Musicologist, dancer and educator Sarah Town joins Rebecca to speak about the history and evolution of Cuban social dance, specifically casino and a particularly intricate and complex style called rueda de casino, danced in a circle. These styles of dance have become a global phenomenon since the 1990s and the rise of timba, and there are many local scenes across the U.S. and around the world.

Check out this incredible clip of a rueda de casino group:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZAjkXAhlXU

Songs played:

Las Alturas de Simpson
Rock Around the Clock, Bill Haley & His Comets
Abre Que Voy, Gonzalo Grau y La Clave Secreta
Esa Soy Yo, Elito Revé y Su Charangón
Para Bailar Casino, Adalbero Álvarez y Su Son
La Bailarina, Habana D' Primera

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https://theclavechronicles.buzzsprout.com

Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions

Part 2 of Rebecca's conversation with Kevin Moore focuses on several major timba groups and their unique styles: Pupy Y Los Que Son Son, Paulito y Su Élite, Bamboleo and Elito Revé y Su Charangón.

Songs played:
De La Timba a Pogolotti, Pupy Y Los Que Son Son
La Borrachera, Pupy Y Los Que Son Son
Enredadera de Amor, Paulito FG
Ya No Hace Falta, Bamboleo
Dale Agua al Dominó, Elito Revé y Su Charangón

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https://theclavechronicles.buzzsprout.com

Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions

Finally, a timba episode! Rebecca speaks with Kevin Moore, the mastermind behind Timba.com, the largest Cuban music website in the world, who explains what makes timba unique and how it revolutionized Cuban dance music. This episode focuses on the pioneering innovations of NG La Banda and La Charanga Habanera. Check out Kevin's book Beyond Salsa For Beginners for an incredibly comprehensive musical breakdown of timba.

Songs played:
Los Sitios Entero, NG La Banda
Picadillo de Soya, NG La Banda
Nube Pasajera, La Charanga Habanera
Charanguero Mayor, La Charanga Habanera
El Temba, La Charanga Habanera

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https://theclavechronicles.buzzsprout.com

Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions

In the past two decades, reggaeton has become the soundtrack of Cuba, eventually resulting in the birth of a more localized genre called reparto. Ethnomusicologist Mike Levine speaks with Rebecca about how reggaeton took hold first in the eastern part of the island, where Jamaican and Caribbean influences are much stronger, and how artists in Havana have transformed it into a uniquely Cuban genre that represents their contemporary lives.

Songs played:

Señor Oficial, Candyman
Soy Cubanito, Cubanito 2002
Bailando, Enrique Iglesias featuring Descemer Bueno & Gente de Zona
El Ditu, Elvis Manuel
Bajanda, Chocolate MC

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Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions

Part two of the Los Van Van series, where Rebecca covers the band's evolving lineup, sound, and song themes in the 1990s and 2000s.

Songs played:

Disco Azúcar
Un Socio
La Fruta
Soy Todo
Ven, Ven, Ven
Después de Todo

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Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions

Los Van Van has been Cuba’s premier dance band since its formation in 1969, with its longevity earning the band the nickname El tren de la salsa (the salsa train). Rebecca covers the band's first two decades and the innovations of Los Van Van's founder/bassist Juan Formell, as well as other musicians like drummer Changuito and pianist Cesar "Pupy" Pedroso, such as the group's signature rhythm (songo).
With its charismatic lead singer Pedro Calvo, in the 1980s Los Van Van achieved an almost-perfect synthesis of catchy, danceable music and satirical commentary on diverse social issues and controversies.
 
Songs played:
Marilu
Llegada
Dale dos
La Habana No Aguanta Más
Sandunguera
No Soy de la Gran Escena

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Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions

Nueva trova is one of the few Cuban genres that is for listening and reflecting instead of dancing - it's sung poetry, much like other Latin American singer-songwriter genres, namely nueva canción. Rebecca has an in-depth conversation with independent scholar and former Cuban diplomat Eva Silot Bravo about the major figures of nueva trova and how it came to be closely identified with the ideology of the Cuban Revolution. The genre's relationship with the government shifted in the wake of the economic crisis of the 1990s, as newer artists began to openly critiqued the preferential treatment given to foreigners, as well as emigrate abroad.

Songs played:
Pablo Milanés, Mis 22 años
Silvio Rodríguez, Sueño con Serpientes
Xiomara Laugart, Paria
Carlos Varela, Foto de Familia
Gema y Pavel, Se Feliz

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Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions

Part 2 of a conversation with Pablo Herrera on Cuban hip hop, including a discussion of the relationship between rap cubano and repartero, or Cuban reggaeton.

Songs played:
Madre Tierra, Las Krudas
Tengo, Popy y La Moda
El Rap es Guerra, Los Aldeanos

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Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions

We've got an amazing conversation with Pablo Herrera, an anthropologist and one of Cuba's most influential hip hop producers. Pablo speaks about how he got interested in hip hop and the ways Havana's scene of the 1990s sought to emulate American hip hop, especially east coast styles, before becoming more localized and grounded in Cuban culture. The Special Period, Cuba's deep economic crisis, was the backdrop for the emergence of Havana's hip hop scene, and we discuss its influence on Cuban rap lyrics, as well as the continuing racial inequality that the Cuban Revolution never successfully eradicated. 

Songs played:

Primera Base, Igual que tú
Amenaza, Achabon cruzao
Instinto, Kirino con su tres
Orishas, A lo cubano
Hermanos de Causa, Tengo
Popy y la Moda, Tengo

Unfortunately it's very difficult to find translations of the lyrics of these songs online, but if you're interested in translations, send us a message and we may be able to send you some translated lyrics. @clavechronicles on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook

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Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions

Cuban dance genres of the 1950s, specifically mambo and cha-cha-cha, were hugely popular in the U.S. and all over Latin America. Both were outgrowths of the danzón, but each had its own distinct sound. Different styles of mambo are discussed, including the original style that emerged in Antonio Arcaño's band in the late 1930s and the vastly more well-known style of the "King of Mambo," Pérez Prado, who partnered with Benny Moré and popularized the mambo globally. In New York, it was Tito Puente's band that reigned supreme.

Songs played:
Mambo, Arcaño y Sus Maravillas
Mambo #5, Pérez Prado
Locas por el mambo, Pérez Prado and Benny Moré
La engañadora, Orquesta América
Mambo gozón, Tito Puente

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Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions