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A journey through the history and global influence of Cuban music, hosted by ethnomusicologist Rebecca Bodenheimer.
57 Episodes
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Kevin Moore is back to help us pay tribute to one of timba's brightest stars, Paulito FG (EPD), who died tragically on March 1. Songs played: El humo o la vida, Dan Den feat. Paulito FG Y ahora que, Percussion and vocal track for Entre Dos Amigos No te lo creas, Laura (demo track) El punto Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcast by becoming a monthly subscriber - even $3/month helps! If you like this podcast, please hit "Follow" and giv...
Finally, we're back with a brand new episode, inspired by Bad Bunny's love letter to Puerto Rico, Debí Tirar Más Fotos! We get deep into the weeds of the Puerto Rican musical and political traditions that are referenced in Bad Bunny's wide-ranging, exquisitely produced album. Joining Rebecca are Puerto Rican musician and educator Hector Lugo (founder of the Bay Area Latin roots band La Mixta Criolla), and Puerto Rican writer, translator and Bad Bunny scholar Carina del Valle Schorske. So...
Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcast by becoming a monthly subscriber - even $3/month helps! If you like this podcast, please hit "Follow" and give us a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Find The Clave Chronicles on Instagram, Facebook, & Threads @clavechronicles https://theclavechronicles.buzzsprout.com Intro and outro music: "Bengo Latino," Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions
Cuban journalist Jesús Jank Curbelo joins Rebecca to speak about a range of topics, including the legacy of El Taiger, one of Cuba's most popular artists who was killed recently in Miami. We also talk about Curbelo's career in Cuba reporting on the reparto movement, as well as the pain of leaving Cuba and challenges of building a new life in Texas. Curbelo has published several pieces at the Texas Observer and Palabra. Conversation in Spanish. Follow along with an English-language transcript...
Part 2 of Rebecca's conversation with Cuban music historian Rosa Marquetti. The second edition of her book Celia en Cuba (1925-1962) was recently published in Spanish, and will be translated into English next year. Conversation in Spanish. Follow along with an English-language transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1W8qgbzs7DHwP2JlTl3FDZfbCc2aLSFovv2SVxZSw3Xc/edit?usp=sharing Songs played: Quédate Negra, Celia con La Orquesta Leonard Melody La Sopa en Botella, Celia con La So...
Rebecca speaks with Cuban music historian Rosa Marquetti Torres, author of several books, including one on Chano Pozo and another one on Celia Cruz's career in Cuba—the Celia book has just been released in a new edition! Part 1 of our conversation covers the challenges of conducting research in Cuba and her work on Chano Pozo Conversation in Spanish. Follow along with an English-language transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1WKJZoLnQJHo3t85_AMxsZ08p_nwPNZ_rZTBDTKmgoSQ/edi...
Ethnomusicologist Edwin Porras joins Rebecca to speak about Chinese musical influences in Cuba, which date back to the mid-19th century. The double-reeded suona was adopted by Santiago conga groups around 1915, becoming an unmistakable musical signifier for conga santiaguera. **Fun fact: Cuba was the first destination for Chinese laborers in the Americas, before even the U.S.** Songs played: Example of Cantonese opera Lion dancing musical accompaniment (field recording) Caridad Amaran and G...
Eva Silot Bravo joins Rebecca again to talk about her recently published book, Cuban Fusion: The Transnational Cuban Alternative Music Scene, which focuses on Cuban musicians who have migrated to New York, Madrid, and other major cities since the 1990s. They have created new transnational musical scenes, with some traveling back and forth between Cuba and abroad, fusing jazz, Afro-Cuban folkloric music, nueva trova and other genres. Songs played: Levitando, Ramon Valle Bolero Filin, Gema Y P...
This week The Clave Chronicles is sharing an episode of Cuban Serenade, a podcast exploring the history of Cuban music in Canada that's hosted by Freddy Monasterio and Karen Dubinsky. This episode focuses on the genius of Cuban-Canadian pianist/composer/arranger Hilario Durán. Follow Cuban Serenade on your favorite podcast platform! Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcast by becoming a monthly subscriber - even $3/month helps! If you like thi...
Freddy Monasterio, a Cuban-born researcher, educator and arts administrator based in Toronto, joins Rebecca to talk about the Cuban musical diaspora in Canada. He also co-hosts a podcast on the topic called Cuban Serenade. Songs played: La Reina del Norte, OKAN Cry Me a River, Hilario Duran and his Latin Jazz Big Band La Ceiba de Mayuya, Luis Deniz Group Rebirth, Dee Hernandez Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcast by becoming a monthly subscriber...
