Several styles of the traditional music of

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

, such as

salsa Salsa most often refers to: * Salsa (Mexican cuisine), a variety of sauces used as condiments * Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music * Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music Salsa or SALSA may also refer to: A ...

and merengue, are common to its

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

neighbors. Perhaps the most typical Venezuelan music is

joropo The joropo is a musical style resembling the fandango, and an accompanying dance. It originated in Venezuela and is also present in the eastern Colombian plains. It has African, Native South American, and European influences. There are differe ...

, a rural form which originated in the

llanos The Llanos (Spanish ''Los Llanos'', "The Plains"; ) is a vast tropical grassland plain situated to the east of the Andes in Colombia and Venezuela, in northwestern South America. It is an ecoregion of the tropical and subtropical grasslands, sav ...

, or plains.

Genres

Joropo

Joropo was developed by creative artists such as

Juan Vicente Torrealba Juan Vicente Torrealba (20 February 1917 – 2 May 2019) was a Venezuelan harpist and composer of popular music. In 1947 he founded the group Los Torrealberos with his brother Arturo and his son Santana, playing with passion and rich nuances the ...

Ignacio Figueredo Ignacio Ventura Figueredo (July 31, 1899, in Algarrobito, Apure – September 3, 1995, in San Fernando de Apure), was a Venezuelan folk musician and harpist. See also International Jose Guillermo Carrillo Foundation*Venezuela *Venezuelan m ...

Augusto Bracca Augusto Bracca (23 April 1918 – 25 December 2012) was a Venezuelan folk composer. Biography Bracca was born in Trinidad de Orichuna, Apure. In addition to his activity as a composer, he became a singer, through the help of Cándido Herrer ...

, Genaro Prieto, Eneas Perdomo and Angel Custodio Loyola, who helped to popularize the music throughout the country. Since then a slick, contemporary form of pop-llanera has developed which has earned the scorn of some purists who perceive it as stale and watered-down. Some singers, such as Adilia Castillo,

Lorenzo Herrera Lorenzo Esteban Herrera (August 2, 1896 – 1960) is a Venezuelan singer and composer of the first half of the 20th century. Sources *Based on ''Guillermo Ramos Flamerich'' about the life of Lorenzo Herrera External links Lorenzo Herrera recor ...

Simon Diaz Simon may refer to: People * Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon * Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon * Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genu ...

, Mario Suarez,

Edith Salcedo Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English words ēad, meaning 'riches or blessed', and is in common usage in this form in English, German, many Scandinavian languages and Dutch. Its French form is Édith. Contractions and vari ...

, Magdalena Sanchez, Rafael Montaño,

Reyna Lucero Reyna may refer to: *Rinə, a village in Azerbaijan *Estadio Víctor Manuel Reyna, Mexican football stadium * Spanish ship ''Reyna'' (1743), Spanish warship *Reyna (musical group), a Milwaukee-based pop duo Given name *Reyna Gallegos, Mexican wres ...

Cristina Maica Cristina is a female given name, and it is also a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name *Cristina (daughter of Edward the Exile), 11th-century English princess *Cristina (singer), Cristina Monet-Palaci (1956–2020), American s ...

José Catire Carpio José Catire Carpio, (born José Algimiro Carpio Velásquez; December 19, 1940 - June 26, 2006), was a Venezuelan llanero singer. See also *Joropo *Venezuela *Venezuelan music Several styles of the traditional music of Venezuela, such as sals ...

, Cristobal Jimenez, Juan de los Santos Contreras (

El Carrao de Palmarito Juan de los Santos Contreras; April 7, 1928 – December 10, 2002), was a Venezuelan singer. He was a llanero, specialising in the music of the Orinoco floodplains. He was better known by his stage name El Carrao de Palmarito which identifies hi ...

) and

Reynaldo Armas Reinaldo Armas Enguaima (born August 4, 1953), better known as Reynaldo Armas, is a Venezuelan llanero singer and composer. Discography * La inspiración del poeta * Cantor, poeta y pintor * A usted * No hay mal que dure 100 años * Todo u ...

have maintained a huge following over the years. In a similar vein, there is also neo-folklore, which takes traditional music and arranges it in an electronic style.

