The Colla de Sant Rafel was founded in 1981. It all began when Margalida Bonet Ribas decided to found a traditional dance Colla in Sant Rafel, as there was none in this village, and when festivities were held, Collas from outside the village had to come. The training period for the first dancers lasted almost two years: in the winter of 1979, they began to learn to dance; in 1980, the dancers began to receive their first castanet playing lessons; and, in 1981, some began to learn to play the drum and flute.


Thus, once formed, the Colla de Sant Rafel performed its first public dance on December 8, 1981. When the Colla was founded, it comprised forty-five members, many of whom were children who thus had their first contact with the roots and culture of Ibiza. Currently, the association consists of fifty members, although, throughout its long history, more than a hundred young people have been part of it.

The main objective of the Colla de Sant Rafel is to preserve the folklore, history, and customs of Ibiza. Therefore, since its foundation, it has worked on training boys and girls who share an interest in indigenous dance and culture by teaching traditional peasant dance classes, drum and flute playing classes, and castanet playing classes. Furthermore, it has also organized various courses to teach the techniques for making different musical instruments and for creating traditional women’s attire: 2004-2005 course on making drums and traditional peasant shawls; 2005-2006 course on making castanets and traditional peasant dresses; 2009 course on making flutes; 2010 and 2016 course on making castanets; 2011 course on making instruments; 2012 course on making small baskets; from 2006 to 2016, an annual course on making espadrilles. Likewise, driven by the interest in promoting traditional culture, from November 2014 to November 2015, a theatre course was held, culminating in the performance of an adaptation of traditional Ibizan folk tales during the Sant Rafel festivities in 2015.

Since 1984, the Colla de Sant Rafel has organized a Folkloric Festival within the framework of the patron saint festivities of Sant Rafel. At the festival, groups from our island and the rest of Spanish territory have showcased their folklore, and singers from the Balearic Islands have performed their ‘gloses’ (traditional songs).

Among other activities aimed at preserving traditional culture, it is worth highlighting the annual organization of a popular dance at Pou d’en Micolau on the second weekend of October, which aims to contribute to the revival of well festivities and traditional Ibizan games.

The Colla also participates in the procession held annually on ‘Dia del Passos’ (Day of the Steps), thus reviving the ancient island tradition of attending to carry girls dressed as ‘pageses’ (traditional peasant women) and wearing a white mantilla on their heads.

It is worth noting that during the 1980s and 1990s, the group worked to recover traditional Ibizan songs. These songs were sung by male and female dancers of the Colla at various festivals and ‘xacotes’ (traditional gatherings), and some of them have been compiled in one of the chapters of the book ‘Sa Colla de Sant Rafel, 1981-2011’.

In 2015, the group published the book ‘Sa Colla de Sant Rafel, 1981-2011’, a very personal work that compiles the most significant events of its trajectory: its formation, its activities, its members, its experiences, as well as valuable material for the preservation of cultural heritage, such as the recovery of the ‘clauer’ costume, the compilation of traditional songs, and information about the great masters of drum, flute, and castanets of Ibiza.

In 2006, the Colla de Sant Rafel received the Municipal Silver Medal, awarded by the Sant Antoni de Portmany Town Council, in recognition of a 25-year trajectory dedicated to the recovery and preservation of folklore and traditional culture.

Another important objective of the Colla de Sant Rafel is to promote Ibizan folklore and culture worldwide. Therefore, since 1982, the Colla has carried out cultural exchanges with other national and international folk groups and has participated in various folk festivals:

1982: Sóller International Festival (Mallorca).
1984: III Son Ferriol Folk Festival (Mallorca).
1985: Performance in Esporles (Mallorca).
1989: VIII Son Ferriol Folk Festival (Mallorca).
1989: Performance in Benicàssim (Castelló).
1990: Olost del Lluçanès Festivities (Barcelona).
1990: Performance in Puig Punyent (Mallorca).
1992: Performance in Vigo and Pontevedra (Galicia).
1993: Performance in Andorra.
1994: Performance in Olot (Girona).
1994: Performance in Herencia (Ciudad Real).
1995: 49th Llangollen Folk Festival (Wales), where they achieved 5th place.
1995: Performance in Torres de Cotillas (Murcia).
1996: Performance in Benicàssim (Castelló).
1997: Performance in Ciutadella (Menorca).
1998: Performance in Sant Boi del Lluçanès (Barcelona).
1999: Performance in Villajoiosa (Alicante) 2000: Performance in Murcia.
2001: Sant Pere de Bairo Folk Festival (Guimaraes, Portugal).
2003: Performance in Vigo (Galicia).
2004: Talayuela Festival (Cáceres).
2005: Performance in Inca (Mallorca).
2005: Performance in Tembleque (Toledo).
2005: ‘Festa dels Naps’ of San Martín del Rey Aurelio (Asturias).
2006: International Folkloric Parade (Alicante).
2006: Ferreries Folk Exhibition (Menorca).
2006: Interboot International Tourism Fair (Friedrichshafen, Germany).
2007: Beneixama Dance Festival (Alicante).
2008: Performance at the Barcelona Boat Show.
2009: ‘Castelló-Dansa’ Cultural Dance Festival (Castelló d’Empúries).
2009: Orihuela Folk Music and Dance Festival (Alicante).
2010: Berriofolk 2010 (Berriozar, Pamplona).
2011: XXIV ‘La Esteva’ International Folk Festival (Segovia).
2012: Saint-Girons Folk Festival (France).
2013: Performance at the Salvaterra de Miño Wine Festival (Pontevedra)
2013: III Pollença Gathering of Popular Culture and Traditional Music (Mallorca)
2014: Villa de Almoharín Folk Festival (Cáceres).
2015: La Guancha Ritual Dances Exhibition (Tenerife).
2015: Performance in Vigo (Galicia).

Apart from these festivals, the Colla has also actively participated in dances and festivals organized by the Island Council of Ibiza.

The Colla de Sant Rafel actively participates in the organization of the Sant Rafel Patron Saint Festivities and collaborates in the dance programs organized by the Sant Antoni de Portmany Town Council: artisan market, popular festivals, and other events.

Furthermore, the Colla de Sant Rafel is part of the Federation of Traditional Dance Collas and Popular Culture of Ibiza and Formentera, of which it was a founding member in 1998.