Book Description
This entertaining history of Cuba and its music begins with the collision of Spain and Africa and continues through the era of Miguelito Valdés, Arsenio Rodríguez, Benny Moré, and Pérez Prado. It offers a behind-the-scenes examination of music from a Cuban point of view, unearthing surprising, provocative connections and making the case that Cuba was fundamental to the evolution of music in the New World. The ways in which the music of black slaves transformed 16th-century Europe, how the claves appeared, and how Cuban music influenced ragtime, jazz, and rhythm and blues are revealed. Music lovers will follow this journey from Andalucía, the Congo, the Calabar, Dahomey, and Yorubaland via Cuba to Mexico, Puerto Rico, Saint-Domingue, New Orleans, New York, and Miami. The music is placed in a historical context that considers the complexities of the slave trade; Cuba's relationship to the United States; its revolutionary political traditions; the music of Santería, Palo, Abakuá, and Vodú; and much more.
Customer Reviews:
Filling a gap that I never knew.......2007-06-25
This is the finest book on the sociological basis of music I have ever read. Many good books will provide a new fact on each page or two, but I seem to learn three new bits of history on every single page of this extensive analysis of the origins of musical styles in Cuba. But this is more than about Cuba; it is about Al-Andalus/Sefarad and Renaissance Spain and the eary history of the United States, and about northwest and central African peoples, and about Renaissance Europe, and about the early history of Islam and Arabia. It is about differing social policy and its effect on the slave trade. It is about what gave New Orleans jazz the Latin tinge and makes that city a treasure. It is about the distinct origins of the polyrhythmic, polytonal structures of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian music and the recitative, glissando-embellished, monorhythmic music of the blues and later jazz. We learn about Louis Gottchalk's first use of the African drum in classical music [performed in Europe] and why such instruments were banned in England's continental colonies and the early United States since 1739. We learn how Moorish, that is, black, line dance style was once the rage of western Europeans, and led to England's Morris dances. These are among the smallest of factoids that you will encounter reading this highly readable yet scholarly book.
Because I admire and particularly enjoy multidisciplinary cultural histories, Sublette's book is a feast. His explorations are ours. You will be fascinated, and you will be delighted. The book is an education. Buy it.
El Unico.......2006-02-28
There is nothing written in English that compares to the scope and depth of this book on Cuban music. (Leymarie's Cuban Fire comes close in volume of information, but it lacks the cogent overview and insight that Sublette masterfully weaves into the details.) This is a history of Cuban music written by a musician (!) who understands the importance of credible research when defining context and cultural antecedents. Furthermore, he uses his perspective as an outsider--he is a North American--to our advantage. Coupled with his examinations of the complexity of a Cuban identity and aesthetic, our North American culture also becomes more transparent.
This is particularly true when it comes to dissecting the story that most conventional Western Hemisphere histories neglect-the profound cultural influence of West Africa. As Sublette notes, "the drum...what an African would call a drum-is conspicuously missing from European music before the sixteenth century." Was it the creolized cultures of the New World that finally gave Europeans license to return to the dance floor after centuries of Church proscription? Sublette presents a convincing case for this, while simultaneously providing an explanation for those among us who are rhythmically challenged...
Readers also benefit from the full spectrum Sublette's perspective--that of a musician who migrates comfortably between the music of the concert hall and the dance hall. "Dancing," he writes, "is an intense listening state. Dancing can be complex and it can be spiritual. African music is almost always music for dancing; and so is Cuban music, which is African music's grown-up child." No armchair scholar talks like that.
Furthermore, his writing is not of that academic ilk that is afraid to offer opinions, or reveal passions. (For starters, he states that he likes Cuban music because he "has good taste.") Nor does he shy away from connecting the dots or hazarding wide-reaching theories. He is the first author I have come across to point out that the geographical origins of the African slaves-those coming to North America from the Senegambia, those to the Caribbean from the coastal areas-largely explains the differences in the musical styles (melismatic vs. polyrhythmic) between these two regions of the Western Hemisphere. Shouldn't this information be part of our cultural literacy?
The subject of this book is huge and Sublette is certainly up to the task. (Did I mention the extensive index?) I have also found, thanks to this text, that I am listening to Cuban musicians (eg. Chano Pozo, Miguelito Valdes, Arsenio Rodriguez) with new ears. That's quite a gift. Chevere que chevere!
Quien sabe, sabe.......2005-06-12
Ned Sublette really knows his stuff. Although he quotes extensively from other authors, his own research and experience combine to make this a wonderfully solid piece of work, and one that is long overdue. Sublette takes us back to the very beginning, unravelling the potent mix of cultures and influences that have gone into what we call Cuban music today. His attention to detail will be appreciated by Cuban music afficionados, for whom many questions will be answered and mysteries revealed. Read this book, and look forward to the second volume!