Folk

Another very popular music in Venezuela is the ''

Gaita Zuliana Gaita zuliana (often simply called "gaita") is a style of Venezuelan folk music (and dance) from Maracaibo, Zulia State. According to Joan Coromines, it may come from the word "''gaits''," the Gothic word for "goat", which is the skin generally us ...

''. This genre originated from the region of Zulia State and is very popular during the Christmas season. The gaita united to the

Aguinaldo A thirteenth salary, or end-of-year bonus, is an extra payment given to employees at the end of December. Although the amount of the payment depends on a number of factors, it usually matches an employee's monthly salary and can be paid in o ...

, conforms the national representation of the Venezuelan Christmas. In the east, the malagueña, punto and

galerón The galerón are two genres of Venezuelan typical song. The Eastern galerón is sung in improvised ten-line stanzas. Generally, it is accompanied by mandolin, cuatro, and guitar. It is normally played in the Cruz de Mayo celebrations, the improvis ...

accompanies the ''velorios de cruz de mayo'', (religious tradition, that is celebrated on 3 May in honor to the Christian cross). In the Venezuelan Andes, the

Venezuelan bambuco The Venezuelan bambuco is a musical genre is typical of the Andean region of Venezuela. It is also found in the States of Zulia, Bolívar, Lara and in the Capital District (Caracas). The instruments typically used are piano, bass and guitar, and ...

is a local variation of the bambuco. Other forms include

polo Polo is a ball game played on horseback, a traditional field sport and one of the world's oldest known team sports. The game is played by two opposing teams with the objective of scoring using a long-handled wooden mallet to hit a small hard ...

and the

Venezuelan waltz The Venezuelan waltz is a hall dance and accompanying musical genre that was popularized in 19th-century Venezuela. The two main types of waltz were the hall waltz and the popular waltz. The former was typically performed on piano. Key musicia ...

. The Quinteto Contrapunto, founded by

Rafael Suárez Rafael Suárez (born 23 March 1972) is a Venezuelan Olympian fencing, fencer and USA International Team fencing, fencer. He competed in the individual and team foil (fencing), foil events at the 1996 Summer Olympics and individual at the 2000 ...

and

Aida Navarro Aida Navarro (born October 17, 1937), is a Venezuelan mezzo-soprano, born in Caracas. She studied lyric singing in Venezuela, The U.S. and in Vienna, Austria. She excelled in many opera and chamber music presentations in Europe and Latin Americ ...

, was a celebrated Venezuelan vocal quintet which reached nationwide and international celebrity in the early 1960s, and was very active for about a decade. Other forms of Venezuelan folk music are tensively recorded and researched due to the work of

Caracas Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...

-based

Fundación Bigott Bigott Foundation ( es, link=no, Fundación Bigott) is a private institution in Caracas, Venezuela Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of th ...

. African-derived

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

(including multiple rhythms, such as sangueo, fulia, parranda and

tamborera Tamborera is a genre of Panamanian folk music. It is a mixture of Panamanian Tamborito and Cuban Danzón, created by the musician Ricardo Fabrega during the first half of the twentieth century. History of the Tamborera The Tamborera was created b ...

) is perhaps the best documented musical form. Fundacion Bigott has also produced groups such

Un Solo Pueblo The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

, Huracán de Fuego and Grupo Madera. These more experimental fusion artists combine rumba, Latin jazz,

, Venezuelan traditional chants and other forms of

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

n music.Then there is also the genre commonly known as "Onda Nueva" (New Wave), which is a combination of joropo and jazz music, with influences from the Brazilian

Bossa Nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...

. The genre was introduced by

Aldemaro Romero Aldemaro Romero (March 12, 1928 – September 15, 2007) was a Venezuelan pianist, composer, arranger and orchestral conductor. He was born in Valencia, Carabobo State. Biography Romero was a prolific composer, creating a wide range of music, suc ...

with a special contribution by famed drummer and timpanist Frank Hernandez, nicknamed "El Pavo" (The Peacock) by employing a very peculiar drum beat. The term was coined by jazz analyst

Jacques Braunstein Jacques Braunstein (August 30, 1931 – November 27, 2009) was a Venezuelan musician, economist, publicist and disc jockey. A native of Bucharest, Romania, Braunstein studied violin at age six and later, at age thirteen, took up the double ba ...

after having been shown a copy of Romero's earliest composition called "Araguita", (originally to be used as jingle material), which Braunstein described as "something of a new wave". Onda Nueva music was heralded as the Venezuelan

with a very particular seal.

