Cuban rumbaRumba is a secular genre of Cuban music involving dance, percussion, and song. It originated in the northern regions of Cuba, mainly in urban Havana and Matanzas, during the late 19th century. It is based on African music and dance traditions, namely Abakuá and yuka, as well as the Spanish-based coros de clave. According to Argeliers León, rumba is one of the major "genre complexes" of Cuban music, and the term rumba complex is now commonly used by musicologists.
Cha-cha-cha (dance)The cha-cha-chá (also called cha-cha) is a dance of Cuban origin. It is danced to cha-cha-chá music introduced by the Cuban composer and violinist Enrique Jorrin in the early 1950s. This rhythm was developed from the danzón-mambo. The name of the dance is an onomatopoeia derived from the shuffling sound of the dancers' feet when they dance two consecutive quick steps that characterize the dance.
Mambo (dance)Mambo is a Latin dance of Cuba which was developed in the 1940s when the music genre of the same name became popular throughout Latin America. The original ballroom dance which emerged in Cuba and Mexico was related to the danzón, albeit faster and less rigid. In the United States, it replaced rhumba as the most fashionable Latin dance.
Salsa musicSalsa is a style of dance music mainly influenced by Caribbean traditions and music from Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, where African cultural syncretism in music and dance blends with European influences, African and indigenous instruments, along with contributions from the contiguous United States. Because most of the basic musical components predate the labeling of salsa, there have been many controversies regarding its origin.
Son cubanoSon cubano (Spanish:), or simply son, is a genre of music and dance that originated in the highlands of eastern Cuba during the late 19th century. It is a syncretic genre that blends elements of Spanish and African origin. Among its fundamental Hispanic components are the vocal style, lyrical metre and the primacy of the tres, derived from the Spanish guitar.
Latin danceLatin dance is a general label, and a term in partner dance competition jargon. It refers to types of ballroom dance and folk dance that mainly originated in Latin America, though a few styles originated elsewhere. The category of Latin dances in the international dancesport competitions consists of the Cha-cha-cha, Rumba, Samba, Paso Doble, and Jive. Social Latin dances (Street Latin) include salsa, mambo, merengue, rumba, bachata, bomba and plena.
Fania All-StarsThe Fania All Stars is a musical group formed in 1968 as a showcase for the musicians on Fania Records, the leading salsa music record label of the time. HistoryBeginningsIn 1964, Fania Records was founded in New York City by Jerry Masucci, an Italian-American lawyer with a love for Cuban music, and Johnny Pacheco, a flutist, percussionist and bandleader born in the Dominican Republic but raised in the South Bronx who had similar musical tastes.
Partner dancePartner dances are dances whose basic choreography involves coordinated dancing of two partners. As such it occupies a middle ground between individuals dancing alone or individually in a non-coordinated manner, and groups of people dancing simultaneously in a coordinated manner.Salsa congressA Salsa congress is a multi-day dance festival featuring workshops, social dancing, performances and competitions focusing on Salsa dancing. The format was first pioneered at the Puerto Rico Salsa Congress in 1997. Since then salsa congresses have become popular in almost every country, including different cities in the US, all over Europe, parts of Asia, and countries in Latin America and Africa.DanzónDanzón is the official genre and dance of Cuba. It is also an active musical form in the United States and Puerto Rico. Written in 24 time, the danzón is a slow, formal partner dance, requiring set footwork around syncopated beats, and incorporating elegant pauses while the couples stand listening to virtuoso instrumental passages, as characteristically played by a charanga or típica ensemble. The danzón evolved from the Cuban contradanza, or habanera (lit.Fania RecordsFania Records is a New York–based record label founded by Dominican-born composer and bandleader Johnny Pacheco and his American lawyer Jerry Masucci in 1964. The label took its name from a popular luncheonette frequented by musicians in Havana, Cuba that Masucci frequented when he worked for a public relations firm there during the pre-Castro era. Fania is known for its promotion of salsa music.
Johnny PachecoJuan Pablo Pacheco Knipping (25 March 1935 – 15 February 2021), known as Johnny Pacheco, was a Dominican musician, arranger, composer, bandleader, and record producer. Born in the Dominican Republic, Pacheco became a leading figure in the New York salsa scene in the 1960s and 1970s as the founder and musical director of Fania Records.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.