Identity and population
The perception of the sound of bells has undergone changes in a short period of time. Associated with the Church at a time marked by secularisation and the flourishing of sects and religions, bells are perceived as distant and have lost their sense of identifying a parish or a municipality as a unit. They are no longer needed to mark certain times of the day or the yearly cycle by sounding during the festivals of the ritual calendar, although calculating time is still necessary for certain groups to signal important cyclical events.
Below the bell-tower and the old Town Hall bell —it is now part of the parish of Luyego— in Quintanilla de Somoza, district of la Maragatería (León), the local people celebrate their festivities dancing to the sound of the drum and pipes while inviting visitors who appeared in cars to dance and drink with them. A local marks the rhythm of the dance by forming couples or rows, with the drummer behind him. Sunday evening, 3rd June 2018.