Music of Puerto Rico

The Puerto Rican Bomba originated from the coastal area of Puerto Rico, near the sugar mills where the highest concentrations of African descendants were located during theslavery period. It emerged hundreds of years ago as the result of the cultural fusion between Indigenous, Europeans and Africans cultures. The Bomba incorporates a tremendous richness of rhythmic variations and dance steps.  The music is played with drums called "barriles" (Spanish for barrels) or "bombas", the word which gives the name to this music genre. The instruments that are used to play Bomba are: at least two drums or more, the "cuas" (two wooden sticks that hit the drum on the side marking the beat or clave), and one gourd or "maraca", which is often played by the singer. The objective of the dancer is to execute a sequence of "piquetes" (improvised steps) to the beat of the rhythm. One or more drums that plays a constant beat or musical pattern is called the "Buleador" drum. The drum that marks the steps that the dancer improvises is called "Primo" or "Subidor" drum and is the drum that establishes a dialogue between the "prima" drummer player and the solo dancer. There are different styles and rhythms of bomba throughout the coastal regions of Puerto Rico. The rhythms most commonly known are; sicá, holandé, yubá, leró, and cuembé. The beat of the bomba rhythm is executed with an energetic and aggressive dynamic resulting in an impressive controversy of dance and drum. The bomba rhythm and style from the northeastern town of Loiza, Puerto Rico is best known for maintaining its original roots which are directly traceable to West Africa.

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