Caribbean

Venezuelan

calypso music Calypso is a style of Caribbean music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago during the early to the mid-19th century and spread to the rest of the Caribbean Antilles and Venezuela by the mid-20th century. Its rhythms can be traced back to We ...

(including Calypso de El Callao), imported from

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

in the 1880s by immigrants arriving during a

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Z ...

, has its own distinctive rhythms and lyrical style. Another imported genre is

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

n-American

, which has produced several domestic superstars, including

Oscar D'Leon Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology), ...

. Dominican merengue, Cuban and Colombian Latin pop acts such as Billo's Caracas Boys, the Porfi Jiménez Orchestra and

Los Melódicos Los Melódicos is a Latin music, Latin dance band from Venezuela which plays a mix of tropical rhythms. The orchestra was assembled by Billo Frómeta in Caracas in July 1958. They made their debut through a local radio station on July 15, 1960. F ...

Pop and rock

Pop and rock music are very popular too, and several bands have had considerable success over the years. Venezuelan pop musicians such as Guillermo Davila, Ricardo Montaner, Kiara, Karina, Los Chamos, Urbanda, Uff, José Luis Rodríguez "El Puma", Yordano, Franco DeVita, and

Ilan Chester Ilan Chester (born Ilan Czenstochowski) is a celebrated Venezuelan musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. Born in Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel in 1952, to Ashkenazi parents, Ilan emigrated to Venezuela in 1953. Biography 2010 award winnin ...

have gained popularity in other Latin American countries. On the other hand, same history for many well-known bands like Devendra Banhart (

Naturalismo Psychedelic folk (sometimes acid folk or freak folk) is a loosely defined form of psychedelia that originated in the 1960s. It retains the largely acoustic instrumentation of folk, but adds musical elements common to psychedelic music. Charact ...

), Resistencia, Los Amigos Invisibles ( Acid Jazz), Arkangel founded by

Paul Gilmann Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

and

Freddy Marshall Freddy Marshall, born in Caracas, Venezuela (November 7, 1959), is a musician and songwriter specializing in the genre known as Heavy Metal. He is a founding member of Power Age and Arkangel, two of the most legendary and successful bands in ...

, Malanga, Desorden Publico (

Ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

Pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

), King Chango (

Latin American music The music of Latin America refers to music originating from Latin America, namely the Romance-speaking regions of the Americas south of the United States. Latin American music also incorporates African music from enslaved African people who were ...

), Culto oculto ( Experimental/

Rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

), Caramelos de Cianuro (

Mikel Erentxun Mikel Erentxun (born 23 February 1965) is a Venezuelan-born Spanish rock musician of Basque heritage. Formerly with the group Duncan Dhu, he started his solo career in 1992. He has released 16 albums as a solo artist and has covered The Smith ...

(

), Candy 66, Tan Frío El Verano, La Vida Bohème and the now extinct but influential groups Sentimiento Muerto (

Post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

), Zapato 3 (

), and Dermis Tatú (

Electronic music

In the late 1960s and early 1970s a few Venezuelan artists began experimenting with sounds, using emerging electronic equipment that was being produced. Artists like

Vytas Brenner Vytas Brenner (19 September 1946 – 18 March 2004) was a German-born Venezuelan musician, keyboardist, guitarist and composer. Biography He was born in Tübingen, Germany, but his family migrated to Venezuela in 1949 when he was 2 years old. Hi ...

an
Grupo C.I.M.
used Moog style synthesizers and effects to embrace the shift in new sounds. Alfredo del Mónaco, who founded the Venezuelan branch of

ISCM The International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM) is a music organization that promotes contemporary classical music. The organization was established in Salzburg in 1922 as Internationale Gesellschaft für Neue Musik (IGNM) following the ...

