The
textbook’s music examples come from a CD called Cuba in
Washington (liner notes, lyrics available in pdf)
1997. A Smithsonian Folkways recording. This
label is highly recommended.
See section
2 of this webpage
for instructional audio clips related to the Garland Handbook examples for rumba
and son.
Website with
demonstrations of West African (Ghana) instruments and rhythms.
Textbook’s
music example (from Cuba in
Washington (liner notes, lyrics available in pdf)
1997.
Changui
example (from the above liner notes, same author as our textbook’s section on
Cuba)
From the
CD:
changüí is the genre of song, dance and verse that is very
typical of the region of Guantánamo and its surroundings. It shares
important traits with the son complex
in regard to certain rhythms, instruments, and the presence of choral refrains.
At the same time, it exhibits certain unique elements of its own. For
example, the performance of the tres establishes a
unique rhythmic style. The tres plays rhythmic
figures that show a tendency towards abrupt closures or endings of motifs and
phrases, combining with a pronounced plucking of the strings to create
accents. Some of these traits make it difficult, if not impossible, to
fit this music into the pattern of the classic Cuban clave . . . rhythm.
In addition, the distinctive role of the bongo drums stands out. Like
standard bongos, these are paired, but their leather heads are attached with
nails, and they are much larger. The performance style of their players
is totally contrary to that of the standard son.
The bongo part in changüí music is based on
the continuous supporting role of one or two beats (played near the rim),
together with two beats played in the center of the drumhead as well as many
fragmentary, contrasting rhythm's which are injected into the music. At a
predetermined moment these distributed beats form a series of lightly, accented
patterns known as picao. Occasionally
they group themselves symmetrically in common nation with a heavy or medium
beats. This type of rhythmic pattern has elements in common with the
Rumba style; of Bantu origin, it plays a crucial rhythmic role in defining the
style of this music. Also, the tres
simultaneously executes a series of rhythmic-melodic figures which, without
abandoning its basic rhythmic pattern, initiate very peculiar repetitions and
variations in relation to the bongo part.
On the
other hand, this motive seeking a climax (with or without participation of the
voices) is accented when the bongo player produces a series of accents by
rubbing the drums heads; this way of playing -- traceable to African sources --
characteristically incorporates periodic spaces that alternate with a damp and
slap. The slap coincides with a note played on the marimbula
. . . in periodic alternation during instances requiring high contrast.
Frequently this practice functions as a musical and emotional climax.
In
addition to changüí’s African ancestry, some
of the established melodic types revealed cadences of Spanish origin, fragments
of decimas ... in the verses and other elements as
well. Such characteristics are still more evident in older examples of
antecedents of the son, such as those of the nengon
de changüí.
The more
established pieces tend to define a first section, in which the theme is stated
or declared. This is followed by a second part, where solo lines
alternate with refrains in which the musical grammar described above in the
search for climax is always found. [the montuno section]
The performance also requires the rhythmic scraping of the metal guayo which is synchronized with the shake of
the maracas.
Repeat
of changüí example.
Textbook
son example (for lyrics, see Cuba in
Washington)
Additional
son example: “Tres Lindas
Cubana,” by Sexteto Habanero (from I Am Time, CD 3, Bailar
con Cuba.)
Tres rhythm example (music notation and player) (as suggested
in the Grove Music Encyclopedia article on son)
Contradanza & danzón examples
Rotterdam Conservatory Orquesta
Típica, “El Pañuelo de Pepa”
Orquesta
Aragon, “Union Cienfueguera”
Santeria ritual and associated music
Invocation
of Elegua (John Santos and the Coro Folklorico Kindembo, Hacia El Amor, “Elegua-Iroko”
(traditional)
“A Santa Barbara” (Que Viva Chango), Celina Gonzalez. YouTube clip.(modern version) old
version (very soft audio; focus on dance moves). Audio in class from I
Am Time, CD 1, Cuban Invocations
on son
definition
·
clave feel
·
montuno (piano riff)
·
harmony SALSA – JAZZ HARMONIES
·
anticipated bass
·
short phrases,
often repeated
·
improvisation (descarga)
rumba
blog
http://esquinarumbera.blogspot.com/
decima poetic/lyric form – ten lines of about 8 syllables each,
in the rhyme scheme ABBAA CCDDC
comments
on son
from Grove Music On-line, 2005
The Cuban Son (not to be confused with its Mexican counterpart) and the Salsa music derived
from it are recognized to be among the most important forms of Caribbean music
of the 20th century. The scope of their international influence rivals that of
reggae, blues and rock. Sones are highly syncretic,[emphasis added]
representing a fusion of African and Hispanic cultural influences. In the 1920s
they became an important symbol of national identity in Cuba, although they
originated as a regional music in the province of Oriente.
