LATIN MUSIC THE HYSTORY THE COLONIAL ERA NEW YORK CITY BEGINNINGS LATIN MUSIC GOES MAINSTREAM SALSA INSTRUMENT MAMBO TANGO

The history of the Latin popular music known worldwide as “salsa” began centuries ago in the islands of the Spanish Caribbean, in a context of slavery and colonialism. Yet, it is strongly tied to twentieth-century New York City and the growth of a Latino community there. Its distinctive polyrhythm, vocal and instrumental call-and-response identify the Afro-Caribbean roots of Latin music.

The history of Latin music and dance dates back to the 18th century. However, in Cuba it had a transformation in the 19th century which made it unique and even if there were contributions from other parts of the Caribbean, Cuba is seen as its birth place. At the middle of the 19th century Cuba was the cultural centre of the Hispanic world and the most prosperous of the Spanish colonies.

Several events contributed to the development of a uniquely Hispanic style of music - the British occupation of Cuba ( ). The traditional habit of the West Africans to sell their enemies into slavery; the 1812 slave uprising, the abolition of slavery in Cuba in 1886 and finally the USA's military occupation of Cuba from 1898 to 1904.

After the outbreak of World War I, musicians from Puerto Rico started to be cast in USA bands and to spresd their music. The interwar decades saw continued economic hardship in the Caribbean and the rise of employment opportunities in New York City. Latino communities in New York supported dozens of Spanish-language theatres, dance- halls, nightclubs, social clubs, and music stores, all which fostered the development of a dynamic New York Latin music scene.

Following the Cuban revolution, the United States ended diplomatic relations with Cuba in This action cut off the flow of music and musicians that had inspired the New York scene for decades. Four years later, immigration policy changes opened the door to migrations from previously excluded countries. These two events altered the course of Latin music and by the late 1960’s, rhythms such as the Dominican merengue, Colombia cumbia, and Puerto Rican plena and jibaro styles had become part of the New York music scene.

By the early 1970’s music once identified by specific forms and styles was referred to as salsa. The name may have been new, but the sound of salsa is rooted in the rich mix of cultures, races and rhythms that is New York Latin music.

SALSA INSTRUMENTS Salsa bands bring together African, Caribbean and Nuyorrican rhythms and melodies to create a dynamic "transnational" music. Here are some of the instruments featured in this tour. Piano player on Cuban television, ca 1950 Trumpet Player in New York, ca 1985 Trombonist from New York, ca 1985

Agogo Bata drums Conga drums Bongo drums Chekere Cuatro, Puerto Rico's national instrument Guitar

MAMBO Of African and European parentage, the mambo is the result of a long cross-cultural journey. Mambo, conga and bongo were originally Bantu names for musical instruments that were used in rituals and gradually became secular. Mambo means "conversation with the gods" and in Cuba designates a sacred song of the Congos, Cubans of Bantu origin.

The Temple Of Mambo By the mid-1950's mambo mania had reached fever pitch. In New York the mambo was played in a sophisticated way. The Palladium Ballroom, the famous Broadway dance-hall, soon proclaimed itself the "temple of mambo," for the city's best dancers gave mambo demonstrations there and made a reputation for their expressive use of arms, legs, head and hands.

TANGO During the "belle epoque" (1890s), the working class of the "Boca" of Buenos Aires (Argentina) invented a new rhythm, the tango. Tan-go was the name given to the drums of the African slaves, and the music was influenced by both the Cuban habanera and the local milonga. The choreography originally devised in the brothels to mimick the obscene and violent relationship between the prostitute, her pimp and a male rival eventually turned into a dance and a style of music of a pessimistic mood, permeated by a fatalistic sense of an unavoidable destiny. It was a music of sorrow accompanied by the melancholic sound of the bandoneon.

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REALIZED BY: Abbà Susanna Bellini Annalisa