, is considered the pioneer in electronic music in Venezuela having released ''Estudio electrónico I'' para cinta in 1968. Jose Enrique Sarabia also known as "Chelique," who was already internationally known for producing songs since the late 50s like "Ansiedad," helped by other gifted musicians, recorded and released a record in 1971 through a private press titled: 4 ''Fases del Cuatro - Música Venezolana desarrollada Electrónicamente por Chelique Sarabia (4 Phases of Four - Venezuelan Music Electronically Developed by Chelique Sarabia)''. In 1973, when exclusivity of the private contract ended, Chelique commercially released the record under a different title: ''Revolución "Electrónica" en Música Venezolana (Electronic Revolution in Venezuelan Music)''. ''Revolución "Electrónica" en Música Venezolana'' is notable for being one of the earliest electronic records in Venezuela and is considered a trailblazing album for electronic music in Latin America. In the late 1990s a very strong electronic music movement spread through the country. Several big multimedia festivals took place, such as "Caracas No Duerme," "AX," "Petaquire," and "Mare Nostrum." These events combined music with the video and performance art of Venezuelan artists such as Luis Poleo, Frank Wow, and Sony. The main bands/DJ's of this era are

Ojo Fatuo Ojo may refer to: *Ōjō, a Japanese Buddhist term referring to rebirth in the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha *Ojo, a curious red bear cub who has a wild imagination and is good friends with Treelo on ''Bear in the Big Blue House'' * ''Ojo'' (comi ...

, DJ Oddo and

DJ Wyz A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile D ...

. From 2000 until present, a lot of Venezuelan artists have made a strong movement into different underground music styles. The most significant ones are: Arca ( experimental/

industrial Industrial may refer to: Industry * Industrial archaeology, the study of the history of the industry * Industrial engineering, engineering dealing with the optimization of complex industrial processes or systems * Industrial city, a city dominate ...

) Masseratti 2lts ( downtempo),

La Vida Boheme LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

(

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

), Lmca ( Electronic/

Synthpop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...

/ experimental), Viniloversus (

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

), KP-9000 (

trip hop Trip hop (sometimes used synonymously with "downtempo") is a musical genre that originated in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom, especially Bristol. It has been described as a psychedelic music, psychedelic fusion of hip hop music, hip hop ...

), Cardopusher (

breakcore Breakcore is a style and microgenre of electronic dance music that emerged from jungle, hardcore, and drum and bass in the mid-to-late 1990s. It is characterized by very complex and intricate breakbeats and a wide palette of sampling sources ...

), Nuuro ( IDM),

Patafunk Carlos Eduardo Martinez Simon-Llanos (born December 5, 1978) better known as ''Patafunk'' is a Venezuelan DJ, Producer, multi-instrumentalist, Singer-Songwriter who's been always searching for ocean-like sounds and music inspired by the sea. In ...

(

Tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

), FamasLoop (trip hop/electronica), Todosantos (

nu rave New rave (also typeset as nu-rave, nu rave or neu rave) is a genre of music described by ''The Guardian'' as "an in-yer-face, Do it yourself, DIY disco riposte to the sensitive indie rock touted by bands like Bloc Party." It is most commonly appl ...

/indietronica), Jimmy Flamante (

breakbeat Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to use drum breaks sampled from early recordings of funk, jazz, and R&B. Breakbeats have been used in styles such as hip hop, jungle, drum and bass, big beat, breakbeat hardcore, and UK ...

), Las Americas (

shoegazing Shoegaze (originally called shoegazing and sometimes conflated with "dream pop") is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volu ...

), Dondi (

drum and bass Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-ba ...

/ downtempo), Retrovértigo (

post-rock Post-rock is a form of experimental rock characterized by a focus on exploring textures and timbre over traditional rock song structures, chords, or riffs. Post-rock artists are often instrumental, typically combining rock instrumentation with ...

), Lis (

instrumental rock Instrumental rock is rock music that emphasizes musical instruments and features very little or no singing. Examples of instrumental rock can be found in practically every subgenre of rock, often from musicians who specialize in the style. Instru ...

), Tercer Cuarto (

alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With r ...

), Panasuyo (neo-folklore), Pacheko ( dubstep), Dame Pa' Matala ( reggaeton/ hip hop) and Los Javelin (

surf rock Surf music (or surf rock, surf pop, or surf guitar) is a Music genre, genre of rock music associated with surf culture, particularly as found in Southern California. It was especially popular from 1958 to 1964 in two major forms. The first is in ...

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

) AC/Boy (

Techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...

