facts about cuban music
Facts About Cuban Music
Every country has its own distinctive music style and history. These facts about Cuban music will give you a small insight into the fascinating world of music in Cuba.
- Son: This is the music that has been heavily influenced by African beats (and it is also the national folk music of Cuba), and it sounds very similar to Salsa music. The rhythm and the percussion sounds African, whereas the instrument that is plucked is similar to a Spanish guitar. The different types of Son music are Son-Montuno, Afro-Son and Guajira-Son.
- Rumba: The Rumba is a drumbeat based dance specific music that is synonymous with the African culture. This led to the rise of Bolero music in Cuba, which is simply a slower and romantic version of the Rumba.
- Danzón: A clear European influence can be seen in this style of music which incorporates the use of dancing, and eventually led to the birth of the Cha-Cha-Cha. Danzón first appeared in the 19th century, and it also led to Zapateo music which is heard in the Eastern part of Cuba.
- VariationsThe other types of Cuban music that are prevalent are Mozambique (a carnival kind of music), Yoruba (more focused on religious practices), Cuban jazz (Cuban rhythm along with American jazz), Conga (similar to Mozambique), Timba (new age fusion of hip-hop, rap and Salsa) and Changüí (which was an earlier version of Son).
- The countries that have influenced Cuban music are Spain, France, America, China and Puerto Rico.
- The African impact on Cuban music has been felt because of the presence of several African slaves who passed through Cuba in the past. The ancestry of many current residents can also be traced back to those times.
- Cabildos are social gatherings that are organized primarily by the African population where different music groups are invited to come and play their music.
- The most famous Cuban singer was Beny Moré and other important music artists include the likes of Celia Cruz, Chucho Valdez, Tito Puente and Gloria Estephán.
- The first source of that took people by storm in the US was El Manisero (The Peanut Vendor) in 1928. It was composed by Mosiés Simons and performed by Rita Montaner and sold more than a million copies of sheet music.
- Originally, there were around 50 different types of drums that they used. Today only the bongos, the congas and the bata drums are widely used.