I wanna dance.......2005-04-07
An incredible book, filled with anthropological data, African history, European history, but most of all Cuba and its people and its music.
As a music professor and jazz drummer I found so much information I ended buying a dozen cds to hear what Sublette was talking about. I always knew that call and response is a hallmark of African music and used to say that there has to be an African influence in the 18th century concerto with its call and response. This book explains how the African influence reached Europe through Spain. So I have been right all these years.
Sublette is great when he weaves developments in music in the context of Cuban politics. We see how American intervention led to Batista, who was overthrown by Castro, thus Castro is really a product of American intervention.
But ultimately the book is about the music and it delivers with the punch of a conga drum. Required reading for anyone and everyone interested in music.
History of And Art Clarified.......2004-10-19
I spent time in Cuba in the fifties and find the first five
chapters of this book a must read , Understanding not only music
but the corellation between Religious History and music have
opened my mind into two worlds! Once you leave the bridge the
rest of the book is a great solo, tasty and exciting !Puede Ser
Marshal Sandler Farmington Hills Mi!
Book Description
In Volume I, Tomasito reveals the time-tested conga method which he himself studied with "Changuito" and other master congueros at the ENA conservatory in Havana. Volume I starts at the absolute beginning and is designed for the person who has never touched the congas, but is also of great value to the advanced player who wishes to understand the foundation and rudiments of the approach that has allowed the ENA and the other Havana conservatories to consistently turn out so many world class congueros each year.
Volume I begins with simple exercises to develop technique and systematically works its way through rudiments and "recursos" for use in solos and fills and basic rhythm patterns such as Salsa, Cha-Cha and Bolero. These are presented using the unique Step by Step DVD Method, which enables the student to learn the patterns by watching the DVD and imitating Tomasito as he builds the patterns stroke by stroke. This, combined with a special type of notation designed to be simple for those who don't read music, results in a conga course that really works, rather than just another reference book to add to the bookshelf!
Customer Reviews:
The best conga teaching method ever.......2007-09-28
As a conga newbie, I really appreciate the way this book and DVD were laid out. Yes, it's slow, but thanks to that I have been able to learn and learn well. So, don't pay attention to Naoise O'hannain's review.
Before Tomasito's method, I tried countless of other books and vidoes and none of them taught me a thing...
Once again, if you're a beginner on congas and you're a smart person, buy this book and DVD package and you won't be disappointed. Otherwise, if you're like Naoise O'hannain, go buy something else and you'll regret it.
Good luck and peace!
Good Lessons.......2007-09-13
I am using Volume I and think these are very helpful lessons. They are to-the-point and organized and they very clearly show the correct hand positions and methods of playing onscreen. It is easy to do my practice sessions while watching the lessons. I plan to purchase Vol. II and Vol. III as well, since Vol. I is working so well for me.
Excellent Started and good for building "chops".......2007-03-30
I bought this initially after watching Tomasito play Timba on YouTube.com
I was initially disappointed because as the introductory book much of the material was familiar. However, having kept it I've discovered that the drills and exercises are great for building speed and precision. This is a very good intermediate book as well. You don't get much further that the tumbaos, but the rudimentaries and drills are great "chop builders". I recommend strongly for beginners and novices.
For the experienced conguero purchase book 2, or 3 if you are exclusively looking for Timba patterns.
Tomás Cruz a Cuban Legend.......2005-08-03
Vol. 1 starts assuming that you have never played the congas or have had any previous knowledge of how to play. I found this book and DVD very helpful even though much of it is basic, I discovered that I had learned certain movements incorrectly and was able to correct myself by viewing the DVD. You will also learn Basic exercises and rudiments that are very helpful in improving your speed. however remember that this is a 3 volume series and book number 2 and 3 are crucial to further your learning process.
It is my opinion that If you want to learn to play a Cuban instrument you should learn from a Cuban not a person who just studied in Cuba a few times. Tomas is educated and born in Havana. I highly recommend this book you can not imagine how much I have learned from it, as I play people can tell how much better I sound after using this method.
Volume I - Very dissappointing - Tedious & SLOOW.......2005-07-22
From such a master, I was supprised that anyone could make such a SLOOOW moving Tedious conga reference.
OK the basics are fine, but why 5 minutes of each hand movement and variation. not until chapter 64+ did we get to Tumbao.
This seems to be orientated at teachers or pedantic professionals.
Too boring for a beginner and improver, only the 'Recoursos 1-4 provided some relief.'
Where was the play along ?? for a bit of counterpoint. Even higly structured approaches need a bit of enjoyment.
A bit of rethink could make this very good recourso.
The menu layout could be greatly improved.
The synchronisation towards the end between sound and image on my recording was really distracting.
It was so slow moving that I would not recommend it only to the very very very patient !! or those wanting to focus on some particular problem aspect.
