Spanish for the Tenebrae service that represents the darkness and chaos following the Crucifixion of Christ. In the morada, a candelabra with thirteen candles is gradually extinguished, and prayers for the dead are recited, followed by three periods of deafening noise. See also Tenebrae."

also from the Spanish alabar, but referring to hymns of praise to the saints and the celebration of the Virgin Mary.

verses, the term used to refer to couplets, or octosyllabic quatrains with alternating assonance or vowel rhyme. See also coplas.

the waltz with its sweeping triple-meter music and scandalous dance, which swept Europe and the world in the nineteenth century. Before the waltz, couples danced apart.

little owl in Nuevo Mexicano Spanish, which contains many words of Nahuatl or Aztec origin. Owls are considered a sign of witches, but there are a number of songs in which owls are messengers between Hispano and Indian lovers.

darkness in Latin, the name of the "earthquake" service on Good Friday night, no longer a part of the Catholic liturgy, although still observed in the moradas of New Mexico by the Penitente Brotherhood. See also Tinieblas.

Holy Week in New Mexico surpasses Christmas as the most important Christian feast, at least in the sheer quantity of music that takes its themes from the Passion of Jesus.

Saint Michael the Archangel is the nemesis of Lucifer in "Los Pastores," the Nuevo Mexicano Nativity play.

Saint Peter, founder of the Church and gatekeeper of Heaven, is named in several alabados.

Saint Joseph the Patriarch is the patron saint of the home, the family, and professions including carpenters, students, and teachers. Every church in colonial New Mexico had images of Saint Joseph, which is an indication of the special devotion the people had for him.