Anthropologist and prolific scholar Umi Vaughan, author of Rebel Dance, Renegade Stance: Timba Music and Black Identity, joins Rebecca to speak about his 25 years of research on timba and how the genre has changed in the past three decades. Vaughan has been conducting research in Brazil more recently, and will soon be publishing a book on the repression of Afro-Brazilian religious practice and music. Songs played: La bola, Manolín El Médico de la Salsa De La Habana, Paulo FG No est...
Legendary Afro-Cuban hip hop group Krudxs Cubensi (Odaymar Cuesta and Oli Prendes) join Rebecca to speak about their career and the particular challenges they've faced as artists who are Afro-Cuban, queer, non-binary, and immigrants. Their latest album, They/Them Les Elles, features collaborations with Greg Landau and many other Bay Area-based musicians. Songs played: Mi cuerpo es mío You are not better than me They/them les elles Justicia y libertad Send us a text Support the show You can s...
Percussionist and educator David Peñalosa, author of the book The Clave Matrix, joins Rebecca for an in-depth discussion on the concept of clave, delving into its origins, variations and the way it works in various Afro-Cuban genres. If you've ever wondered what 3-2 or 2-3 clave means or what the difference is between "son clave," "rumba clave" and 6/8 clave, this episode is for you! Songs played: Eco (bembé-abakuá), Julito Collazo and Mongo Santamaria Los beodos, Los Muñequitos de Matanzas ...
Back by popular demand, Mike Levine joins Rebecca again to speak about the latest happenings in Cuban reparto, including a recent controversy related to the genre's popularity in Peru. Check out the new Buzzsprout option below to send Rebecca a message about the episode! Songs played: Reparto, DJ Yus, Wampi, Nesty, Wow Popy, Un Titico, JP El Chamaco Por Ustedes (Pornosotros), Wampi Toma que toma, JP El Chamaco Birribiri, Harryson Wampi live in Lima https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cV...
Scholar and singer Hannah Burgé Luviano joins Rebecca to discuss the career of the "King of Mambo," Dámaso Perez Prado. Unable to achieve much acclaim in Cuba because of his unique compositional style, Pérez Prado struck gold after relocating to Mexico in the 1940s. Songs played: México Lindo Mi Gallo Mambo Politécnico Pianola Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcast by becoming a monthly subscriber - even $3/month helps! If you like this podcast, ...
Musicologist Marysol Quevedo joins Rebecca to speak about Cuban art music composers of the mid-20th century, such as Harold Gramatges, Juan Blanco and Argeliers Leon. As she details in her recent book, although their works largely relied on classical music structures and forms, they brought in elements of Cuban popular and folkloric music. Pieces played: Tres preludios a modo de toccata, Harold Gramatges Sonata a la Virgen del Cobre, No. 2, Argeliers Leon Quinteto No. 1, Juan Blanco Ci...
Cuban dancer, musician, and educator Roberto Borrell speaks with Rebecca about his incredibly versatile career, spanning popular and folkloric styles. He talks about growing up hearing the legendary bands of the 1950s like Orquesta Aragón and Chappottín y Sus Estrellas, and attending the Black social clubs that were eliminated in the early years of the Revolution. Songs played: Linda cubana, Orquesta de Antonio Maria Romeu Mambo, Arcaño y Sus Maravillas La engañadora, Orquesta América ...
Punk cubano emerged during the Special Period crisis, giving young disaffected Cubans an outlet to express their angst and rage, often toward the Cuban government. Carmen Torre Pérez joins Rebecca to speak about the counter-cultural genre and its DIY ethics. Songs played: Jodidos y perdidos, Rotura Eres tú, Eskoria Azul, Akupunktura Esta no es mi puta guerra, Eztafilokoko Ruido en el sistema, Pólvora Soxial Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced pod...
(Rerun of nueva trova episode, first aired in July 2023) 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 re...
Ethnomusicologist and percussionist Johnny Frias joins Rebecca to speak about one of the lesser known Afro-Cuban folkloric practices, the tonada trinitaria, from the central Cuban city of Trinidad. We then delve into the rumba percussion style that has become dominant in recent decades, guarapachangueo, created by a group of brothers from the outskirts of Havana known as Los Chinitos. Songs played: Una corona al General Maceo, Conjunto Folclórico de Trinidad Plegarias, Grupo Abbilona (Los Ch...
Afrocuba de Matanzas is widely considered one of the best preservers of Afro-Cuban folkloric music and dance on the island, but the group also created one of the funkiest and most exciting musical innovations in 1973 when they blended rumba percussion and batá drumming to create batarumba. As the years went on, batarumba became even more complex and versatile, as Afrocuba musicians added in instruments and rhythms from son, Abakuá, Iyesá and adapted the songs of Celia Cruz to a batarumba form...