Alternative start with and Conga Drumming: A Beginners Guide to Playing With Time Alan Dworsky, Betsy Sanby ISBN: 0963880101 for beginner and Intermediate Conga players also Play Congas Now: The Basics & Beyond (Paperback)
by Richie Gajate-Garcia ISBN: 0769296572.
Book Description
It was to Havana what the Moulin Rouge was to Paris or the Blue Note to New York. The brightest jewel in 1950s Cuban nightlife, Tropicana was a "paradise under the stars" where you could gamble, hear the finest mambo and jazz musicians, and ogle the extravagantly risqué floorshows. Nat "King" Cole played Tropicana; so did Josephine Baker. Americans-celebrities and suburbanites both-were drawn to its kinetic sensuality and tropical setting. And Tropicana remained a uniquely Cuban institution; unlike most Havana nightclubs, it operated free from the American mob's control.
Journalist Rosa Lowinger and Ofelia Fox, widow of Tropicana's last owner, vividly portray the cultural richness and roiling social problems of pre-Revolutionary Cuba and take the reader on an intimate insider's tour of one of the world's most glamorous venues at its most brilliant moment.
Customer Reviews:
While Waiting for the Movie, read this book!.......2007-07-28
Tropicana Nights brings to life the second most famous nightclub of the 20th century, and the events of the Castro revolution. Rosa Lowinger weaves into the story just enough personal history to give context to all the larger events. Details are included when they are relevant to the story told, but the story is allowed to move along quickly, and this book is entertaining and illuminating. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to get an idea of what pre-revolutionary Havana was like, whether or not they are interested in nightclubs. My parents, who often went to Tropicana, said that the book tells it like it was. The book also includes wonderful vintage photos.
Seeing early Cuba through two women's eyes.......2007-02-20
Tropicana Nights gives the reader a sense of what life was like in Havana during the 1940s and 1950s. The Tropicana nightclub embodied the creativity and glamour of that era.
Tropicana still exists in Havana today. In the 1940s and 50s, it was a nightclub, cabaret and casino. It hosted performers such as Nat "King" Cole, Ginger Rogers and Liberace. Its audience was composed of the rich and famous, politicians and people wanting a special night out. Tropicana consistently met and raised people's expectations. The shows were legendary due to the imaginative choreography, live animals and beautiful Tropicana models.
This book is a collaboration of two women who are brought together to tell Tropicana's story. Ofelia Fox is the widow of Martin Fox who owned the Tropicana from 1950-1962. Rosa Lowinger was born in Havana but raised in Miami. As they work together on the book, some issues are raised.
Rosa and Ofelia have different views on Cuban politics. Ofelia claims that both Batista and Castro are dictators. Rosa must be sensitive about what she writes about Castro or risk being denied entry back into Cuba.
Rosa is curious about the possible Mob involvement at Tropicana. Ofelia and Martin went to Trafficante's daughter's wedding and were personally entertained by Frankie Carbo (a hit man for Bugsy Siegel in the 1930s) when they visited New York. Ofelia maintains that this was just a good business relationship. but Rosa isn't so sure. It is up to the reader to decide who is right.
There are also questions about Ofelia's relationship with her roommate (Rosa Sanchez). They have been together for more than 30 years yet when asked, Ofelia states that Rosa is a close friend but they are not a couple.
Lowinger has written a book that reads like a juicy novel. She has a great writing style, I kept turning the pages to find out what happened next. After reading the personal anecdotes and seeing the photos, I felt like I knew the various characters (the showgirls, the dancers and roulette dealers). I also enjoyed finding out what happened to everyone in recent years.
Armchair Interviews says: Come spend some time at the Tropicana and find out why it was paradise under the stars.
A Movie Waiting To Be Made!.......2006-09-16
Rosita Lowinger brings Cuba in the '40s and '50s to vibrant life in this excellent book. Anybody interested in learning about the island of Cuba should read it, because it's chock-full of historical facts. In addition, you learn all about the politics, the music, the cabaret circuit, the culture, even the Mafia connections! Rosita is an excellent writer who puts lots of "sabor" in her prose. I hope she's working on the screeplay right now. You cannot put the damn book down! It's easily the best I've read all year.
A Temple to the Goddesses of Flesh.......2006-04-03
Lowinger, Rosa and Ofelia Fox 2005 Tropicana Nights. The Life and Times of the Legendary Cuban Nightclub. Harcourt, Orlando, New York, London ISBN 0151012245
This is a very exciting and interesting book, well worth reading. Personally I found this book, "Tropicana Nights", by chance and in it my distant cousin Leonela Gonzalez.
In my recall it is Cuba in the 1950. Leonela is six years older than I, Professor of Ballet, student of Alicia Alonzo and showgirl in La Tropicana; she sings professionally. She is all curves, raven black hair, smooth skin, full lips, high cheek bones, jet eyes. She is 5 foot four and less than 120 pounds, but towers over me in her high heels. I stutter but cannot speak, so drunk on her presence I cannot talk, unable to take her extended hand, I mere give a judo bow. She is one of the goddesses of flesh.
