Viadera
The viadera was a lyric genre of Catalan and Occitan literature invented by the troubadours. It was a dance song devised to lighten the burden of a long voyage or to enliven the trip. It was a popular as opposed to "high" form and only infrequently used by cultivated poets. According to the Catalan Cançoneret de Ripoll, it was la pus jusana spècies qui és en los cantàs and elsewhere it is called la més baixa espècie de cançons.
One of the more famous viadeyras was composed by Cerverí de Girona. It begins No.l prenatz lo fals marit and is preserved in the Cançoner Gil. The theme of the song is that of a warning to a girl, either Jana delgada or Na Delgada, a senhal meaning "delicate lady". The line jana delgada is repeated after every two lines as a respos. The song has much in common with Galician-Portuguese cantigas de amigo.
