Beats of
San Fermin
Science and tradition are intertwined in the Sanfermines, with the University as witness and protagonist. From applied physics, the researcher Iker Zuriguel analyzes the movement of those waiting for the rocket to announce the start of the Sanfermines; Guillermo Zalbadirector of the Biochemistry and Genetics department , gives voice to the Vespers; Manuel Castellscampus photographer, awaits the arrival of the bulls to immortalize the best moments from his goal; and Beatriz Remón y José Antonio Fernández, doctors from the Clinic, watch over the safety and health of the runners in the running of the bulls. At the same time, history and devotion come to life in each piece hidden in the Treasure of San Fermín, to which the Chair of Navarrese Heritage and Art takes the pulse in its virtual classroom .
Every July 6, the place Consistorial of Pamplona is crowded with a multitude of people from all over the world. The behavior of this red and white tide is what Iker Zuriguel has been studying for four years. Iker Zuriguel, Full Professor of Applied Physics at the School of Science, has been studying for four years. The researchdirected by Denis BartoloProfessor of Physics at the Ecole Normale Supérieure (ENS) in Lyon (France), has tracked the movement of the nearly 5,000 people who crowd into the place, a space measuring just 50 meters long and 20 meters wide, during the chupinazo.
The results, published in Nature, could help predict the behavior of people at concerts or festivals, where mass movement can pose a great danger and lead to crushing, suffocation and even death.
Through the images, recorded with two cameras placed in two points of the place, and a mathematical model , Iker and the rest of the researchers observed that the density of the crowds increased from two people per square meter, one hour before the chupinazo, to six people per square meter at 12 noon, the moment of the launch. In addition, they found that at certain times and places, crowd densities of up to 9 people per square meter could be reached.
► Images showing the movement of people attending the chupinazo at the place Consistorial in Pamplona every July 6.
"When the density exceeds 4 people per square meter, oscillations are generated in the crowd. Contrary to what was thought, these are not chaotic but periodic. When this concentration is reached, the human mass behaves like a fluid that describes orbital trajectories, either clockwise or counterclockwise, with a period of 18 seconds," explains Iker. "The curious thing is that the period of these oscillations varies according to the size of the place. We have measured the movements that appear when the police divide the place for the pipers to come out, and we have observed that the duration is different - shorter - on each side," he stresses.
The study is part of the'San Fermín Crowd Lab' project and the Pamplona City Council is collaborating in it, with which an agreement was signed to install the cameras that monitor the dynamics of flows in the chupinazo, as well as in other scenarios of Sanfermines. The goal of this agreement is to achieve high-precision measurements of the movement of people in high-density situations in San Fermin to increase public safety.
Capturing the course of the running of the bulls
One of these places, which day after day, during the Sanfermines, is filled with people, is the route of the running of the bulls. When at 8 o'clock in the morning, the six bulls that will be fought that afternoon start their degree program from the Corrales del Gas to the place , the wooden planks of the route are overflowing with curious onlookers. But not all of them are mere spectators; some, such as Manuel Castells are working.
Manuel is the University photographer. Hundreds of events pass through his goal every year and are captured in more than 100,000 photographs. A work that makes him almost omnipresent in every corner of the campus. From July 7 to 14, Manuel also hangs the press pass as one of the hundreds of accredited photographers for the Running of the Bulls. Ten years ago, he began collaborating with EFE and now he does so with Diario de Navarra. "The media need to hire more people, apart from their usual staff, to be able to cover the whole run. A lot of decisions have to be made in a second," he explains.
► Manuel Castells, University photographer and accredited photographer for the encierro.
► Image captured by Manuel Castells of a young man being caught in the alley of the place de Toros.
Depending on the stretch he has to cover, Manuel can spend more than two hours waiting for the bulls and bulls to pass. "If I'm going to be on a balcony, it's enough for me to arrive at 7:30, when the course closes; but if it's my turn to be fenced in, I have to be there between 5:30 and 6:30," he says.
The stretch that Manuel likes the most is the alley. "The running of the bulls is getting faster and faster and there aren't as many loose bulls as there used to be. At the end of the course, the pack is more stretched out and this financial aid makes it possible to take good photos". In fact, of all the photos that Manuel has taken during the running of the bulls, his favorite is one he took during this stretch. "I captured the moment of a catch. When you're there you always want something to happen so you can have the photo, but, at the same time, you hope it's nothing serious. In this case, thank God, it wasn't," he concludes.
San Fermin allies to take care of runners
Those who, like Manuel, do not miss a running of the bulls are the numerous health professionals who, dressed in the characteristic Red Cross vest, join forces with the San Fermin capotico to ensure the protection of the runners. Beatriz Remón y José Antonio Fernández are two of them.
"I have been a volunteer for five years; three years in Pamplona, since I started my residency program in Pediatrics at the Clínica Universidad de Navarra"I have collaborated in many activities with the Red Cross, such as the Red Cross parade. "I have collaborated in many activities with the Red Cross, such as the Three Kings parade, the Javierada or the Behobia-San Sebastián. But it wasn't until last year that I decided to go a step further and also help in the San Fermin running of the bulls". The medical volunteers have to be at the Red Cross headquarters at 6 a.m. for the distribution of the medical stations. Once there, they prepare the necessary material for whatever may happen. "They are tense moments until you hear the rocket. Then, you see people running down Estafeta Street and you know that the bulls are coming. Our job there is to be attentive to everything that happens to detect those runners who may need medicalattendance ," says Beatriz.
