Article 1. Perception
and reality
Article 2: Mambo
to salsa
Article 3: From MUSIC to
DANCE - in one easy lesson (?)
Article 4: From Mambo to Salsa
Article 1. Perception
and reality
I chose this title,
because it reflects the average beginner student, and general
public idea of what the genre is all about.. the " Flash
and Trash " of performance , and the insatiable appetite
for Spinning .
MUSIC… its origins and meaning, in relationship to dance.
The deeper origins are based on the religion of Santeria , and
a combination of folk dances such as Yambu and Orisha . But first,
lets examine its more recent roots.
Much has been written about the evolution of Mambo/Salsa, and
I would like to try and give a clearer pathway to the musical
side of things .
Its nigh impossible to give credit to all those who have contributed,
so I have selected a few names, whom I believe had a major impact
on the current status of music.
No discussion about the music can pass without the inclusion of
its core instrument, the Clave ( 2 wooden sticks ), these are
the driving force that lay down the rhythm. They are easily identified
by their " Click.. clickclick.. click.. click.. ", often
referred to phonetically, as " shave .. haircut.. 2 bits
".You may also hear this rhythm sequence included in many
Piano and Bass sections .
On the written side of music, " Son " is a time signature
( 4/6 ) that was introduced into the already pulsating rhythms
of Cuba, by Maria Montillo and her daughter from the Dominican
Republic in the 1800s . There is one other person who may supercede
her.. Teodora Gines , also via the Dominican Republic, in th early
1600s
Going back to the Clave, it is normally "struck " in
a 3/2 sequence for Salsa, but may be reversed to 2/3 for Guajira
and Montuno rhythms.
I should add, that it will not affect what you are dancing, at
the early stages of your learning experience. And you may not
even realise that the "change" has happened.
This insignificant in appearance, piece of wood, has become the
identifying driving force along with the "change" in
its appearance, within the chord structure, for the varying types
of rhythm built around the Son format, for e.g. Son Montuno, Son
Guajira, Son Guaganco etc.
The reason it is important to know the differences? They should
reflect this in our dance interpretation (more on this in later
editions). In addition to these, we also have other "rhythm"
contributors to the " mix" such as Bugaloo, Cumbia,
Pachanga and Charanga ,etc.
So who do we credit for all these paradigm shifts in music ? I
suppose we have to begin with Perez Parado who in 1940, introduced
Mambo to the States. However, it is a widely held belief, that
"Cachao " was the first to develop the rhythm in the
30s , and he is sometimes called the "Father" of Mambo
(the music , NOT the dance ). His last DVD is priceless in content.
The transition to popular dance music in the 40s and 50s was in
large part due to bands like Machito, Puente, Tito Rodriguez and
Cal Tjader, to name but a few. They began to incorporate, in many
cases, a heavy Jazz influence, which is still prominent in many
of today’s recordings (specifically in Descarga). But the
persons who are given high status in the industry for thei rmajor
talents in so many areas, are Arsenio Rodriguez and Hector Lavoe.
Their contributions to the music genre , comes second to none
.
There is so much more to write about the bands, the musicians
and the music they created, but this is only meant to be an introduction,
and a brief guideline to some of the "Giants" of the
genre. I’m sure we could fill a page with other names, and
many will have their own selections.
I have kept this article superficial ,as there are many academic
pieces that are available, and this hopefully, will give a better
understanding to the newer convertees to the genre in simpler
terms.
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Article 2: Mambo
to salsa
Looking at this from a purely social
aspect, it would be fair to say, that the A/M Studios were the
driving force behind its resurgence in the 50s. It crept into
the States in the 40s mainly in the NYC area and LA, also, the
more authentic forms were very much confined to the barrios in
NY and other Latino enclaves but never reached the masses.
The reason for the public awareness was in large part due to the
TV show in the 50s, when Arthur Murray personally, with his wife,
fronted the program. Each week a dance was performed by two of
his teachers Terry Leone and Pat Traymore from the NYC studio.
(I actually managed Terrys studio many years later .. he was also
Mrs Murrays personal teacher).
When Mambo was demonstrated on the show, it was the beginning
of a new paradigm in dance. It flooded the studios with wannabe
Mambo dancers, and they obliged.
It had attracted so much attention, that in 1961 in LA, when the
Arthur Murray Regional Medal Ball was held at the Palladium with
over 2000 attending , the band they booked was Tito Puente!
The NYC Palladium, of course, was in high gear at this time and
the only other club that to my knowledge that would compete was
Virginias in L.A, with the distinct difference between the 2 venues
(size apart) were its clientele .
NYC was in a position to attract many of the indigenous Latino
locals from the Boros, as well as the general public. But, if
memory serves me well, in LA it was the teachers in the many studios
that gave great support to the many bands that appeared on a regular
basis, such as Tito Puente, T. Rodgriguez, Cal TJader, Machito
et al.
The Crescendo on Sunset attracted a more diverse crowd due to
its location and was one of the venues that Machito played on
a regular basis, whereas Virginias, being downtown, was more of
an aficionados hangout .
There was one other club that Rocki Mari promoted, whose name
escapes me, but was always well attended .
There were several well known " characters " in the
scene at the time from the inimitable Steve Peck (who went on
to movie fame) and the likes of promoter/dancer, Rocki Mari, Natalia
,Jimmy Ramos, and the Rivera twins . And of course, the Palladium
had their luminaries in the likes of Cuban Pete and Millie and
"Killer" Joe Piro , among the countless other dancers
of that era.
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Article 3: From MUSIC to
DANCE - in one easy lesson (?)
Dance, from a partnership perspective,
has been around for several hundred years, but we need to address
approximately (timelines sometimes, are tenuous) as to exactly
when the formation of the Social style of Latin dance, became
part of the social dance mainstream.