We are family, both of us great grandchildren of Leonela Enamorado Cabrera, that brave and graceful Taina woman who was consort of the great general Calixto Garcia at the time of the fullest power of his fiery warrior strength. Grandfather was child of Leonela Enamorado's passionate war time love match; Leonela Gonzalez is fruit of the descendents of a later formal marriage.
Thus I read this book intensely, trying to better understand things past. The authors have compiled oral history and compared it to the record of scholarly and popular writings on the matter. Lowinger and Fox have struggled, as all honest authors must on books about Cuba, to eliminate propaganda. What has come of this is a beautifully detailed, well written, hypnotically fascinating and engrossing book on the Havana Nightclub "La Tropicana."
The book presents the scene and the lives the actors of that place against a background of Cuban history. And it does that with remarkable accuracy, there are a few errors: as a University of Havana student, Castro did his first killings when he belonged to the "the trigger happy" Unin Insurreccional Revolucionaria (UIR) not Masferrer's Movimiento Socialista Revolucionario (MIR). The official Cuban Communist Party had very little to do with war against Batista until the last few months, quite the contrary it frequently supported that regime by providing information on resistance groups. The presence of Tano racial mix and culture, now clearly demonstrated by DNA studies, is glossed over yet both Batista and Leonela had such ethnic roots; the word Guajiro is taken from the original Taino word.
These authors of "Tropical Nights" explain that those who visit Cuba are not welcomed to return if they write the mildest criticism of the Government. They honestly point out such details as that the nomenklatura of the Castro government, took over and keep well painted the residences of the upper class, while the residences of most of the population are crowded and in disrepair.
As the Lowinger and Fox point out, contrary to official Cuban government propaganda in the Tropicana then these goddesses were not available to the clientele, for there were enough such places in Havana. The goddesses' loves of after hours which were then private matters are clearly presented. There were Mafia gangsters there, but they fearful of losing their comfortable residence in Cuba, limited their activities to providing gambling advice and were mere toothed minnows when compared to the far more numerous and lethal Batista goons. Don't keep on reading this, go buy this book!!!!!!!
Tropicana Nights.......2006-02-05
Tropicana Nights shows the views of two Cuban women from different generations who politically disagree, but are brought together by their love for Cuban culture, particularly the Tropicana Nightclub. This book provides an insider's view on the intrigue, gambling, music and dance of a place that holds an almost mythical place in the history of Cuba.
Book Description
Arsenio Rodríguez was one of the most important Cuban musicians of the twentieth century. In this first scholarly study, ethnomusicologist David F. García examines Rodríguez's life, including the conjunto musical combo he led and the highly influential son montuno style of music he created in the 1940s. García recounts Rodríguez's battle for recognition at the height of "mambo mania" in New York City and the significance of his music in the development of salsa. With firsthand accounts from relatives and fellow musicians, Arsenio Rodríguez and the Transnational Flows of Latin Popular Music follows Rodríguez's fortunes on several continents, speculating on why he never enjoyed wide commercial success despite the importance of his music.
García focuses on the roles that race, identity, and politics played in shaping Rodríguez's music and the trajectory of his musical career. His transnational perspective has important implications for Latin American and popular music studies.
Customer Reviews:
Arsenio Rodríguez bio.......2007-06-10
The book all of us Arsenio-ologists have been waiting for, the discography and sidemen info are worth the double its sale price alone....
Great Resource and Interesting Read.......2006-11-21
What a treasure to have an English-language resource that shines light on this important figure, a man who was, and is, simultaneously revered and neglected. The source of many of salsa's most enduring innovations, Arsenio Rodriguez' contributions spanned the mambo era and found resonance when this music re-emerged later as "salsa." Garcia does a fine job of illuminating this for the reader. It should not surprise Americans, as Garcia points out, that these innovations were inspired by Arsenio's profound understanding of Cuba's African traditions. Most refreshing, however, is finding an author who also understands the importance of Arsenio's music as "music for dance." Garcia engages his reader on this point and drives home the critical relationship between Arsenio's music and the dancers, and the importance of this rapport in energizing and sustaining his innovations. Arsenio emerges in this biography as a critical voice in dispelling an entrenched notion that music for dancing cannot be serious music (I am reminded of Ned Sublette's "dancing is an intense listening state," from Cuba and its Music.) And Garcia makes this statement forcefully.
I also applaud Garcia's dissection of this musician/dancer connection--one that is enlivened by interviews with musicians and dancers. He missteps, however, in his definition of the son montuno "basic step." What he describes is more likely a "variation"--one that reflects the inventive styling and footwork of dancers responding to the push and pull of Arsenio's "clave feel." Son montuno was indeed danced using timing that Cubans call "contratiempo." Garcia's analysis of that timing, however, is simply too idiosyncratic.
