Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
» El Gran Combo De Puerto Rico: 'No Hay Cama Pa' Tanta Gente,' from
Nuestra
Musica
(1971)
» Ismael Marinda: 'Se Casa La Rumba,' from A
bran Paso!
(1972)
» Eddie Palmieri: 'Nunca Contigo,' from
The Sun of Latin Music
(1973)
» Fania All-Stars: 'Ella Fue (She Was the One),' from
Rhythm Machine
(1977)
» Frankie Ruiz: 'Me Dejo,' from
Mas Grande Que Nunca
(1989)
» Marvin Santiago: 'Fuego A La Jicotea,' from
Fuego A La Jicotea
(1991)
» Vico C: 'Calla,' from
Aquel Que Había Muetro
(1998)
» Yuri Buenaventura: 'Salsa,' from
Yo Soy
(2000)
» Tego Calderon: 'Guasa, Guasa,' from
Abayarde
(2003)
» Daddy Yankee: 'Gasolina,' from
Barrio Fino
(2004)
» Tito el ambino: 'El Tra,' from
It
'
s My Time
(2007)
» Don Chezina: 'Songorocosongo,' from
Tributo Urbano A Hector Lavoe
(2008)
» Calle 13: 'No Hay Nadie Como Tú,' from
Los de Atrás Vienen Conmigo
(2009)
» Kany Garcia: 'Feliz,' from
Boleto De Entrada
(2009)
» Cultura Profética: 'Baja La Tension,' from
La Dulzura
(2010)
Bomba y Plena
The bewildering conflux of traditions that collide in Puerto Rican music can be seen in the
earliest popular music on the island,
bomba y plena,
two distinct yet often associated types
of folk music. With origins in European, African and native Caribbean cultures, this is the
basis for many of the sounds still associated with Puerto Rico and, like salsa, a musical
form inexorably tied with dance.
Music & Dance in Puerto Rico from the Age of Columbus to Modern Times
by Donald and Annie Thompson is a simple
timeline of music and dance in Puerto Rico that has great information on the origins of mambo,
son,
salsa and more.
The most directly African in origin is the
bomba,
a music developed by West and
Central African slaves who worked on sugar plantations. A typical
bomba
ensemble in-
cluded drums made from rum barrels and goatskin,
palitos
or
cuás
(wooden sticks that are
hit together or on other wooden surfaces), maracas and sometimes a
güiro
. In the oldest
forms (documented as early as the 1680s), dancers led the band, furiously competing with
each other and the percussionists in an increasingly frenzied physical and rhythmic display.
The tunes ended when either dancer or drummer became too exhausted to continue. Loíza
Aldea, on the northeast coast, claims
bomba
as its invention, and the streets rumble with it
throughout summer, particularly during the Fiesta de Santiago, its festival for St James the