"I remember attending to many contusions and even some shoulder dislocations," he recalls. "I did experience a tense moment with a runner who suffered a cranioencephalic traumatism and I had to jump over the fence after the passing of the bulls to attend to him. The bell-oxen had not yet passed and the rest of the runners made a human shield so that I could attend to him safely. It was incredible. Fortunately, the runner was fine".
► Volunteers José Antonio Fernández and Beatriz Remón with Crisitina Honorato (in the center), also a professional at the Clinic.
José Antonio has not had to attend to any bull horn injuries so far, but "there have been many falls with skin tears, many bruises and many sprained ankles or knees". "Among the most serious things I have treated there have been two brain injuries with loss of consciousness. Thank God everything went well and they recovered their knowledge in the same place," he recalls.
José Antonio is a volunteer with Cruz Roja Burlada, which covers the entrance the place and the release of heifers after the running of the bulls. He has been a volunteer for 4 years, when he began his residency program at the Clinic. "To exercise a part of my specialization program (Anesthesiology and Resuscitation) outside my comfort zone is a professional challenge ," he acknowledges. There is also a sentimental component: "Ever since I was very young, I used to get up early in the morning to watch the running of the bulls with my grandfather on television. It's a way of remembering him," he says.
Music and art to honor the saint
Pamplona's devotion to San Fermín dates back to the 12th century, when the first relic of the saint arrived in the city. "Until the end of the 16th century, the people of Pamplona honored San Fermín in autumn, on October 10 to be more exact. It was the liturgical commemoration of the Holy Bishop's entrance his see of Amiens," explains José Luis Molinsprofessor of the Chair of Heritage and Navarrese Art of the School of Philosophy and Letters, and author of the monograph "Chapel of San Fermín in the parish church of San Lorenzo in Pamplona". It was in 1590 when the City Council asked the bishop, D. Bernardo de Rojas, to move the feast to a time of the year with better weather; and, thus, the solemnity of San Fermín is commemorated, since 1591, on July 7.
Like all great festivities, this solemnity also has its eve. Until 1941 , when the launching of the chupinazo from the balcony of the City Hall was institutionalized, these marked the beginning of the Sanfermines.
Today, the Great Vespers of San Fermin are still celebrated. His musical interpretation, for choir and orchestra, has always been in position of the Cathedral's Music Chapel. He has sung in it as a baritone since 1989, Guillermo Zalbadirector of the Biochemistry and Genetics department of the School of Sciences. They rehearse two days a week throughout the year, except from July 15 to August 14, when they are on vacation. And they sing at all the important celebrations of the Cathedral: major festivities (Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, Corpus Christi, Pentecost, Assumption, St. Saturnine, St. Francis Xavier...) and important liturgical moments, such as Advent and Lent. "Singing with the Chapel allows me to actively participate in the liturgy of the Mass. It is very gratifying to be able to sing together with the canons of the Cathedral a cultured and traditional music, usually accompanied by a great organ and, in many cases, with an orchestra," he says.
Rehearsals intensify in the run-up to the Sanfermines. "In those dates, at the end of June and the first week of July, the group is grade of emotion and excitement," recalls Guillermo. The Music Chapel participates in the Vespers; in the High Mass, on July 7; and in the Octave, on July 14. "The three acts are emblematic, but if I had to choose one, I would say the Vespers of San Fermin," Guillermo assures. "They are sung vespers in honor of the saint, with the presence of the municipal Corporation dressed in costume. The Navarre Symphony Orchestra also participates in them and, normally, we sing the traditional Vespers of Mariano García and Joaquín Maya, as well as other authors and chapel masters. After the excitement of the beginning of the Sanfermines with the chupinazo in the place Consistorial, this act is the one that really marks the beginning of the festivities with the worship and devotion to the saint," he explains.
► Musical performance a position of the Cathedral Music Chapel in 2018.
Listen to the Vespers of San Fermín sung in honor of the saint position the Capilla de Música de la Catedral and the Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra.
The epicenter of this devotion to San Fermín is his chapel. Thousands of people visit it during the festivities, but also throughout the year. Located in the church of San Lorenzo, it houses the so-called Treasure of San Fermín, a collection of silverware, jewelry and ornaments belonging to the saint. "It is a splendid set of works that chronologically cover pieces from the sixteenth century to the twentieth century. However, the most original and sumptuous ones all belong to the centuries of the Baroque, when devotion to the saints experienced a strong boom and any work used both in the liturgy and in the adornment of images and chapels was likely to be made in silver, "explains Ignacio MiguélizDeputy Director of the Chair of Heritage and Art of Navarre.
As part of the research team in several projects related to the cataloging of heritage in Navarra, Ignacio knows well these pieces, whose description and history he has collected in one of the itineraries that the Chair offers in its virtualclassroom . A perfect digital experience to discover this treasure before visiting it in the saint's chapel.