hermandad de Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno, which was reformed in 1911, is unknown due to the disappearance of archives during the Civil War.

Pasos:

1. Cristo Atado a la Columna, González Moreno - 1952
2. Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno, Sánchez Lozano - 1946
3. La Verónica, Carrillo Marco - 1947
4. Cristo de la Agonía, Unknown sculptor - 1943
5. Santiago Apóstol, Cuenca Santo - 2002
6. San Juan, Sánchez Lozano - 1961
7. Virgen de los Dolores, Sánchez Lozano - 1943

Route: Iglesia de Santo Domingo de Guzmán, Calle Santo Domingo, Calle Martín Perea, Calle del Jardín, Avenida de los Mártires, Calle del Olmo, Avenida Emeterio Cuadrado, Calle Boticas, Calle San Miguel, Calle Doña Elvira, Calle Mayor, Calle del Caño, Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Return via Calle Martín Perea and Calle Santo Domingo to the churchof Santo Domingo de Guzmán.

Candlelit vigils to commemorate the Last Supper until 2.00 am.

1.00: Procession of Silence

Leaves at 1 o'clock in the morning from the Iglesia de Santo Domingo de Guzmán with just one "paso", that of the Cristo del Asilo (1976) created in the Santa Rufina workshop in Valencia.

The procession is organized by the Cofradía of the Santísimo Cristo del Asilo, which was founded in 1523. Street lights are turned off and Christ parades alone, lit only by four lamps, as the townspeople follow in silence behind.

Viernes Santo, Good Friday

From 8.00 to 16.00, the time of Christ's death, the drumming resumes.

After the procession all the images arrive in the Plaza de la Iglesia and wait outside for the image of Christ to arrive. He is removed from his "trono" and remains in the doorway of the church, carried by his bearers, while each of the pasos dips down in reverence and pays homage to him. This is known as "Las Reverencías."

19.30 Procesión del Santo Entierro from the Church of Santo Domingo de Guzmán, ending in the Plaza de Santo Domingo.

Pasos:

1. La Piedad, Sánchez Lozano - 1950
2. Cristo Yacente, Sánchez Lozano - 1948
3. Soledad del Calvario, Sánchez Lozano - 1962
4. María Magadalena, Sánchez Lozano - 1948
5. San Juan, Sánchez Lozano - 1961
6. Virgen de la Soledad, Sánchez Lozano - 1941

Route: Iglesia de Santo Domingo de Guzmán, Calle Santo Domingo, Calle Martín Perea, Calle del Jardín, Avenida de los Mártires, Calle del Olmo, Avenida Emeterio Cuadrado, Calle Boticas, Calle San Miguel, Calle Dña. Elvira, Calle Mayor, Calle del Caño, Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Return via Calle Martín Perea and Calle Santo Domingo.

Domingo de Resurreción, Resurrection Sunday

The drums sound again from 12.00 noon to 21.00.

This is a parade of joy, of light, of resurrection, with several little quirks which make the Sunday resurrection parades so different from all the rest. During the "encuentro" which takes place in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, the tronos dip to acknowledge Christ resurrected, each group performing a little dance to its own particular music.

The act of reverence also takes place at the corner of the Palacio as the pasos split up to return to their respective churches.

The images which return to the Real Monasterio de la Encarnación perform a final act of reverence as the bearers lift the "tronos" high above their heads before dropping to their knees, carrying the tronos into the church on their knees. As the Ángel Triunfante, Ángeles en el Sepulcro, Jesús Resuscitado, María Salomé and Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles arrive in the monastery a concert is given by the Agrupación Musical Averroes from Cieza.

In perfect synchrony the Cofradías and pasos leave their respective churches and meet in an "encuentro" before joining the procession together.

8.30: Procesión del Resucitado, from the Real Monasterio de la Encarnación, and other churches to the Plaza del Ayuntamiento at 10.00 for the encuentro.

Pasos:

1. Ángel Triunfante, García Mengual - 1995
2. Ángeles en el Sepulcro, Yuste Navarro - 2008
3. Jesús Resucitado, Hernández Navarro - 1990
4. María Salomé, Hernandez Navarro - 1997
5. María Magdalena, Sánchez Lozano - 1948
6. San Pedro, Juan José Páez - 2008
7. Santiago Apóstol, Cuenca Santo - 2002
8. San Juan, Sánchez Lozano - 1944
9. Virgen de los Dolores, Sánchez Lozano - 1956

Route: From the Real Monasterio de la Encarnación, the Iglesia de Santo Domingo de Guzmán and  the church of Nuestra Señora del Carmen, then Calle del Santo, Calle Carretería, Calle Cartagena, Avenida Emeterio Cuadrado, Calle Boticas, Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Following the encuentro the pasos continue to Calle Martín Perea and at the crossroads with Calle las Monjas they disperse and go back to their churches of origin.