Son is difficult to define precisely, as numerous sub-classifications
exist (e.g. son montuno, changüí,
sucu-sucu, Guaracha, conjunto format and Mambo), as well as hybrid forms which fuse son-derived
characteristics with other musics (e.g. son-guajira, son-pregón, guaracha-son and afro-son).
Structurally, traditional sones tend to be in
duple metre, based on simple European-derived
harmonic patterns (I–V, I–IV–V) and alternate initially between verse and
chorus sections. Short instrumental segments performed on tres
(folk guitar) or trumpet are also frequently included
between strophic repetitions. The montuno, the
final section of most sones, is performed at a
faster tempo and involves relatively rapid alternations between a chorus and an
improvising vocal or instrumental soloist. Phrases in this section are
generally referred to as inspiraciones. The
cyclical, antiphonal and highly improvisatory nature of the montuno
bears a striking similarity to the formal organization of many
traditional West African musics, whereas the
initial strophic sections of sones (known as canto
or tema) more closely resemble European musics.
Acoustic sones employ various instruments including the tres, guitar, maracas, . . .
bongo drum, güiro and botija
(jug bass), marímbula (large lamellophone) or acoustic bass. Modern dance bands often
use an electric bass, substitute electric keyboard for the guitar and tres and add conga drums (tumbadoras)
and timbales as well as a horn section. Son lyrics utilize
European-derived poetic forms such as coplas, cuartetas and décimas.
Among the most distinctive musical characteristics of the genre are its
prominent clave pattern, highly syncopated figures played by the tres and/or keyboard which outline the chordal structure of the piece, a tendency for the guitar
strum and bongo to emphasize the fourth beat of the bar more strongly than the
first and a unique bass rhythm accenting the second half of the second beat and
the fourth beat of the bar, generally referred to as an anticipated bass . . .
The syncopated bass pattern of the son as well as its ambivalent stress
pattern has been fundamental to the creation of modern salsa.
With the
exception of some música guajira, canciones, traditional
trova and boleros, virtually all Cuban music
contains a repeating figure known as clave which provides a rhythmic
foundation to the piece. The term clave is confusing since it can refer both
to a diversity of characteristic two-bar rhythms as well as to the concussion
sticks on which some clave rhythms are performed. In a more general
sense, the phrase ‘being in clave’ is used to imply the awareness of a clave
time-line (not necessarily performed) which relates musicians' rhythmic and
melodic performance to one another. The clave patterns of Afro-Cuban
religious repertory, often performed on a bell or other metal object, tend to
be in 6/8 time, while those in secular genres are more frequently in duple metre.
The rhythms of the Son have been key ingredients in the creation of the Mambo, the Cha-cha, the music commonly known as "salsa", and even the rhythmic structure of Latin Jazz. The Son ensemble can vary in its instrumentation ranging from one guitar or "tres" to a large ensemble with a full complement of horns and strings. – from the Conjunto Céspedes website; also has useful short definitions of bembe and rumba.
bata drumming demonstrated by John Santos (challenging!)
concise explanation of the Afro-Cuban 6/8 feel (notation only; no sounds)
basic “salsa” rhythms in detail (notation with downloadable audio clips). The core rhythms are Cuban but added ones make it “salsa.”
“salsa beat machine” interactive demo of salsa and merengue rhythms (switch sounds off and on; no notation)
general (covering a wide variety of Latin and world music styles)
video lessons on percussion from LP (Latin Percussion)
David Meckler
Feb 2010
Cañada College