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3
English
Style
Category
Original Tempo
Scenes
Additional Info
Guaguanco
Afro-Cuban
95
Guaguanco
Timba
The Guaguanco is an Afro Cuban rhythm which
forms part of the Rumba family. This rhythm
section is unique in that it employs three conga
players: the Tumbadora, the Segundo and the
Quinto.
Salsa
See ‘Guaguanco Above’.
Mambo
See ‘Guaguanco Above’.
Mozambique
A Carnival style Afro Cuban rhythm created
in Cuba during the early sixties by Pello el
Afrokan.
Bossa Nova
Brazilian
100
Bossa Nova
This musical style is a prime example of
modernization in Latin American popular music
and because of its impact on other countries,
most notably the United States.
Samba Fast
Brazilian
115
Samba
The word Samba is Portuguese and was
derived from “Sembe”, a word common to
many west African languages such as the
“Bantu” language brought to Brazil during the
17-19th centuries by the African slaves. The term
refers to praying or invoking the spirits of the
ancestors or gods with a cry, something like
the Blues.
Samba Slow
Brazilian
90
Samba
See ‘Samba Fast’.
Calypso Fast
Caribbean
120
Calypso
The indigenous music of the people of Trinidad
and Tobago. Calypso’s roots go back to the
African slaves brought to these Islands to work
on the large sugar plantations.
Calypso Slow
Caribbean
85
Calypso
See ‘Calypso Fast’.
Merengue Fast
Caribbean
120
Merengue
The Merengue is a music form for dance,
most typically associated with the Dominican
Republic.
Bolero
CubanDance
85
Bolero
An Afro Cuban ballad form with a slow tempo
and a mostly romantic lyric content. Pepe
Sanchez has been credited with creating the
Cuban Bolero in 1885 with a composition called
“Tristeza”.
Cha Cha Cha
CubanDance
120
Cha Cha Cha
A dance and musical style evolving from
the Danzon style. “Engañadora”, by Cuban
bandleader Enrique Jorrin, is generally
considered to be the first Cha Cha Cha in 1953.
Son Montuno
The most influential Cuban style initiated in the
second half of the 19th century in the eastern
province of Oriente. It combines Spanish
elements and instruments of the “Cancion” style
with African rhythms and percussion.