Overall, this book is substantive. It presents English-language readers with another important resource in moving the discussion of Afro-Cuban music and dance (including salsa), and its West African roots, forward.
Book Description
Music and Revolution provides a dynamic introduction to the most prominent artists and musical styles that have emerged in Cuba since 1959 and to the policies that have shaped artistic life. Robin D. Moore gives readers a chronological overview of the first decades after the Cuban Revolution, documenting the many ways performance has changed and emphasizing the close links between political and cultural activity. Offering a wealth of fascinating details about music and the milieu that engendered it, the author traces the development of dance styles, nueva trova, folkloric drumming, religious traditions, and other forms. He describes how the fall of the Soviet Union has affected Cuba in material, ideological, and musical terms and considers the effect of tense international relations on culture. Most importantly, Music and Revolution chronicles how the arts have become a point of negotiation between individuals, with their unique backgrounds and interests, and official organizations. It uses music to explore how Cubans have responded to the priorities of the revolution and have created spaces for their individual concerns.
Copub: Center for Black Music Research
Book Description
In Divine Utterances, Katherine J. Hagedorn explores the enduring cultural and spiritual power of the music of Afro-Cuban Santería and the process by which it has been transformed for a secular audience. Hagedorn argues that constructions of race and gender, the politics of pre- and post-Revolutionary Cuba, the economics of tourism, and contemporary practices within Santería have contributed to a blurring of boundaries between the sacred the folkloric.
The compact disc that accompanies the book includes examples of twenty songs to the orichas, or Afro-Cuban deities, performed by prominent musicians, including Lázaro Ros, Francisco Aguabella, Alberto Villarreal, and Zenaida Armenteros.
Customer Reviews:
Extremely disappointing.......2003-06-06
It is hard to express how disappointed I was with Divine Utterances. To reiterate a previous review: lets hope that this is not the future of ethnography. The personal slant to the writing, along with seemingly pointless flowering and embellishing was quite embarassing to read. Hagedorn comes off as being very self-centered. I read this is in a seminar, and unfortunately, all anyone wanted to speak on was the confusing writing style. The content of the book was lost in the presentation. I would not recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn about Santeria or Afro-Cuban culture. I would perhaps recommend it if you are studying folkorization, or performance and wanted a supplementary reference.
Poetic ethnography with a difference.......2002-09-21
This work is one of the most remarkable works about the relationship between music , religious practice, public performance, tourist spectacle, and experimental ethnography in recent years. Hagedorn probes her own relationship to sacred and secular performance while also being supremely informed about ritual significance and historical agency. She is one of the few scholars able to articulate the subtlety of rhythmic variations and their power in the sacred and secular spheres.
Beyond her remarkable depth of knowledge regarding Santerià and the manner in which rhythm informs religious practice and its folkloricization, there is a sense of meaning beyond the specialty knowledge that she brings to bear related to her experience in this markedly "male" world. Inadventently, Hagedorn transforms this typically left-wing North American counter-cultural male reserve and respectfully gives the process of ritual and folkloricization an unparallel poetic writerly voice commensurate with the power of the experience itself. A work of art.
The CD that accompanies the book is an integral part of the book with original recordings with Alberto Villaréal and his group.
the new ethnography?.......2002-09-14
I sincerely hope this is not the new wave in ethnography. This book is a poor piece of self-indulgence, and disrepectful of the Afro-Cuban traditions that the author is apparently using to make a career.
Not superb.......2002-09-13
I'm sorry to say that I bought this book after reading that it was supposed to be "superb." Instead, I was disappointed in the lack of depth in discussing the political situation between the religious contexts and their staged touristic performances. The issue of race is very gently treated--as if blackness, authentic Afro-Cuban practice and performance is not a serious issue in religious presentations. I felt that there was a mediocre of discussion of the all-important US dollar as a motivating source for the often incomplete and inaccurate renditions of Afro-Cuban religious ceremonies to which tourists have access.
Tourism is a widely studied topic right now, for example, Kirschenblatt-Gimblett has done amazing work on the topic of museums and tourism, and this book doesn't convince me that the author has read or understands the deeply intersecting areas of economy/tourism/voyeurism/performance studies/cultural theory and race.
Instead, I can recommend Robin Moore's book on the history of blackness and the political struggles involved in race relations and feel that Moore's book, although it sidesteps religion and the production of religion in Cuba, also gives a badly-needed history of the racism and production of black culture in Cuba from the US occupation until the present day embargo. This book by Hagedorn, while being personally reflective, doesn't problematize race or the economics of these musicians in a way that highlights the history of race relations/blackness or the present political situation.
The book Afro-Cuban Voices also I would recommend as "superb," as it is a compilation of actual interviews with Cubans who struggle to define their race inside the present socialist society and in light of the revolution and US cultural imperialism.
