Galician rumba (''rumba gallega'') belongs to those songs and dances called '' cantes de ida y vuelta'', "of departure and return", like the Habanera, that travelled back from Cuba to the Spanish motherland to establish themselves as musical genres cultivated and cherished by the Spanish population. Like the

rumba flamenca Rumba flamenca, also known as flamenco rumba or simply rumba (), is a '' palo'' (style) of flamenco music developed in Andalusia, Spain. It is known as one of the '' cantes de ida y vuelta'' (roundtrip songs), music which diverged in the new world ...

, the Galician rumba originated from a fusion of certain Cuban and Spanish elements of style. The characteristics of that new genre are similar to those of the new song-dances that appeared in the Caribbean Basin area during the 19th century, which were the result of a combination of Iberian and African elements. This new musical style has been called by Armando Rodríguez Ruidíaz the ''Rumba prototype'' and defined as follows: “That original product, which we can call the ''Rumba prototype'', was the result of a process of cultural fusion, in which certain European components, such as the lyrics, the tonal relationships (Major-Minor), the melodic and harmonic structures and the “quatrain-refrain” (copla-estribillo) form, were combined with syncopated rhythmic patterns and micro-metric fluctuations (micro time) of African origin.” Phrygian Andalusian cadence

Also like in the rumba flamenca, the melody in the rumba gallega is frequently based on the Spanish

Andalusian cadence The Andalusian cadence (diatonic phrygian tetrachord) is a term adopted from flamenco music for a chord progression comprising four chords descending stepwise – a iv–III–II–I progression with respect to the Phrygian mode or i–VII–VI� ...

, while in the background it generally utilizes one or several rhythms which are characteristic of some Cuban music genres such as the

guaracha The guaracha () is a genre of music that originated in Cuba, of rapid tempo and comic or picaresque lyrics. The word had been used in this sense at least since the late 18th and early 19th century. Guarachas were played and sung in musical thea ...

, the

rumba The term rumba may refer to a variety of unrelated music styles. Originally, "rumba" was used as a synonym for "party" in northern Cuba, and by the late 19th century it was used to denote the complex of secular music styles known as Cuban rumba ...

and the habanera.

Origin

According to Miguel Pérez Lorenzo, there are testimonies about the inclusion of the “Rumba” in the Galician bagpipe’s (gaita) repertoire since the 19th century. He also says in reference to the bagpiper from Ourense, Xoán Ferreiro: “He played, we imagine, those pieces that he heard from his father, other bagpipers, and the band… Jerónimo (father of this bagpiper, who passed away in 1940) emigrated to Cuba, where he lived until five years before his death… those years in Cuba served him to include “rumbas and “boleros” in his repertoire… which now Don Xoán plays. With the exception of the processional pieces that Don Xoán used to play; sometime in the mass and other times walking behind the “Saint” in the procession, the rest was mainly for the people to dance in the fests and ''

romería Christianity has a strong tradition of pilgrimages, both to sites relevant to the New Testament narrative (especially in the Holy Land) and to sites associated with later saints or miracles. History Christian pilgrimages were first made to s ...

s''.

Diversification and popularization

Due to its popular origin the “Galician Rumbas” are frequently attributed to unknown authors; and in a similar way as the

Muiñeira The muiñeira ( Galician: ''muiñeira'', Castilian: ''muñeira'') is a traditional dance and musical genre of Galicia (Spain). It is distinguished mainly by its expressive and lively tempo, played usually in , although some variants are perfor ...

and other traditional genres, they are named after the town or region where they were collected, like: Rumba de Eo, Rumba de Mallou, Rumba de Cerqueira, Rumba de Anxeriz or Rumba de Vergara. They are also titled after the name of the author, if it happens to be known, or after the person to whom they have been dedicated, as for example: Rumba de Juanito do Carballal, Rumba de Pucho, or Rumba Sabeliña. The introduction of the rumba in Galicia is closely related to the creation, during the first half of the 20th century, of musical groups called “charangas” o “murgas”. Those groups, differently from traditional Galician ensembles such as those comprised by tambourines or by bagpipes and percussion, included other instruments like the clarinet, the saxophone, the accordion, and the guitar, as well as an ample selection of percussion instruments. Most recently, some recordings of Rumbas gallegas in which the Cuban rhythmic component is highlighted have been produced in Galicia. We can point out, among others, a version of the “Rumba dos cinco marinheiros” by the renowned group Muxicas., where we can perceive the well known “clave cubana” rhythm in the instrumental background. We should also mention a recording of the same piece by the bagpiper

Carlos Núñez Muñoz Carlos Núñez Muñoz (born 1971) is a Spanish musician and multi-instrumentalist who plays the gaita, the traditional Galician bagpipe, Galician flute, ocarina, Irish flute, whistle and low whistle. Life and career Nuñez was born in 1971 i ...

and the legendary Irish group “

The Chieftains The Chieftains are a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous wi ...

,” accompanied by an autochthonous Cuban musical ensemble.The Chieftains. Santiago - CD. BMG Classics 1996. Track 12.

References

External links

* Rumba dos cinco marinheiros. Carlos Núñez: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAAa8304j8Q * Rumba de Vergara. Carboeiro 2010: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJ7x5Sas2R4 * Rumba de Pepe: Os Beretes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T42JiWWIBHA {{Rumba Latin music genres Dance music genres Music of Galicia