Grammy-nominated percussionist, recording artist and educator Michael Spiro joins Rebecca to speak about his apprenticeship in Matanzas with masters of Afro-Cuban folkloric drumming, differences in drumming styles between Havana and Matanzas, and his innovative recordings, which fuse batá drumming with other Afro-diasporic traditions, such as Brazilian samba, Candomblé, and Zimbabwean mbira music. Songs played: Inspiración a Santiago, Los Muñequitos de Matanzas Para Clave y Guaguancó,...
Acclaimed pianist/bandleader/composer/author/educator Rebeca Mauleón discusses the long and incredibly versatile career of pianist/composer Chucho Valdés, who founded the groundbreaking jazz fusion group Irakere 50 years ago. In 2018, Mauleón and Valdés co-authored the book Decoding Afro-Cuban Jazz. In both his Irakere compositions and in his solo career, Valdés has often drawn from Afro-Cuban folkloric music—rumba, batá drumming—for inspiration. Songs played: Misa Negra, Irakere El T...
Ethnomusicologist and prolific scholar Peter Manuel joins Rebecca to speak about the many centuries of musical exchange between Cuba and Spain, which birthed genres like the Cuban punto and contributed to the evolution of flamenco in Andalucía. Author and editor of numerous books on Caribbean and Indian popular music, including an important anthology of Cuban musicology, Manuel's newest book is Flamenco Music: History, Forms, Culture. Songs played: Fandango, Antonio Soler Controversia,...
In our first episode en español (!!!), Rebecca interviews Mario Seguí Correoso, a Santiago-based percussionist who has worked with various groups over the course of his career: an innovative rumba group (Kokoyé), a son/salsa group (Sonora La Calle), and currently a more traditional son group (Los Jubilados), as well as a percussion-based group (Los Tambores de Enrique Bonne). We talk about how difficult the situation has been for musicians since the pandemic. **IF YOU DON'T SPEAK SPANISH, CH...
Congolese scholar Ribio Nzeza Bunketi Buse joins Rebecca to speak about the many sub-styles and evolutions within Congolese popular music over the past 60 years. While many in the West refer to the music as "soukous," that's only one specific style of rumba, which also includes rumba chachacha (Joseph Kabasele & African Jazz), rumba odemba (Franco Luambo & OK Jazz), rumba cavacha (Zaiko Langa Langa), and ndombolo (Wenge Musica, Koffi Olomide, Papa Wemba). Dr. Nzeza also explains the s...
Rebecca is joined by reggaeton scholar Petra Rivera-Rideau, who co-created the Bad Bunny Syllabus to provide historical and social context for Bad Bunny's music. His massive hit Un Verano Sin Tí was the most globally streamed album of 2022 and the first Spanish-language album to be nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammys. We speak about what makes him such a unique, versatile artist, and then delve into the ways Cuban and Puerto Rican music have diverged in recent decades. ...
Franco-Haitian cultural influences in Cuba date back over two centuries, beginning with the "refugees" from the Haitian Revolution who fled to eastern Cuba in the early years of the 19th century. However, a much larger wave of Haitian migrants arrived in the first decades of the 20th century to fill labor shortages on sugar plantations, and most stayed. Anthropologist Grete Viddal joins Rebecca for an in-depth conversation on this history, the musical and religious practices migrants brought ...
Multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and educator Dr. John Calloway joins Rebecca to speak about the Cuban music scene in the Bay Area. Calloway has written for Grammy-nominated projects and recorded several of his own albums. He has spent 35 years as a music educator in San Francisco public schools and at San Francisco State University, founding the Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble and the Afro-Cuban Ensemble at SF State. Songs played: Aprovecha que me voy, John Calloway Dime si te gusta, Jes...
Ethnomusicologist and event producer Lani Milstein joins Rebecca to talk about Santiago de Cuba's quintessential musical practice: conga, an Afro-Cuban percussion and song genre linked to the city's famed Carnival celebrations. It involves mass participation by people parading along with the mobile percussion ensemble and continues to be a major symbol of santiaguero identity. Songs played: Abre, Conga de Los Hoyos Va a llover, Conga de San Agustín Añoranza por la conga, Sur Caribe La muje...
No new episode this week, but a quick note from Rebecca, followed by a slow, juicy yambú from the legendary Havana rumba group Clave y Guaguancó. Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcast by becoming a monthly subscriber - even $3/month helps! If you like this podcast, please hit "Follow" and give us a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Find The Clave Chronicles on Instagram, Facebook, & Threads @clavechronicles https://theclavech...
