ABOUT THE MUSIC   Music of Cuba - A Historical Perspective The people of Cuba include descendants of the Spaniards (and some other Europeans) who began to arrive in the early 1500s and the Africans who were brought as enslaved people (or arrived later as freed slaves from other countries). Over time, some aspects of the music and dance of the Spanish and African groups have blended together, and some aspects have kept their individual flavor. The indigenous peoples of Cuba, after living there many thousands of years, died soon after the Spanish arrived, either from diseases brought there (to which they had no immunity) or from mass suicide when forced into mining labor. Chinese laborers also came in the late 1800s, but they did not blend culturally with other peoples in Cuba at the time. Not much is known about Cuba's folk music before the year 1800. It is known that early Cubans played wooden and conch shell trumpets, hollow wooden drums, flutes, and shakers. When the Spaniards came to colonize Cuba in the 1500s, they brought European art music. Early Catholic church music in Cuba was documented. There is evidence of music for choirs and organ, with the occasional addition of string instruments. In the early 1800s, symphonies and operas were performed in churches. Robredo Manuel Saumell (1817-1870) wrote dance pieces for piano that paved the way for classical concert music in Cuba. The development of Cuban art music followed that of Europe into the twentieth century, through many different styles, except that Afro-Cuban rhythms and percussion instruments were added. Some notable Cuban twentieth-century classical composers include Catalonia-born José Ardévol (1911-1981), Argeliers León (born 1918), who was also an ethnomusicologist, and Aurelio de la Vega (born 1925). Afro-Cuban religious music has provided a way for Africans to retain traces of life in their ancestral home. Santería, the largest Afro-Cuban religion, mixes Yoruban spirituality with Catholicism. Music and dance are very important to the ceremonies of Santería, since followers believe they are the only means of contacting ancestors. Sacred drums of Santería are called batá. Today, popular Cuban music and dance styles include salsa, són, rumba, mambo, and cha-cha-cha. The instruments used include the claves, maracas, guiro, thumb piano (like the African mbira), and cowbell, as well as various drums, including bongos and a large conga. Some European-style instruments may also be used. In Cuban music, a special rhythm played on the claves (called the clave rhythm) sets the tempo and maintains it. There are many different kinds of salsa music and dance in Cuba. Most of these styles are derived from són. Són developed in eastern rural areas of Cuba around the turn of the twentieth century, but traces of it date back to the 1700s. Són is a distinctly Afro-Cuban musical style because it uses an African rhythm (also called són), Spanish poetic styles in the lyrics, and the use of plucked instruments (including guitars). Són is a part of much Cuban music. The rumba music and dance style is also derived from African music and is played on conga drums, claves, and guiro. The mambo, which appeared in the 1930s and 1940s, also uses African rhythms. Mambo music and dance is very popular internationally. Cha-cha-cha, a slower version of the mambo, appeared in the early 1950s. Because its rhythms are simpler than the mambo, and it is easier to dance, the cha-cha-cha became popular very quickly. One style of Cuban canción, or song, was music from the rural areas of western and central Cuba. This is Cuba's "country music," called música guajira ("peasant music"), or música campesina ("farmer's music"). Lyrics of these songs center on life in the country, love, and some humorous topics, especially when dancing is involved. Guitar and some string instruments accompany these songs that share some characteristics with North American country music and blues songs. This rural style is not derived from African styles, but is influenced by the Spanish style. |
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