| Cuban music was born at the crossroads between old Europe, Africa
and the New World. The multitude of musical genres that make up Cuban
music
(cucaracha, habanera, mambo, comparsa, etc.) are a part of Cubans' daily
lives.
In the early 16th century, in the wake of the conquistadors, European
musicians found and used primitive instruments left by the Indians, such
as dried calabashes filled with seeds with a stick for a handle: the maracas,
and the guiro, a piece of hollowed out wood with grooves cut into its
sides which the musician rubs with a stick.
The massive arrival of African slaves who were brought to harvest (zafra)
in the sugar plantations, in the 16th century would change Cuban music
forever. Cuban music would be born from the progressive encounter of slave
traditions brought from Africa and those of the white populations from
Europe. French and Italian tunes, Spanish romances, quadrillles, tangos,
flamencos would mix with African and Amerindian music (percussion, polyphony)...
Properly speaking, real Cuban music did not appear until the early part
of the 20th century with the contradanza cubana and its derivative the
danzon, choreographed dances whose roots are in French ballroom dances
and contredances. It's in this environment that son (pronounced "sonne")
music was born, the first Cuban musical creation. 
The first Cuban revolution to break out was a musical one. The turn
toward a revolutionary regime turned the country upside down and along
with it the career of many artists, but the music never stopped. The contredanza
cubana, a ballroom dance, is enhanced with vocals and percussion that
play according to their own rhythms.
There are two songs that you will be sure to hear if you ever go to Cuba
"El commandante Che Guevara" and "Guantanamera".
The rhythms of Cuban music roar like the V8 engines of the American cars
that can be found all over the island. Cuban musical styles mix with one
another to form new sounds: guaracha-son, bolero-son, guaguanco-son any
kind of combination is possible: bolero-blues by Compay Segundo, son-afro
from the Afro Cuban All Stars, cha-flamenco, samba-cha, swing-cha by Orquesta
Aragon. The music of Cuba is one of the most exported in the world. It
came back into style thanks to musicians like Compay Segundo, Ibrahim
Ferrer... |
For more than a century, Cuba has exporting its rhythms, talent and
songs all over the world.
Africa and Europe (Spain, France...) are the birthplaces of Cuban music.
For three centuries, Cuba was the center for the comings and goings
of song and dance from Andalusia, Africa, America, the Caribbean and
France. Africa, and more specifically Nigeria, constitutes the birthplace
of the Yoruba and the Santeria religion. The Aira Kere, encricled with
small bells, is the drum dedicated to Shongo, a Santerian deity, the
Yoruban counterpart of Zeus. The drum is sometimes covered with a bante,
a piece of fabric in the colors attributed to each god. Each saint has
his own rhythm and song. Shongo's color is red.
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France :