I'm sorry to see that the scholarship of music in Cuba is so superficially related to the actual everyday struggles of the people. There is so much good work now being done on tourism (especially in South Asian contexts) that to disregard these authors and their contributions is a disservice to the study of Caribbean contexts and tourism.
Ritual, Rhythm, and Tradition in Cuban Santeria.......2002-09-12
Review of
"Divine Utterances: The Transformation of
Memory in Afro-Cuban Performance
This is an exceptionally well-researched and well-argued monograph. The author examines the complex relationship between the ritual ceremonies, rhythms, and possession performances of the Afro-Cuban Santería religion and the theatrical performance of Santería ceremonies, music, and possession by way of the state sponsored Conjunto Folklorico Nacional and other theatrical troupes.
.
The book is a highly original work in which the authors visit a "busy intersection" where the webs that both unite and separate "authentic" sacred performance and theatrical representations of Santería are dissected against the background of two other dualities: the centuries long dialectic between race relations and Afro-Cuban religious practice in the island, and the seemingly antithetical policy of an officially religion-unfriendly socialist government that relies on the Santería religion as a means to attract capitalist tourist dollars to the island. Hagedorn's book constitutes an in-depth study of the Santeria religion. At the same times it presents an analysis of how two types of performances, one grounded on everyday religious practice, the other a theatrical representation of those religious practices, are connected, disconnected, and mutually inform each other.
As the author describes, this situation gives rise to a wide variety of paradoxical occurrences. For example, while one would assume the theatrical, non-sacred, representations of Santería themes would be the locus and focus of tourist interest, it turns out that tourists appear to be just, or even more interested, in watching and participating in genuine, non-theatrical, Santeria rituals. On the other hand, while the theatrical representations are not supposed to be "real," sometimes local Santeria believers in attendance at stylized performances geared to tourists become possessed by the deities of Santeria, much as they might have in a genuine ritual.
Distinguishing everyday popular Santeria drumming and dancing from stylized theatrical presentations of it, is not a simple matter. More often than not the musicians, dancers and other participants in the Folklorico shows are themselves leading active believers and musicians of the Santeria religion. Religious practicioners take an active role in the construction of the theatrical presentations which are supposed to be as "real" as possible. In this sense the Cuban Folklorico differs from other similar ensembles (e.g. Mexico's famed Conjunto Folklorico) in which there is little, if any connection between troupe members and traditional practitioners of various cultures represented dances and rituals.
One of the most impressive aspects of this book is the way in which the author presents her findings. The manuscript is written in a way that allows the reader to accompany the author in the voyage of discovery. Rather than presenting us with the "data" obtained in painstaking field work, we follow her as the data is obtained, observe her initial situation as an outsider looking in, and are witnesses to her slow becoming of an insider.
The book is accompanied by a CD which is very much part of the story. The music in the accompanying CD is compelling and carefully selected to illustrate points made in the text. There are also numerous photographs that cover the main themes, persons, venues and instruments discussed in the manuscript. Each chapter is framed by short personal narratives which the author uses to communicate relevant information about Santeria religious practices and the author's own relation to them. On the whole the manuscript is an impressive production of the highest research as well as literary value, with excellent aural and visual aids.
I believe this work will stand out as the most thorough exploration of Santeria music performance, both religious and theatrical, in academic literature. Studies in English do not have either the scope, i.e. brief essays by Duany, Mason and a few others; or the the depth, e.g. the otherwise excellent work by Cornelius, of Hagedorn's book. Her work essentially continues in terms of scope, detail and analytical value the foundational work done in Cuba before l950 by Fernando Ortiz and Rómulo Lachatañeré.
Book Description
The Caribbean ranks among the earliest and most completely globalized regions in the world. From the first moment Europeans set foot on the islands to the present, products, people, and ideas have made their way back and forth between the region and other parts of the globe with unequal but inexorable force. An inventory of some of these unprecedented multidirectional exchanges, this volume provides a measure of, as well as a model for, new scholarship on globalization in the region.
Ten essays by leading scholars in the field of Caribbean studies identify and illuminate important social and cultural aspects of the region as it seeks to maintain its own identity against the unrelenting pressures of globalization. These essays examine cultural phenomena in their creolized forms--from sports and religion to music and drink--as well as the Caribbean manifestations of more universal trends--from racial inequality and feminist activism to indebtedness and economic uncertainty. Throughout, the volume points to the contending forces of homogeneity and differentiation that define globalization and highlights the growing agency of the Caribbean peoples in the modern world.
Average customer rating:
- Not what I expected.
