la tropical

8/8/2019 La Tropical

1/19

La

Tropical


2/19

But first, comments or questions about last weeks

film?Should Diego have stayed or was he right inleaving?

Who was the biggest hypocrite?

What will happen between Nancy and David?


3/19

SON

Son Cubano is a style of music that becamepopular in the second half ofthe 19th century in

the eastern province of Oriente. The earliestknown son dates from the late 1500s (the oldestknown son is "Son de la M Teodora", fromaboutthe 1570s in Santiago de Cuba). Itcombines the structure and elements ofSpanish cancin and the Spanish guitar withAfrican rhythms and percussion instruments ofBantu and Arara origin.


4/19

Tro Son Cubano:http://www.youtube.com/wat

ch?v=21xNplzsEig


5/19

Son was seen as the music of the

lower classesThe middle and upper classes preferred music that hadEuropean roots or influences. Danzn:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RK-pLm1TxRI

The trovadores who were inspired by light classical music,were also popular. [These are now referred to as vieja

trova to distinguish them from singers like Pablo Milans,who form the nueva trova]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8giAIno_w1c


6/19

The 3 realms of Cuban music:

music of Africanorigins, played in

secret at homeand in privateareas

coros de clave and

guag

uanc--choralgroups with African

and Europeaninfluences. Popular inthe Western Provinces

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afkL1hLi2uc&feature=fvw

legitimate

[European]musical styles


7/19

Son

Was originally rural, was broughtto the cities afterIndependence in 1898 saw mass migrations of rural families

to urban areas. These people were poorly educated, mostlyblack, and ended up doing manual labor in the cities. Theirmusic was picked up by their poor white co-workers, andthe 1910s became known as dangerous anddegenerate.

The black middle class banned son in certain areas untilthe 1940s.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGtcBrVZFAAhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eR8_3FqZOE4


8/19

Musical instruments associated with son were confiscated

and often destroyed.

bong

maracas

marmbula

The bong wasconsideredparticularlyoffensive.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIyfwScQRQc&feature=related


9/19

Montuno--call and response

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJrQum8vHxM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dafWseVsJCY&feature=fvst


10/19

Afro-Cubanism

In the 1920s-30s, an artisticmovement arose in Europetha

tattrib

uted mos

tof C

ubanculture to its African roots.

Artists like Picasso foundinspiration in African forms.Writers like Alejo Carpentier

incorporated African imageryinto their fiction. Thismovement had an Americancounterpart in the HarlemRenaissance.


11/19

Music reaped the benefits. What was once consideredmarginal if not lowlife and degenerate, was now

extolled as the epitome of Cubannational music [in the 1920s].

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhnHk9DuC34

Sonora Matancera played at Gen. Machadosbirthday party.

Son was appropriated by the Cuban intellectualswho had been living abroad [and exposed to theAfro-Cuban artistic movement] and used as an anti-Machado and anti-US expression.


12/19

Other early Cuban greats

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB2vRLEsEvM

Orquesta Aragn


13/19

AbakuD

The set of Abakua or aigo associations are secret societies for mutual help.Over a hundred ofthese associations have existed in the harbor cities of Havana,Matanzas and Cardenas as the only ones oftheir kinds in the Americas.Abakua associations hark back from the secret societies that once existed in the

Nigerian region of Calabar.


14/19

A few dance-related ceremoniesare open to the public.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0x_8SDTxQkg

Members ofthis society came to be known as nanigos, a word used to designate the streetdancers ofthe society.] Initially,the Abakua accepted only blacks as members; however, in thelate nineteenth century the admission policies ofthe society were liberalized to include mulattosand whites

The oaths of loyalty to the Abakua societys sacred objects, members, and secretknowledge taken by initiates are a lifelong pact which creates a sacred kinship amongthe members. The duties of an Abakua memberto his ritual brothers attimes surpasseven the responsibilities of friendship; so the phrase, Friendship is one thing, and the

Abakua another is often heard. One ofthe oaths made during initiation is that onewill not reveal the secrets ofthe Abakua to non-members.

Aside from its activities as a mutual-aid society,the Abakua performs rituals andceremonies, also called plantes, full oftheatricality and drama which consists ofdrumming, dancing, and chanting activities using the secret Abakua language.Knowledge ofthe chants are restricted to members.


15/19

from http//:www.afrocubaweb.com

Some observers estimate that over 70% ofthe Cubans inside Cuba are

of African descent. Both the Cuban government and analysts atthe US State

Department and the CIA used to agree on a number around 63%. In the 2002census,the proportions were reversed, which any one walking down any streetin Cuba will find absurd. Yetthese numbers are used to justify racial mixes inmany settings, such as professional schools or in the tourism business, where

the light skinned Cubans hold the preponderance. A much smaller percentage ofCubans abroad are of African descent. In Miami, some estimate that over 97% ofCubans are of Spanish origin. Atthe very least, 85% ofthem describe themselvesas being white in a recent survey. In New Jersey,there are more AfroCubansamong the Cuban exiles there.

From www.cia.gov Ethnic groups:white 65.1%, mulatto and mestizo 24.8%, black 10.1% (2002 census)

http://www.cubagob.cu/default.htm

RACE IN CUBA


16/19

http://www.france24.com/en/20090205-cuba-racism-fidel-castro-constitution-reality-black


17/19

La Tropicananight club in Havana

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vl0JQmICy5k&feature=related

http://www.havanabeforecastro.com/chapters/07-tropicana.htm


18/19

La Tropical

http://www.gonomad.com/market/0401/travelerstalescuba.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAGMhj67ryc


19/19

Watch for:

the presentation and relations between racesbetween social classes [even though there arent

supposed to be any]between genders

between genera

tions

Before you leave, write and hand in a question that I

mightuse forthe blog. Make sure you put yourname on it [counts towards participation].

la tropical

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