Cuban music genres

Guaguancó is the most widespread form of the Rumba complex. Birth of the Guaguancó The origins of the Guaguancó are much debated and several hypotheses are put forward. Some believe that this form of Rumba was born in the 1880s in Matanzas. According to researcher Jesús Blanco, the first Guaguancó musicians were Anselmo and Matías…

The Yambú also called Rumba de Cajon is one of the oldest forms of the Rumba complex. Birth of the Yambú This variant of Rumba dates back to the second half of the 19th century, from the first days of the arrival of freed African slaves in the cities. The birthplace of this urban musical…

The Country Dance appeared in England in the middle of the 17th century, at the beginning of the reign of Elizabeth I of England. In 1651, John Playford wrote a book entitled The English Dancing Master which gathered 105 ways to dance the Country Dance. This work will be completed until 1728, referencing then 358…

Today, the Cuban Bolero is clearly differentiated from the Spanish Bolero, although their histories may not be so independent. The Spanish Bolero The origins The Spanish Bolero is a dance whose origins seem to date back to the 17th or 18th century according to musicologists. It developed particularly in Andalusia. The Spanish historian Juan Antonio…

In April 1583, when Torrequemada and the governor Gabriel de Luján were struggling for power, guitar players improvised in the streets and public squares joyful melodies accompanied by critical, ironic and even satirical and burlesque lyrics. The musicologist Alejo Carpentier indicates that in 1762, with the capture of Havana by the English, dozens full of…

Birth of the Trova During the second half of the 19th century, a form of poetry was born among the working class in the eastern regions of Cuba, sung by cantantes, authors, composers and performers who accompanied themselves on the guitar. This music plays the role of entertainment but also of expression. It allows them…

Birth of the Habanera As with the Danza, the origin of the Habanera is not perfectly clear. There are several versions. One version explains that the Habanera or Contradanza habanera is nothing other than the Contradanza played in Cuba. The term “habanera” is then only used to differentiate the Cuban Contradanza from the European Contradanza….

Birth of the Rumba Throughout the slave trade, the African slaves who were uprooted and parked in their barracones (barracks) sought to perpetuate their ritual songs. These are accompanied by drums which, when they run out or are taken away, are replaced by anything that is within reach: the edge of a piece of furniture,…

The Guajira was born in the Oriente of Cuba during the second half of the 19th century. This daughter of the Punto Guajiro is imbued with the folklore and characteristic elements of the music of Andalusia and the Canary Islands. Accompanied by a tiple (a small guitar with five strings or five pairs of strings),…