)

Classical music

Venezuela has also produced classical composers such as:

Reynaldo Hahn Reynaldo Hahn (; 9 August 1874 – 28 January 1947) was a Venezuelan-born French composer, conductor, music critic, and singer. He is best known for his songs – ''mélodies'' – of which he wrote more than 100. Hahn was born in Caracas b ...

, Teresa Carreño (who was also a world-renowned pianist),

Antonio Lauro Antonio Lauro (August 3, 1917 – April 18, 1986) was a Venezuelan musician, considered to be one of the foremost South American composers for the guitar in the 20th century. Biography Antonio Lauro was born in Ciudad Bolívar, Venezuela. Hi ...

Víctor Varela Víctor Varela (born 1955) is a Venezuelan-Swedish composer based in Gothenburg. His compositions include works for orchestra, vocal and instrumental chamber music, with electronics and computer devices. Education Varela was born in Caracas where ...

Antonio Estevez Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular ma ...

Evencio Castellanos Evencio Castellanos Yumar (May 3, 1915 – March 16, 1984), was a Venezuelan pianist and classical musician. He was an outstanding pianist, composer and director of choirs and orchestra. Biography His parents were Pablo Castellanos Almenar and ...

Modesta Bor Modesta Bor (15 June 1926 – 7 April 1998) was a Venezuelan composer. Life and career Modesta Bor was born in Juan Griego, Isla de Margarita. She studied in Caracas with Elena Arrarte, Juan Bautista Plaza, Antonio Estévez, Maria de Lourdes ...

, Prudencio Esaa,

Moisés Moleiro Moisés Moleiro (28 March 190418 June 1979) was a Venezuelan pianist and composer. He was born in 1904 and studied under Salvador Llamozas. Moleiro founded the Orfeón Lamas and taught piano at the ''Caracas Musical Declamation Academy'' (toda ...

Sylvia Constantinidis Sylvia Constantinidis (born December 3, 1962) is a Venezuelan-American pianist, composer, and conductor. Early life and education Sylvia Constantinidis was born in Venezuela and began her study of music at an early age in Caracas. Her musi ...

Gustavo Dudamel Gustavo Adolfo Dudamel Ramírez (born 26 January 1981) is a Venezuelan conductor and violinist who is the music director of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Paris Opera. Early life Dudamel was bor ...

, Alfredo Rugeles and

Eduardo Marturet Eduardo Marturet (born September 19, 1953) is a Venezuelan conductor and composer represented by Tempo Primo. He is the Music Director and Conductor of The Miami Symphony Orchestra (MISO). Biography Eduardo Marturet enjoys an active career on ...

(who are primarily international conductors), Federico Ruiz (who also works with other genres) and Vicente Emilio Sojo (known for his contributions to Venezuelan musicology and music education).

Roberto Ruscitti Roberto Ruscitti (Cansano, L'Aquila, December 12, 1941), was an Italian-Venezuelan composer, soloist and pianist, Nationally and internationally recognized for his compositions and for his interpretations of Venezuelan folk music. As a matter of f ...

followed in their footsteps.Venezuela also houses a national network of public conservatories and music schools; there are also private music schools and institutions. Institutes of higher learning that specialize in music or have a music department include

Universidad de las Artes Universidad (Spanish for "university") may refer to: Places * Universidad, San Juan, Puerto Rico * Universidad (Madrid) Football clubs * Universidad SC, a Guatemalan football club that represents the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala ...

, whose music department is the former Instituto Universitario de Estudios Musicales;

Universidad Central de Venezuela The Central University of Venezuela (Spanish: ''Universidad Central de Venezuela''; UCV) is a public university of Venezuela located in Caracas. It is widely held to be the highest ranking institution in the country, and it also ranks 18th in L ...

, which gives diplomas in music performance and postgraduate degrees in

musicology Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...

, including

doctorates A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

; Universidad Simón Bolívar, whose music department awards Master of Music degrees in several areas including composition,

conducting Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance, such as an orchestral or choral concert. It has been defined as "the art of directing the simultaneous performance of several players or singers by the use of gesture." The primary duti ...

, and

music education Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do origina ...