It was in 1931, that the
first Rumba was on show in the UK, so we may deduce from that,
its origins precede that by any number of years . Rumba, also
known as Danzon, combined with Bolero (30s show style) became
the model for today's version of Mambo and Salsa.
But before we continue this
journey, lets back track... Danzon had become the nightclub dance
of choice in Cuba in the 30s and 40s, and its "sister "
the Guaracha, was a much faster version, both based upon the "Box"
step.
Also, around this time Mambo
music was being played, and the first song recorded with Mambo
as its title , was recorded by Orestes Lopez in 1938 and another
one in 1944 by Anselm Sacaras. However no formalised version of
the dance had yet emerged on the international scene.
Change was in the wind.
The name Mambo has several meanings, and one is of Congolese origin
and means "Lullaby" (hardly an apt description of today's
music!!). Another says it means "Chorus” and/or “Voices".
Literal translations often lose context in their conversion to
English though.
Around 1945/46, the time
signature of that genre had made a change from a 2/4 to a 4/4
rhythm, with poly-rhythm syncopation . As with all dance, changes
in speed and rhythm many times brings changes in the construction
of what and how we dance.
In this instance, little
did they know how monumental this change would become. It had
adopted the name of Systemo Cubano and essentially (this is where
Danzon and Bolero enter), they took the "Square" and
opened it to this format......
Forward, back, side and Back, side and Forward, with a QQS rhythm.
This was the same basic structure of Bolero, but with a major
difference in timing. Mambo on 2 for its breaks, and Bolero was,
and is, on 3 of the bar. The rhythm stayed the same.
When the franchised dance
schools of Arthur Murray took Mambo into their curriculum, they
used this basic format with one major difference, they commenced
the 1st bar (see above), and placed it as a side and backwards
direction to commence. In so doing, they had complied with a)
the rhythm, and b) the premise of the dance, which is known as
the "Call and Response" theory, emanating from the folk
type dances of Yambu and Orisha.
Mambo was now becoming a
formalized dance in many places ,but still lacking in variety
(Cubans still are notorious, for limiting variety in their dancing).
This was resolved with the implementation of Bolero and Swing
dances.
I shan’t make a list
per-se, but I would like to credit the foundational dance patterns
that still exist universally, which are The basic Mambo, Crossover
Break, Backspot turn, Cross-body-lead, and all of the " break
" type figures .
Let’s now examine
some of the "rhythms" that have become part of the genre,
that affected the way we were able to change our interpretation
of specific types of music. It’s arguable which has had
the most influence and effect, but let us look at two of the most
common.
"Son" Guajira
was originally written in a 6/8 and 3/4 time sequence . The credit
for changing the Guajira and refining to a Salon style, was a
singer from Cuba , Guillermo Portables .
The Guajira rhythm can be defined musically as having a Syncop
built "within" the bar as in 1,2, 3 and 4 . This was
and is often played at faster as well as slower tempo, and from
this, triple Mambo developed. In some cases, bands play a double
syncope by following with a 1,2, 3 , 4 and 1 and thus "joining
" 2 bars together.
It now becomes abundantly
clear how Cha Cha was developed.
The Guajira style is still danced by many Latinos, and many of
my compradre, do not consider Cha Cha Latin. The individual given
credit for Cha Cha music was Enrique Jorrin, who was a director
of the famous band Orquesta America. He recorded a song in the
early 50s "La Enganadora" and transposed the Guajira
rhythm to what we now use today. The name, incidentally, again
has several claimants, notably the sound made by the shuffling
of the feet of the "front" singers in the bands.
PART 4... The emergence
of Salsa and its development musically and dance direction.
Back to top
From Mambo to Salsa
The Mambo had a popular life span from
the 50s but it waned dramatically as other dance " fads "
appeared. The barrios, of course, maintained their abiding interest
primarily through the NYC enclaves.
The resurgence of a "new" sound began to emerge in the
very late 60s and early 70s. The many Latino and jazz musicians
in NYC began to change the direction of Mambo , musically speaking,
and created a new paradigm in the form of Salsa. Its name origins
are a little cloudy , with several contenders , but suffice it
to say that the "new " music being played and recorded,
awakened a whole new following .
The introduction of Bugaloo and Cumbia rhythms, to the already
established poly-rhythms, among others, started to make an impact
on the way we danced and interpreted the new sounds .
It became the time of experimentation in music and dance. Orchestras
from several countries began to get recognition, and their "style"
impacted many changes in the way we danced and taught.
I dont shan’t go into a lengthy discussion on the "correct"
timing for Salsa in general, but it’s sufficient to say
that the standard break timing of Mambo suddenly began to change
to "1" and "3". Many Cubans had used the "1"
for years and some still do. The music construction, although
still driven by clave had a distinctly different sound and feel.
Cumbia rhythms and Bugaloo as well as Montuno became part of the
new norm.
There are many musicians who played major roles in creating this
"shift". As we previously noted, Hector Lavoe, A. Rodriguez
along with Pacheco, were but three among many, who made significant
contributions. Three major distinct forms emerged and were being
thrust upon the public, namely Salsa Romantica, Salsa Dura and
Descarga. They have all endured to this date.
These changes brought about changes in "dance styles",
which are now firmly embedded in the culture. from L.A and N.Y
to Power 2 and Cuban, to name but a few .The origins are debatable,
but I don't find that unusual. What’s more importantly,
it seems to have defined who we are by the way we dance.
I’m a great believer in letting the music I hear define
that issue, NOT a preset rule. Music changes frequently when we
dance, and knowing and understanding those changes is the challenge
we all face.
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The author of these articles is a Fellow with the I.D.T.A. and
the U.K.A in B/room and Latin, and, a former Examiner with the
N.A.D.T.A.