Rebecca speaks with musician/producer/historian Ned Sublette, author of the most comprehensive history of Cuban music in English, Cuba and Its Music: From the First Drums to the Mambo. Sublette is leading trips to Cuba through his organization, Postmambo, and in January will embark on La Ruta de los Fundamentos, a tour focusing on Afro-Cuban sacred sites in western Cuba (email postmambo@gmail.com for more info). We talk about the dense and entangled networks of Afro-Cuban religious practice a...
The most well-known African-derived religion in the Americas is La Regla de Ocha or Lucumí, more popularly known as Santería. The music used to accompany rituals and ceremonies involves complex, polyrhythmic drumming and a huge repertoire of songs for the different orishas (Yoruba-derived deities), like Yemayá, Oshún and Changó. Rebecca breaks down some basic features of the religion and its diverse musical ensembles, as well as its widespread influence on Cuban popular music. Songs played: ...
Cuban son, under the label "rumba," became incredibly popular following the success of "El manicero" in 1930, including in the two Congos (at the time colonized by Belgium and France). Congolese musicians heard echoes of their own traditional music and began creating a new genre (Congolese rumba) largely based on son, mambo and cha cha cha and sung in a mix of Spanish, French and Lingala. French historian Charlotte Grabli joins Rebecca to talk about the bi-directional musical exchanges ...
Grammy-nominated musician, ethnomusicologist, and professor Benjamin Lapidus joins Rebecca for a deep dive into the eastern Cuban roots music called changüí, considered to be one of the antecedents of son. Songs played: Nengón, Kiriba y Nengon de Baracoa Así Es El Changüí, Grupo Changüí de Guantánamo Fiesta en Cecilia, Grupo Changüí de Guantánamo 21 de Mayo, La Orquesta Revé Quiriba, Los Universales del Son Ochún, Las Flores de Changüí Cuidemos La Capa de Ozono, Popó y su Changu...
Timba star Tirso Duarte (pianist, singer, arranger, songwriter) passed away tragically on Sept. 29 in Colombia. Timba.com creator Kevin Moore, who worked closely with Duarte and wrote a book about him, joins Rebecca to pay tribute to "el angel negro" and discuss what made him so special as a musician. Songs played: El bla bla bla, La Charanga Habanera Iala, Tirso Duarte Aquí Están, Los Ases de la Timba Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcas...
Gloria Estefan walked so Shakira and Ricky Martin could run. She's the OG Latin crossover star, the artist who broke through to the mainstream with Miami Sound Machine and their massive hit "Conga" in 1985. She was also one of the best female balladeers of the 1980s, with songs like "Anything For You" and "Don't Wanna Lose You." In 1993 she released her first solo Spanish-language album, Mi Tierra, an homage to Cuban music. It spent a whopping 58 weeks at the top of the Billboard Top Latin Al...
Esteemed scholar of Latino/a popular culture and identity Frances Aparicio joins Rebecca to speak about the most significant women in salsa, beginning with the Queen herself, Celia Cruz. We talk about the many struggles female salsa musicians have faced in the music industry over the decades and the different strategies they've used to speak/sing back to the patriarchy and claim space. Songs played: Yerbero Moderno, Celia Cruz with La Sonora Matancera Burundanga, Celia Cruz with La Son...
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=_ZAjkXAh...
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 Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcast by becomin...
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 Band...
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, C...
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 Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcast by becoming a monthly subscriber - even $3/month helps! If you like this podcast, please hit "Follow" and give us a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Find The Clave Chronicles on Instagram, Faceb...
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-p...
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 ...
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 Send us a text Support the show You can support this independently produced podcast by becoming a monthly subscriber - even $3/month helps! If you like this podcast, please hit "Follow" and give us a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Find The Cl...
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 r...
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 Puen...
Part 2 of Rebecca's conversation with ethnomusicologist Chris Washburne, author of Sounding Salsa: Performing Latin Music in New York City, and professor at Columbia University. This episode discusses salsa's evolution away from the Cuban son, the ways it became a symbol of pan-Latin identity, and the different ways Celia Cruz and La India navigated the genre's heteronormative gender politics. Songs played: La Murga, Willie Colon and Hector Lavoe La Negra Tiene Tumbao, Celia Cruz Ese Hombre,...
Rebecca is joined by ethnomusicologist Chris Washburne, author of Sounding Salsa: Performing Latin Music in New York City, and professor at Columbia University. As a professional trombonist, he played with Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, Eddie Palmieri, Ruben Blades, La India, and many others. We discuss the influence of Cuban music in New York in the first half of the 20th century, the controversy around the term "salsa," and the way Puerto Rican and other Latinos built on this foundation to ...
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