; and Universidad de los Andes. Prominent composers and musicians who have taught, founded, or studied in these institutions include

Alberto Grau Alberto is the Romance languages, Romance version of the Latinized form (''Albertus'') of Germanic languages, Germanic ''Albert (given name), Albert''. It is used in Italian language, Italian, Portuguese language, Portuguese and Spanish language, ...

Isabel Aretz Isabel Aretz (14 April 1909 – 2 June 2005) was an Argentine– Venezuelan researcher, writer, ethnomusicologist and composer. Early years Isabel Aretz-Thiele was born in Buenos Aires. She was educated at the National Conservatory of Music ...

, María Guinand (who was one of the founders of the Master of Music program of Universidad Simón Bolívar), Diana Arismendi, Ricardo Teruel, Inocente Carreño,

Adina Izarra Adina Izarra (born 1959) is a Venezuelan musician, music educator and composer. Biography Adina Izarra was born in Caracas, Venezuela. She studied music under Alfredo del Mónaco in Caracas and received her Ph.D. in composition from York Univer ...

, Marianela Arocha, Maurice Hasson, Pedro Eustache,

David Ascanio David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

Josefina Benedetti Josefina Benedetti Punceles (born September 17, 1953) is a Venezuelan-American composer, musicologist and choral director. Biography Josefina Benedetti was born in New Haven, Connecticut from Venezuelan father of Corsican ancestors. She studie ...

, Alfredo del Monaco, Alfredo Rugeles,

Humberto Bruni Lamanna Humberto Bruni Lamanna, (born March 26, 1957, Caracas Venezuela) descended from an Italian family, is a Classical Guitar concert artist. Musical studies The musical studies of Humberto Bruni began at age fourteen, when he took the first music le ...

, Abraham Abreu,

Aldo Abreu Aldo Abreu is a Venezuelan recorder player currently residing in the United States. Life and career Born in Caracas, Venezuela to famous harpsichordist Abraham Abreu and Janet Foxton, Abreu holds the Performer's and Teacher's Diplomas from the ...

, Aquiles Baez, Pablo Gil, Carlos Duarte and

. Venezuela also has El Sistema, a publicly financed voluntary sector music education program founded by José Antonio Abreu in 1975. Prominent musicians of El Sistema are

director of

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...

Rodolfo Saglimbeni Rodolfo Saglimbeni (born 8 December 1962, in Barquisimeto, Venezuela) is a conductor. He studied music in Venezuela and then at the Royal Academy of Music of London with Colin Metters, John Carewe and George Hurst (conductor), George Hurst, obtai ...

was appointed Principal Conductor of the

National Symphony Orchestra of Chile National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

, José Luis Gomez director of the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, Rafael Payare director of San Diego Symphony, Glenn Garrido director of the Houston Latin American Philharmonic, and doublebassist

Edicson Ruiz Edicson Ruiz Bioeng (born 11 May 1985 in Caracas, Venezuela) is a Venezuelan double-bass player. At age 17, Ruiz became the youngest member of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the second in the Philharmonic history after a harp player in the 1 ...

who at age 17, became the youngest member of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. The country's symphony orchestras include the

Venezuela Symphony Orchestra The Venezuela Symphony Orchestra ( es, Orquesta Sinfónica de Venezuela) is an orchestra in Venezuela, founded in 1930. They perform at the Ríos Reyna concert-hall in the Teresa Carreño Cultural Complex. See also *Venezuelan music Severa ...

, Maracaibo Symphony Orchestra, Municipal Symphony Orchestra,

Mérida State Symphony Orchestra The Mérida State Symphony Orchestra (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado Mérida'' or OSEM) is a symphony orchestra based in the Venezuelan city of Mérida, Mérida, Mérida. A non-profit organization, it was founded in 199 ...

, and the Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar.

Composers

Juana Maria de la Concepcion, commonly referred to as

Conny Méndez Juana María de la Concepción Méndez Guzmán, commonly referred as Conny Méndez (11 April 1898 – 26 November 1979) was a Venezuelan composer, singer, writer, caricaturist, actress and metaphysicist. Her parents were the poet Eugenio Mendez ...

, born 11 April 1898 in

, was a composer, singer, writer, caricaturist and actress who produced more than 40 compositions, such as: ''Yo soy venezolana'', ''Chucho y Ceferina'', ''La Negrita Marisol'', ''Venezuela Habla Cantando'', and many others.