- Worthwhile introduction to Cuban Tres
|
El Tres Cubano (Book & CD)
Jon Griffin
Manufacturer: Amsco Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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Similar Items:
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Mel Bay Tres Guitar Method
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Mel Bay's Fun With Cuban Tres
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Salsa and Afro Cuban Montunos for Guitar
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Son Mundano
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Pa' los Treseros
ASIN: 0825633249
Release Date: 2006-09-15 |
Customer Reviews:
Not what I expected........2007-10-02
As a budding Tresero I found the history and differences in the various genres of Cuban music to be informative. As someone who has gone through various other Tres method books, I found this book to be more of a historical exploration and less of a book of study. In several cases, the position and sound of some of the exercises in the CD does not match the Tab notation, which in turn does not match the written notation (at times I wonder if the tres being played is using an alternate tuning, which exists but isn't covered in this book). Furthermore, there are some pieces in this book that indicate chords which are fingered, where as the tres is meant to be used with a pick and not fingers. If it were not for the presentation of the history of this instrument and the various samples of cuban riffs, this book wouldn't be worth the four stars. I recommend this book for anyone who has had some familiarity with the instrument and wants to broaden his/her understanding of Cuban music and its various genres.
Worthwhile introduction to Cuban Tres.......2006-11-11
I generally dislike "introductory" instructional material because the samples and exercises are usually very simple 2 to 4 bar examples of very simple music. However because Cuban music styles revolve primarily around different rhythm figures, it doesn't take many bars to set out examples of different song styles. This book provides a long written introduction about different Cuban styles and then moves into the usual C chord, G Chord exapmles for the beginner, which most people can simply skip. The great thing about this book, and why I rate it slightly better than Nelson Gonzalez' tres method (the usual Mel Bay corporate product treatment detracts from Nelson's method IMHO), is that Jon Griffin sets forth examples of song styles , some of which I've heard or seen written, but were never explained at all. Its very hard to get a clear explanantion of Cuban folk music, and the styles discussed here provide some much needed enlightenment. The more obscure styles include changui, nengon, kiriba, sucu sucu, punto and tonada. For these examples alone I highly recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in Cuban folk music.
Book Description
Native Americans supplied the maracas. African slaves brought drums and ritual music, and Spaniards brought guitars, brass instruments, and clarinets along with European ballroom dancing. The advent of blues and jazz gave new forms to styles of songs, notably feeling songs, which joined the more traditional styles of trova and bolero. Cuban culture represents a convergence of these diverse backgrounds, and the musical heritage presented in this book reflects these traditions as well. In colonial times, African ritual sounds mixed with Catholic liturgies and brass bands of the Spanish military academies. Ballroom dances, including French music from Haiti popular in 18th-century Havana society, existed side by side with the cabildos (guilds and carnival clubs) and the plantations. The son, considered the expression of Cuban musical identity, had its origins in a rural setting in which African slaves and small farmers from Andalusia worked and played music together, developing many variations over the years, including big band music. Cuban music is now experiencing a major renaissance, and is enjoyed throughout the world.
Customer Reviews:
two reviews from leading journals.......2006-05-09
Hispanic American Historical Review August 2003
Roy's book is an introduction to Cuban music, stressing its deep historical background, concentrating on a few crucial artists, and drawing a line at the borders of Cuba itself. Roy's strength lies in her explanation of musical structure and in the excerpts she provides from interviews with Cuban musicians, ranging from vaunted composers to local buskers. She provides an insightful description of the major typologies of rumba, ably sketching their common threads and linking their differences to contextual factors such as contrasting practices of urban and rural leisure. In addition, in letting the musicians speak for themselves, she comes closest to translating both the joy and the intricacy of the music. She transcribes the words of a Havana rumbero, who recalls unlocking the secret of a local refrain, "Rabo de mono amarra a Ramon [the monkey's tale wraps up Ramon]" (p.56). The phrase, nearly an aural palindrome, reveals the foundational influence of both medieval Spanish verse, with its complex verbal doublings, and central African tales of trickster deities in the guise of animals. The requisite musical response, discovered by the rumbero in the midst of improvisation-"Por que rabo de mono no me amarra a mi? (Why doesn't the monkey's tail wrap up me?)"-adds the elements of thinly veiled sexuality and gamesmanship, completing the rumba palette. On one hand, Roy asserts that in the early decades of the twentieth century in Cuba, "everything African was considered by the dominant elite to be lowly, vulgar and uncultured" (p. 30). But she provides ample evidence of Cuban elites of the period enjoying Afro-Cuban music, in contexts ranging from carnival street processions to their own salons and concert halls. Exploring the coexistence of a rhetoric of disdain and repression with everyday practices of sponsorship and participation would help to illuminate not only Cuban music but also the knotty issues of race on the island.
~New West Indian Guide
The recent deaths of singers Celia Cruz, also known as La Guarachera de Oriente, and Maximo Francisco Repilado Mufioz, better known as Compay Segundo in the Buena Vista Social Club film, point to the end of a cultural period in the history of Cuban music. Although together they represent the "commercial Golden Age" of Cuban music before the 1959 revolution, individually they represent antagonistic political views regarding the future of their Caribbean nation and their musical expressions. Until his death, Compay Segundo toured the world as a cultural ambassador of the Cuban government, while Celia Cruz joined the Miami-based Cuban exile movement becoming its spokeswoman in the popular music field. Therefore, the following question remains: apart from creating the musical genres songo and timba, what has the Cuban Revolution accomplished in terms of musical evolution?
