Salsa Blanca

Con Sabor Al Guaso

Con Sabor al Guaso - Ban Rarra

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Music from Guantanamo Cuba with Haito/Cuban roots.

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Details

Guest musicians include:
Yunior Terry on Bass and Marimbula
Robert Fernandez on Timbales
Jon Griffin on Tres and Guitar

Track Listing:

1. De Guantanamo
   Son
   (J. Griffin - Y. Terry - M. Martinez)
   
   Lyrics (Espanol) | Lyrics (English)
   
   
2. Kiriba
   kiriba
   (Folkloric)
   
   Letras (Espanol) | Lyrics (English)
   
   
3. Guanaja
   Son
   (Folkloric)
   
   Lyrics (Espanol) | Lyrics (English)
   
   
4. Mayumbe
   Changui
   (Folkloric)
   
   Lyrics (Espanol) | Lyrics (English)
   
   
5. Nengon>
   nengon
   (Folkloric)
   
   
   
6. Rico Vacilon
   Cha-cha-cha
   (R. Ruiz)
   
   
7. Mambo Bán Rarra
   Mambo
   
   
   
8. El Yuma Cambia la Gente
   Son Montuno
   (Y. Terry - M. Martinez)
   
   
   
9. Gaga
   gaga
   (Folkloric)
   
   
   
10. Vodu
    vodú
    (Folkloric)
    
    
    
11. Tajona
    tajona
    (Folkloric)
    
    
    
12. Conga Orientalconga
    Conga
    (Folkloric)
    
    

Some notes on the styles

Son - This is a generic term for much of the music that became "salsa". It also refers to the first style of music to use "clave". It differs from son montuno by virtue of the fact that it is usually a riff that remains the same for the entire song. In other words there is no "montuno" section. De Guantanamo and Guanaja are examples of this.

Son Montuno - This is a later version of son that add a "montuno" or repeating pattern after the verses. This is usually noticed as the band "kicking it up". The timbale player switches to bells, and the bongo player also plays campana (except in piano and tres solos). It is important to note though that even with only bongo, you can go to montuno. The rhythm player(s) play a repeating pattern that is for solos, either vocal or instrumental. El Yuma Cambia a la Gente is an example of this. Notice the change after the verses.

Kiribá - This is discussed at: the pages on kiriba

Changüi - Again, this is discussed in depth at: the pages on changüi

Nengon - The ancestor of all son styles, discussed at: the pages on nengon

Cha-cha-cha - This is a derivative of danzon and danza. When danzon added the "montuno", the front section was dropped and thus was born the Cha-cha-cha. Rico Vacilon is an example of Cha-cha-cha.

Mambo - Many people mistakenly think that the mambo was born from danzon. In reality it is part of the afro-cuban tradition and came from the same line as conga oriental, comparsa and yes, rumba.

Gaga - Is a style that originated in Haiti and was a very seductive dance. It features swords and flags as well as fire and male dancers on stilts. The lyrics are in Haitian creole and I don't have an exact translation as it was passed down by oral tradition.

Vodú - Vodú also originated in Haiti but was changed when it got to Cuba. Vodú is a fusion of Spanish Catholicism and African religous practices. Both Vodú and Gaga are traditionally performed during the Catholic High Holy Week.

Tajona - Yet another dance and music style with roots in Haiti. This style is mainly from rural areas of Guantanamo after the Haitian revolution. It features a dance that starts slowly around a tall pole with ribbons becoming entwined with each other. The dance gets faster and faster in an intricate display of puzzle making. It ends with all the dancers reversing their moves and the ribbons and dancers are back to their original positions.

Conga Oriental - This is one of many songs that are played during Cuban Mardi Gras. It features the double reed instrument, coronet china or Chinese coronet.

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