Maialen Lujanbio
| Maialen Lujanbio Zugasti | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
26 November 1976 Hernani, Gipuzkoa, Basque Country |
| Occupation | Bertsolari |
| Nationality | Basque |
| Genre | Bertsolaritza |
Maialen Lujanbio Zugasti (born November 26, 1976, Hernani), is a Basque improvisational bertsolari that belongs to the first generation of this genre. She is the first woman to obtain the “Txapela” in the National Championship of the Basque Country (2009). Also she has contributed innovations to bertsolarism, just because of having a big talent doing cinematographic descriptions and creating histories in verse. Her main activity is the oral improvisation in which she gives messages with very specific details.
Biography
She was born in Hernani, 1976. Her first contacts with the world of the verse took place in Urumea School, Hernani. There, she promoted and worked the written verse and improvised it. When she was 15 years old she liked to sing verses with her friends from place to place. Therefore, she began to participate in the first championships getting into the world of the verse. Once she has already finished school, she went to Bilbao and as she liked the art and plastic world she decided to study at the Faculty of Fine Arts in the Campus of Leioa. Nowadays she has a degree, but she did not practise in a professional way. The change from living in Hernani to live in Bilbao has made her to see different things of daily life of which she was unaware. Apart from the Basque Country she also travelled to many countries during 2000 and 2001 at the hands of a project called “Pangea”. Several Basques were joined in that adventure. For example, Marijo Arrieta, Amaia Askasibar, Juli Azkue, Valentín Dorronsoro, Migel Mari Elosegi, Susana Elosegi, Ander Izagirre, Eneko Imaz, Josu Iztueta, Aitziber Olano and Joxemi Saizar. They travelled throughout the United States, Australia, Argentina, Russia and Jordan.
First steps in Bertsolarism
Her first actuation took place in the School Championship of Gipuzkoa in 1988. She highlighted above the others when she began to sing. Therefore, she become a finalist at the smallest level after receiving very successful results. Two years later, she also got her first position in the competition played by groups. In 1991 she started to participate in an senior level (Lizardi award), becoming the champion and receiving the first award in the written verse championship. She became runner-up (1992), finalist (1993) and champion (1994) in 15–18 years modality. After obtaining this, she sang in Osinaldi and Xenpelar awards between 1991 and 1993.
In addition, she participated in the Basque Country National Champioship, and between 1990 and 1992, she was runner-up at the lower and higher level. With the pass of the years, Lujanbio became more and more important and as a result, in 2003 she won the championship of Gipuzkoa after singing in the semi-finals of 1995. As if that was not enough, she was finalist (1997, 2005) and runner-up (2001) in the main championship. Finally, she earned the “Txapela” in the final of the National championship of Barakaldo (2009). Nevertheless, her victory ended with the power of Andoni Egaña.
Other works
Without leaving the bertsolarism, she takes part in the coordination of the association called “Bertsolari Elkartea”. There, she has contributed and been involved to the discussions organized by the association. For example, topics focused on the role of women in bertsolarism.
Also she highlighted as a writer of musical lyrics, creator of posters, agent at bertsolarism and collaborator in news. Actually, she collaborates in the press and in 2003 she wrote every day in the opinion sector of the “Berria” newspaper.
Publications
Lujanbio is specializes in the transmission of Basque culture after completing a graduate course taught by the Humanities and Education Faculty at the University of Mondragon (2007-2008). Therefore, Maialen published a book of 158 pages which contains some notes that had taken in class. In 2010 was published in HUEZI and Lankuin.
She has also worked in one experimental proyect called "Ornitorrinkus". It is a mixture of contemporary and electronic music with verses, emission of sounds and voices forming a performance. Here Lujanbio works on the voices and lyrics and some of the texts, exercises, music, songs, tunes and sounds of the group are collected in an album: "Ornitorrinkus".
Nowadays, lyrics of Lujambio can be found in Basque albums as Maixa and Ixiar, Alaitz eta Maider, Anje Duhalde, Mikel Errazkin, Mikel Markez or Oskorri.