If you want to take in a religious and cultural display such as our Holy Week and enjoy its essence, you have to open your eyes and be receptive. You have to let yourself go, live and experience. Enjoy the smell of incense, the beauty of the floats, the colors of the robes and the sound (which is never noise) that thunders and shakes.

Zaragoza combines a centuries-old tradition with Castilian and Andalusian influences, which combine with the power of the snare and bass drum from Bajo Aragón. Thus, it should come as no surprise that the jota and the saeta intermingle, to see outside and local elements merging to create something new and very different.

When seeing a procession, one is struck by the large groups of drums, bass drums and timpani that generally accompany them, sections made up entirely of brothers and sisters from the confraternities. Listening to groups that can number up to four hundred members playing in unison is bound to make an impression. It’s a sound that isn’t just heard, but that resonates throughout the body, with an unforgettable, thunderous vibration. We mustn’t forget the vibrant sound of cornets and the emblems, which also have a very prominent place. In addition, the confraternity of Ecce Homo is the only one to feature the rattle, and the confraternity of the Entrada de Jesús en Jerusalén uses a noisemaker, both with a characteristically harsh sound.

While the confraternities look majestic and solemn in the avenues and wide streets, in narrower streets, the sound changes as the procession draws closer to the crowds. Which one you choose will depend on your taste, or better yet, watch from both perspectives to get a more complete picture.

The confraternities accompany their entourage with a series of elements or attributes that embellish the parade. They include lanterns, standards, banners and crosses. A very typical feature of our processions is the presence of the so-called In Memoriam Cross, which symbolizes all of the confraternity’s deceased brothers, and often has their names written on it.

Of all the moments that make up the procession, the final one stands out, popularly called the recogida (gathering). It’s the culmination of the procession as the confraternity sees off its Images. It’s a time of memories and emotions, when the most spectacular drum rolls are played as all of the confraternities’ instruments join in to see off their floats. A culmination that always looks to the future as the members look ahead to the next Holy Week.