Rubén Cedeño Rubén Cedeño (born 21 May 1952 in Caracas), is a Venezuelan musician, composer, painter, writer and speaker on metaphysical subjects. He was a disciple of Conny Méndez, who in 1946 founded the Metaphysical Teachings in Venezuela. He was one of ...

, composer of folk and children's music of Venezuela, he appears in the Venezuelan music encyclopedia.Catalogofunves.org
/ref> Singer, composer, investigator, painter and writer. His most recognized works are: The

''Que Navidad'' part of the Venezuelan Christmas repertoire and interpreted by the mezzo-soprano

Morella Muñoz Morella Valarino Muñoz (July 29, 1935 – July 15, 1995), was a celebrated Venezuelan mezzo-soprano. She performed as a child under the pseudonym Morella Kenton, and as an adult as Morella Muñoz. She achieved national and international fame as ...

, ''Cantata infantil Simón Bolívar'', ''Misa de mi Tierra'' among others. It was National Prize of popular music of the INAVI with his valse'' Nora''. The hymn ''Hail to the Statue of Liberty'', received the congratulation of President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

composed a large body of classical guitar works, adapting traditional

and folk songs for the instrument.

Gustavo Matamoros Gustavo Matamoros (b. Caracas, 1957) is a Venezuelan composer, interdisciplinary artist, community organizer and educator who has established his residence in Miami, Florida, US, since 1979.

is a renowned Venezuelan composer dedicated to the experimentation with sound and its relationship with the human mind and culture. He has worked mainly with contemporary techniques such as electroacoustics, mixed media, performance, installations, radiophony and multimedia spectacles. He resides in the US. The work of composer, arranger and musical producer Jesús "Chuchito" Sanoja is considered an important part of the Venezuelan cultural patrimony.

Notable musicians and groups

Other Venezuelan performers of note are Chino y Nacho, Franco de Vita, Alirio Diaz,

Hernán Gamboa Hernan José Gamboa Alexis, better known as Hernan José Gamboa Alexis (June 18, 1946 – January 10, 2016) was a Venezuelan musician, composer and singer. He was a member of the Venezuelan fold music group Serenata Guayanesa, and later releas ...

Gualberto Ibarreto Gualberto José Ibarreto Barrios (born July 12, 1947 in El Pilar, Sucre state, Venezuela), is a folk singer who plays the mandolin, cuatro, and guitar. See also * Venezuelan music Several styles of the traditional music of Venezuela, such a ...

Enrique Hidalgo Enrique Hidalgo born in March 10, 1942 in El Tigre, Anzoátegui state (Venezuela), is one of the most influential popular musicians, children's poets and authors from Venezuela. Hidalgo's work includes more than 500 songs, notably "Barcelonesa� ...

Rudy Regalado Rudolph Valentino Regalado (May 21, 1930 – February 12, 2018) was a Major League Baseball player. He was an infielder for the Cleveland Indians from 1954 to 1956, and played in the 1954 World Series. He was born in Los Angeles, Californi ...

Jesus Sanoja Jesús ''Chucho'' Sanoja (September 23, 1926 – December 11, 1998), was a Venezuelan musician, pianist, composer, music director and arranger. Sanoja was survived by his grandson, Jesús Alfonso Sanoja Soulés, an audiovisual producer. In 1 ...

, Otmaro Ruiz,

, Yordano, Juan Carlos Salazar,

Huáscar Barradas Huáscar Barradas (born 1964) is a Venezuelan flautist and Professor of flute at the "Instituto Universitario de Estudios Musicales" in Caracas. As a flutist he has represented Venezuela at a range of international festivals and as both soloist a ...

, Billo Frómeta, Homero Parra, Gerry Weil,

Diego Matheuz Diego is a Spanish masculine given name. The Portuguese equivalent is Diogo. The name also has several patronymic derivations, listed below. The etymology of Diego is disputed, with two major origin hypotheses: ''Tiago'' and ''Didacus''. E ...

, Domingo Hindoyan, Soledad Bravo,

Vidal Colmenares Vidal (, , , ) is a Catalan, Aragonese, and possibly also Romansh surname, which also appears in French, Italian, Portuguese and English, and as a given name. Vidal may refer to: Surname *Maurice Vidal Portman (1850–1935), a British docto ...