This is precisely one of the strong points of this English edition of Maya Roy's Cuban Music (translated from the French by Denise Asfar and Gabriel Asfar). Politically objective, devoid of racial and class prejudices, and written in clear and simple language, the book reviews the history of Cuban music from its sixteenth-century origins to the present, including Amerindian, African, and Spanish influences in the formation of a national Cuban music at the end of the nineteenth century. A brief look at its table of contents indicates that Roy employs a modern approach, beginning with the social significance of music and following with brief descriptions of their musical characteristics and typical instrumentation. Her information and analysis is based on personal interviews with musicians and modern musico-logical and historical studies by Cuban scholars; Alejo Carpentier, Fernando Ortiz, Leonardo Acosta, Maria Teresa Linares are among those she cites most frequently. No wonder Juan Flores (professor at Hunter College in the City University of New York and author of many books and articles, including From Bomba to Hip-Hop [2000]) calls it, in the book's preface, "the best survey of Cuban music available."
The book is divided into nine chapters with a complete, up-to-date bibliography of primary sources and a selected discography of Cuban music. It also includes a handy glossary of terms.
Roy establishes her theoretical framework in the introduction. The study of Cuban music evolves from the study of the general history of the island, "a history marked by colonization, the almost complete eradication of its indigenous peoples and slavery." The next eight chapters are dedicated to the description of the different musical genres, styles, and forms, their typical instrumentation, and their musical history, always rooted on the historical, economic, political, and cultural history of Cuba. These are: ritual music, rumba, punto y tonadas, danzon, three variants of The Song (trova, bolero, and "Feeling"), and the national music known internationally as son, which has spread to the whole Caribbean region. The important influence of French-Haitian music in the formation of national forms and the development of the famous rhythmic pattern that identified the Cuban national forms known by specialists as the cinquillo cubano are also included. Chapter 8 is dedicated to a description of the history of music in Cuba since the 1959 revolution and the emergence of two new musical forms: songo and timba. It also contains an excellent description and an objective analysis of the present Cuban government's policies regarding all aspects of musical phenomena (creation, production, and distribution) and its continuous support of popular and classical music research and education. The last chapter deals with the disjunction of two traditions in Cuban music: music before the Revolution, exemplified by the Buena Vista Social Club, and music after the Revolution, mainly songo and timba. Roy concludes in a conciliatory tone:
it is becoming clear that the call for reconciliation between Cubans on the island and those outside, which is clearly transmitted through the music, is in fact being heard. For music, no matter where it originates, has neither borders nor color, as long as it is good music and comes from the heart - and this, without question, is true of the vast majority of Cuban musical expressions. (p. 204)
We have to thank the Office of the French Ministry of Culture for sponsoring the translation of this excellent book. I would also recommend a Spanish translation of the book for the benefit of Hispanophone scholars, students, and music lovers.
A packed history of Cuba's musical heritage.......2002-11-08
Ably translated into English by Denise Asfar and Gabriel Asfar, Cuban Music: From Son And Rumba To The Buena Vista Social Club And Timaba Cubana by Cuban music expert Maya Roy is an information packed history of Cuba's musical heritage. Individual chapters address ritual music, the rumba, "carnival" celebration music, music since the revolution, and a great deal more in this broad-reaching, nicely organized survey of the unique and lively musical voice of a nation. A superb addition to any personal or academic "World Music History" reference collection or supplemental reading list, Maya Roy's Cuban Music is also available in hardcover (1558762817...).
Customer Reviews:
Great Guide in Your Pocket.......2005-10-01
Plilip Sweeny takes us on a journey through Cuba's rich musical heritage. In this compact edition, the reader is introduced to the major musical elements and artists that contributed to the development of Cuba's contemporary music culture. In addition, this booklet is a great guide to the recordings that capture Cuba's musical traditions of Rumba, Son, Bolero, Trova, and the music that emerged throughout the 20th century.
This is guide is a must have for the enthusiast of Cuban music.
This Book Fills in the Gaps.......2004-09-29
This Rough Guide packs far more information in its pocket sized format than most of the other currently available full-sized books on the topic of Cuban Jazz. Most other books on the topic would have you think that Cuban music began with Desi Arnaz and ended with the now graying artists featured in Buena Vista Social Club. This Rough Guide discusses Son, Bolero, Mambo and other musical styles, describing their origin and the (not widely known) artists who first popularized them. And ... it picks up with the new generation of musicians that bring that work current. I used the book's comprehensive descriptions (together with Amazon's "Listen to Samples" features) -- to build a broad collection that begins at the beginning and ends at the end.
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