Salsa
- Salsa grew from Cuban son music and was developed in New York in the 1960s and 1970s.
- It is built on the clave, a two-bar rhythm pattern (3-2 or 2-3) that everything else fits around.
- The piano plays a montuno: a repeated, syncopated pattern. Brass sections play punchy riffs.
- Percussion: timbales, congas, bongos, cowbell and maracas. Singing uses call and response between the lead singer and a chorus, usually in Spanish.
Samba and bossa nova
- Samba comes from Brazil and is played at carnival in Rio de Janeiro. A street samba band (a batucada) is all percussion.
- Samba instruments: surdo (big bass drum), caixa (snare drum), repinique (lead drum), tamborim, agogô (two bells) and chocalho (shaker). The leader uses an apito (whistle) to signal breaks.
- Samba is in 2/4 with lots of syncopation and layered ostinatos.
- Bossa nova (Brazil, late 1950s) mixes samba rhythms with jazz harmony: gentle nylon-string guitar, soft singing and a relaxed tempo.
Tango and modern Latin music
- Tango comes from Argentina: dramatic and passionate, with the bandoneon (a kind of concertina), violin and piano, and the habanera rhythm.
- Contemporary Latin pop and reggaeton add drum machines, synthesisers and the dembow rhythm, and mix Spanish and English.
- Common Latin features: syncopation, the clave, repeated ostinatos, layers of percussion and dance rhythms.
Key terms
- Clave
- A two-bar rhythm pattern that Latin music is built around.
- Montuno
- A repeated, syncopated piano pattern in salsa.
- Batucada
- A Brazilian samba percussion band.
- Surdo
- The large bass drum in samba.
- Apito
- The whistle a samba leader uses to signal breaks.
- Bossa nova
- A gentle Brazilian style mixing samba and jazz.
- Bandoneon
- A concertina used in tango.
- Syncopation
- Stressing off-beats or weak beats.
Quick questions on Contemporary Latin music
- What is the clave in Latin music?
- A two-bar rhythm pattern the music is built around: It can be 3-2 or 2-3.
- What does the piano play in salsa?
- A montuno: a repeated, syncopated pattern: It locks in with the clave.
- Where was salsa developed?
- New York, from Cuban roots: In the 1960s and 1970s.
- What is a batucada?
- A Brazilian samba percussion band: It plays at carnival.
- Which samba instrument is the large bass drum?
- Surdo: It keeps the steady pulse.
- What does a samba leader use the apito for?
- To signal breaks and changes: It is a whistle.
- What is bossa nova?
- A gentle Brazilian style mixing samba and jazz: It began in the late 1950s.
- Which instrument is closely linked with tango?
- Bandoneon: A kind of concertina.