Introduction
Passion: what does it mean? According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, passion is defined as: “a strong and barely controllable emotion”. Humankind has expressed passion in multitudes of ways for as long as humans have possessed communication skills. Through art, science, literature, music and even politics humans have showcased passion. Passion can be either supportive or oppositional. Music has been the greatest medium for humans to express passion, due to the great range of emotions that can be realized through song. Due to the high level of passion felt in both music and politics, politically-themed music has become a marriage made in heaven.
There are untold numbers of songs and musical genres that have become rally anthems for political movements around the globe. One region in particular, due to a unique blend of passion for music and politics, has become a hotbed for politically-charged music: Cuba. The histories of music and politics in this tiny island nation are so intertwined that one cannot do any amount of research on one topic without finding information on the other. Music in Cuba has a long and rich tradition that can be traced back to Africa. Politics in Cuba also has a long and rich tradition that can be traced rearward to Spain. These traditions include a clash between two different cultures, predominately Spanish and African, that have dominated the island. Another important aspect of Cuban political history is the tradition of slavery and the fight for freedom from slaves. Due to the interlocking nature of music and politics on the island of Cuba, many political movements have been influenced by music and vice versa. Beginning with the early history of Cuban music and poli...
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I will also show how he incorporates two of the most important folk music genres into his compositions such as “Joropo” and “Merengue.” These rhythms and musical genres are also the most common used by Jorge Montilla and Venez...
Latin Jazz is a style of music that blends rhythms and percussion instruments of Cuba and the Caribbean with jazz and its fusion of European and African music. Latin jazz, also called Afro-Cuban jazz, was the culmination of the long interaction between American and Cuban musical styles. A distinctive syncopated rhythm and the Cuban habanera rhythm were endowed to American jazz music in the early 20th century. In the following decades, Latin American melodies and dance rhythms permeated the United States, while American jazz made its way into the Caribbean and Central and South America. In the 1940's the swing era expanded their repertory to include rumbas and congas. The d...
Canciones de arargue, or songs of bitterness – was the original name for the creolized form Bachata. Many closely associate Bachata with the other Caribbean styles of the African diaspora such as merengue and son. In Intro to Music Cultures of the World we were tasked with attending a world music concert. I chose to attend a Bachata concert because I already had an interest in Caribbean music. The concert was not as I had expected, but was rather intriguing and thoroughly enjoyable. In this report I hope to analyze Bachata’s roots, report on its concert style, and compare it to another piece in the genre.
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Morales, Ed. The Latin Beat: The Rhythms and Roots of Latin Music from Bossa Nova to Salsa and Beyond. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Da Capo, 2003. Print.
In 1959, the U.S. was afforded the opportunity to implement the 1953 memorandum when Fidel Castro implemented a communist government in Cuba. It is likely that the composers of the memoran...
De La Fuente, A. (2008). The new afro-cuban cultural movement and the debate on race in
African music has had a major influence on Cuban culture beginning in the early 1550’s through slave trade. Thousands of slaves were brought to Spain in the 1400’s and eventually migrated to Cuba. Since these “Ladinos” were accustomed to Spanish culture and language, they easily were able to get by in Cuba and even escape slavery. As a result, Slave owners in Cuba brought more slaves directly from Africa. In 1526, a Royal Decree allowed slaves to buy their freedom, resulting in increased interaction and ethnic mixing among Cubans and Africans. All aspects of both cultures began to blend, especially among working class Cubans and Africans. Music became a common bond between the two groups
To begin, it is necessary to understand the reality of the oppression happening in Cuba. The Cuban government constantly suppresses and terrorizes the independent artists
The country’s culture is one of its kinds. The rich history of the island is evident by the people’s customs, traditions and architecture. The Cubans are famous for their artistic involvement which includes ballet, and in popular and classical music. The lists of international awards won by the Cuban artists are long and critically acclaimed. The restoration of its historic cities and the care of its beautiful countryside are acclaimed by conservationists all over the world. Those who appreciate the Arts, colourful history, wonderful weather, good food and absolute exclusivity find Cuba hard to resist (cubaheritage.com).
Veloso, Caetano, and Barbara Einzig. Tropical Truth: A Story of Music and Revolution in Brazil. Cambridge, MA: Da Capo, 2003. Print.
The Latin American music scene is an amazingly diverse, engaging and entertaining music culture. Thomas (2011) explains, “…Latin American music has engaged in ongoing dialogue and cultural exchange that has profoundly affected music making in Europe and the United States and, more recently, in Africa and Asia as well”. This paper will be describing different aspects of the music culture from its musical features, to the historical aspect of this interesting music culture. Also, I will discuss a personal experience with Latin American music. After researching the music culture, I attended a concert performed by Boogat, an Emmy award nominated Latin American musician from Quebec who has toured all over North America. Latin American music culture
...re, Robin D, (2006) Music and Revolution: Cultural Change in Socialist Cuba. University of California Press: New York
A wise man once said “Man is only great when he acts from passion.” When you hear the word passion, the first thing that might come to your mind is something related to love, and you’re not entirely wrong. According to Merriam- Webster’s dictionary, passion is defined as a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement for something or about doing something or a strong feeling (such as anger) that causes you to act in a dangerous way. All in all, it is a strong feeling, be it happiness, sadness, anger or liberality. You can be passionate about many things such as love, sports, food, or intimacy. However, it can also mean having a strong yearning for something.
Music has played a role in society since the dawn of man. Said to be the beginning of communication in early civilization, music and dance have influenced how we think, act and treat members of our own society. Song and dance is used in rites of passage ceremonies such as births, weddings and funerals throughout the world. Jamaican and Yoruba cultures have made many contributions to our society. The uses of this music as a vehicle for political issues, values, and beliefs have been used by many musicians from different cultures. I intend to discuss the Contribution of these two contemporary cultures music and their effect on society.