In terms of structure and harmony, all styles are quite similar.
The complete fragment that is played, which usually lasts between two and four minutes depending on how many people sing, is called 'revezo' or 'lucha'. This revezo is formed by the 'subías' (accompaniment when someone sings a 'copla' or when the violin decides to make a 'soloist' intervention) and by the 'paseíllo' (played between the different interventions, always the same music). Usually, the revezo begins and ends with a subía performed by the violin, without a singer; although, sometimes it is possible to start directly with the 'paseíllo'.

The overall harmony is simple and repetitive. The verdiales are based on the Phrygian mode on E whose most important notes are E and A, by attraction. Occasionally, the raised third degree (G sharp) can be found. And in ascending passages, also the raised second degree (F sharp) or the lowered fifth (B flat).
In verdiales, there are mainly two parts: when someone sings or the violin play as a 'soloist' (subía) or the music in between subías (paseíllo). For each of these parts, there will be a different chord sequence, which will always be the same.
In the paseíllo, the E and A chords are simply combined, as a restatement of the Phrygian mode. It is a music for connecting parts and is therefore not of great harmonic complexity.
During the subía, while the violin performs melodies and flourishes, the guitars perform this sequence of chords: E minor, F major, C major, G major, C major, F major and returns to E minor for the paseíllo. It is a mirrored sequence, with the central chord being G major.

These chords of the subía are played in the styles of Montes and Almogía, since, as explained above, in the Comares style they use the plucking technique in these interventions. In any case, in spite of being more melodic because of the plucking, the harmonic basis remains the same as in the other styles.

On top of this harmony, the violin shows all its virtuosity in the creation of melodies and in the way of accompanying the singers as well. The singers, for their part, show their abilities to surprise and reach the audience. Except for the changes of verse, the melody of the singing is usually formed by correlative intervals, with no frequent leaps bigger than a second or third. 

In the style of Comares there is a very special peculiarity which consists of starting to play only with string instruments. This is called 'bajín'. It creates a moment of maximum connection and intimacy. 

Depending on the geographical area,  it is possible to find different styles in verdiales: Comares, Montes and Almogía. The difference between them is basically the rhythmic engine, although there are also variations in the violin melodies and in the dance. Francisco de Martos, a former verdiales musician, argues that the real difference between styles is the 'spirit'1, referring specially to the character. The rhythmic pattern is just slightly different in each style, so the real identity is given by the character, mainly provided by the violinist. As they wanted to be as unique as possible, some violinists even changed their usual way of playing when they realised someone was trying to memorize their music in order to prevent anyone copying them2.

Although styles are usually divided according to geographical areas, it could get more complicated, especially in the last century, when each violinist played in a different way. For example, the Comares style, as we know it today, is basically based on the way of playing of the great violinist Paco Maroto. But there were other violinists with completely different ways of playing such as Blas, Hilario or Marín. So we could speak of general styles according to geography and, then, specific styles within these according to the way of playing the violin. Currently, we do not have this problem since people do not create their own style anymore. 

COMARES

The Comares style is mainly located in the Axarquia region, in the easternmost part of the region. 
This style is the only one in which the strings predominate over the percussion, as in addition to the guitar and violin, the lute and sometimes the bandurria are used. This also makes it the most melodic and melismatic style, and therefore the most Moorish in character of all3. Some describe this style as vibrant and brave4. In addition, a technique is used on the strings that is not used in the other styles: plucking.
It could be said that the rhythm is a mixture of the other two styles: it is agile and lively like Almogía, but it has a slight conclusion in its rhythmic pattern, making it also settled like Montes.
The Comares dance hardly uses the movement of the arms; it focuses on the complicity with the partner and the elegance of the movement. As a consequence, instead of ending up their dance facing the audience, they face their partner, a sign that the most important thing is not the exhibition or the show, but making a good dance couple.

The Comares style is the most different in terms of celebrating tradition, since it was not usually organised in fixed pandas or so tied to the rituals. In general, it had a more familiar and spontaneous character. 

ALMOGÍA

This style is located in the Guadalhorce Valley, as well as  the river of Campanillas and El Torcal (North and West of Málaga).
This style gives a feeling of greater agility and liveliness, due to the fact that its rhythmic pattern does not have any kind of rest at the end, as can be seen below. The most striking rhythmic instrument in this case is the platillos, while the pandero is left more in the background, setting the pulse. 
In contrast to the other styles, the violin uses higher tessituras, being the great feature of Almogía's playing.
Just as Montes style, the dancing involves a great involvement of the arms, together with the rest of the body, and they also perform group dances. In both, Montes and Almogía styles, the dancers usually finish their dances facing the audience.

The styles of Montes and Almogía have always been especially linked to the rituals of this tradition, such as the pilgrimages at Christmas time or the celebrations in summer. 

MONTES

This style located in the area of Montes de Málaga, adding villages such as Totalán, Rincón de la Victoria or Benagalbón (inland region). It is considered by many members of the tradition the style par excellence.
The rhythmic component provided by the pandero stands out, to such an extent that the instrument in this style is larger than in the rest. The rhythmic ostinato of this style gives a sense of a settled and placed rhythm. Below, you can read and hear the rhythmic pattern typical of this style, which is an offbeat accent. 
The melodic line is the most basic of all the styles, with hardly any ornamentation. The violin does not have much variety of bow strokes, playing most of the time legato or detache.

The dance involves more arm movements than in Comares style and also, on occasion, the partners are exchanged during the dance, making it more of a group dance.