María Teresa Chacín María Teresa Chacín (born January 22, 1945 in Caracas), is a Venezuelan singer. She has recorded over 50 albums. She has received honors including '' Latin Grammy Award for Best Latin Children's Album'', ''Guaicaipuro de Oro, Meridiano de O ...

, Luis Gómez-Imbert,

Luis Mariano Rivera Luis Mariano Rivera (1906-2002) was a Venezuelan singer, composer, poet, and dramatist. He was born on August 19, 1906, and was a self-taught musician. He wrote hundreds of songs that have been performed by musicians including Morella Muñoz, Je ...

, Maurice Hasson,

Luis Laguna Luis Alfredo Laguna (May 1, 1926 – August 1, 1984) was a Venezuelan musician and songwriter.Peñin, José; Guido, Walter. (1998). ''Enciclopedia de la Música en Venezuela''. Fundación Bigott, Caracas. . Born in the tiny city of Guacara, C ...

, Arca, Graciela,

Italo Pizzolante Italo may refer to: *Italo-, a prefix indicating a relation to Italy or Italians Film * ''Italo'' (film), a 2014 comedy film * Italo crime, a genre of crime film Music genres *Italo disco *Italo dance *Italo house People *Italo Allodi (1928– ...

Cecilia Todd Cecilia Todd Vallenilla (born March 4, 1951 in Caracas, Venezuela) is a singer and cuatro player. References See also *Venezuelan music Several styles of the traditional music of Venezuela, such as salsa and merengue, are common to its ...

, Lilia Vera, Renato Capriles, Alí Primera,

José Luis Rodríguez José Luis Rodríguez may refer to: * José Luis Rodríguez Vélez (1915–1984), Panamanian musician *José Luis Rodríguez (singer) (born 1943), ''El Puma'', Venezuelan singer and actor *José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero (born 1960), former Prime Mi ...

, Graciela Naranjo, Mario Carniello, Henry Martínez, Pedro Eustache and Alberto Naranjo, as well as the groups

Serenata Guayanesa Serenata Guayanesa is a vocal and instrumental quartet that plays typical Venezuelan folk music. It is one of the two best known groups that play this style of music (the other being Un Solo Pueblo).Mark Dinneen, ''Culture and customs of Venezuel ...

Dimensión Latina The Dimensión Latina is one of the most famous and representative salsa music and Latin bands from Venezuela, and one of the notable names in the early history of salsa in the American continent. It was founded on March 15, 1972, in Caracas, Venez ...

, Los Cuñaos, Los Cañoneros,

Guaco Guaco, huaco, vejuco and bejuco are terms applied to various vine-like Central American, South American, and West Indian climbing plants, reputed to have curative powers. Several species in the genus ''Mikania'' are among those referred to as gua ...

Mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South a ...

, Grupo Madera, Percujazz Ensamble, Ensamble Gurrufio, Lloviznando Cantos, Los Chamos and El Trabuco Venezolano, among others.

References

Citations

* Brill, Mark. Music of Latin America and the Caribbean, 2nd Edition, 2018. Taylor & Francis * Peñín, José y Walter Guido. ''Enciclopedia de la Música en Venezuela'', Tomo I. Caracas.

. * Rosenberg, Dan and Phil Sweeney. ''Salsa con Gasolina''. 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.), ''World Music, Vol. 2: Latin & North America, Caribbean, India, Asia and Pacific'', pp 624–630. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books.

External links

*
Audio clips: Traditional music of Venezuela.

Musée d'ethnographie de Genève The ' ("Geneva Ethnography Museum") is one of the most important ethnographic museums in Switzerland. History The MEG, or Geneva Museum of Ethnography, was founded on 25 September 1901, on the initiative of Professor Eugène Pittard (1867-1962), ...

. Accessed 25 November 2010.
BBC Radio 3 Audio (60 minutes): Afro-Venezuelan music of the coast.
Accessed 25 November 2010.
BBC Radio 3 Audio (60 minutes): Harp playing cowboys of the central plains.
Accessed 25 November 2010.
Llanera Music
{{DEFAULTSORT:Music of Venezuela