The Council of Mallorca and the Teatre Principal de Palma, recover the grouping of traditional and old music from Mallorca.

The Joch de Ministrils is a musical formation that dates back to the 13th century, in the time of the Conquest. The different instruments they used are: bagpipes, flabiol, tarots (chirimies), bombards, bassoons, trumpets, cornets, tambourines, drums, tablas, etc., the number of musicians in the formation and instruments, depended both on the context and of the economic moment of each era. With the arrival of King Jaume in Mallorca, the entire palace service and the rest of the entourage also arrive with him, with them we find his Minstrels. These are musicians who were hired by the royal house and who were dedicated to enlivening the banquets and other entertainments of the court, and in addition, they gave solemnity to the various official civil, military and religious acts, such as ceremonies, processions, receptions officials, solemn masses, among others.

Over time, these musicians adopted the name that was used in the various European courts at the end of the Middle Ages, Ministrils. In this way they ceased to be minstrels, who little by little lost their importance and, moreover, distinguished themselves by professionalizing their activity and becoming part of the court service. They also participated in the acts of the chapter of the Headquarters and the protocol acts of the Grand and General Council, as public accompaniment of the magnificent juries, that is to say, of the rulers of the City of the Island of Mallorca.

The golden age of the Ministers came between the 15th and 18th centuries, coinciding with the height of the absolutist courts and under the umbrella of the Counter-Reformation. However, in 1718, the formation began to decline. With the establishment of the New Plant Decree and the arrival of the Bourbon dynasty in Mallorca, the Ministries became part of the newly created entity, Palma City Council. Over the years, the figure of the formation is losing importance, largely due to the new fashion of creating music bands. In this way, in 1882 the Ministries were officially extinguished. There were different attempts at recovery, but finally 1889 was the year of its definitive dissolution.

In 1929, on the occasion of the 700th anniversary of the Conquest of Mallorca, a new recovery was attempted, which due to the political situation at the time was not successful. In 1994, Palma City Council tried again, in an attempt to rescue ancient traditions, using contemporary instruments. It will not be until 2001 when the Insular Council of Mallorca agrees on the recovery and creation of the Joch de Ministrils. A recovery led by Josep Rotger with a task of documentation and historical research by Francesc Vallcaneras, the musical supervision of the musicologist Xavier Carbonell and with a costume design by Tolo Crespí.

In this way, the institution returns to the service of the government of the island of Mallorca in a dignified way and with historical criteria. Unfortunately this recovery only lasted until the year 2012. Now in 2024, the Council of Mallorca together with the Teatre Principal de Palma want to make a new attempt to bring the Joch de Ministrils back to its splendor, following the task and the relief in the work done, and with a vision of a stable grouping of old and protocol music to spread our musical heritage, dignifying and professionalizing one of the oldest musical formations in all of Mallorca.