Timba

[quixotedlm]

What's an example of a Timba song that's popular among salsa dancers?

[MacMoto]

"Tim-pop con Birdland" by Los Van Van -- a.k.a. "the Yes Song" -- is (still!) played regularly around here and remains very popular. My personal favourite timba song is "Locos Por Mi Habana" by Manolito y Su Trabuco.

[Catarina]

you can go to www.timba.com (http://www.timba.com) and listen/watch lots of timba & other music clips...I love los van van & manolito too...charanga habanera is excellent also.

[gte692h]

haha, salsa is light years behind timba (musically). where I am, there is a real bias toward NY style salsa, so no timba gets played.

As far as timba songs popular among salsa dancers, that is a trick question right ? salsa dancers dance to salsa. Timba is preferred among cuban/casino style dancers, or followers of cuban music.

Timba is essentially salsa, with a strong jazz and funk influence. Primarily seen in horns, bass, use of drumset, etc. So on one extreme, you have Bamboleo, which I LOVE, but is really jazzy. Then in the middle is charanga habanera, manolito y su trabuco (closer to cuban son). Grammy nominated Tiempo Libre comes closer to salsa, and there are great bands in europe that play timba, like calle real.

Calle Real: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A55zw6mCCTo
Tiempo Libre: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETiBsdkXm_U
Manolito y su trabuco: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuQliHuKhAo
charanga habanera: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r40yOd7zFPA
Bamboleo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgncCCQPq-o

definitely research more, its a whole new world of music. more complex, more rich. and within that, there are a variety of bands and styles. Other bands like Maraca, Azucar Negra, Los Van Van, so many..

[quixotedlm]

not a trick question. i thought timba is son-clave based and same as any other salsa music in its underlying essence, right?

[Big10]

What's an example of a Timba song that's popular among salsa dancers?

As far as timba songs popular among salsa dancers, that is a trick question right ?
I've had a similar experience to gte692h's -- it's extremely rare to hear Timba put into a rotation with other types of Salsa music, especially at a dance club. I honestly can't remember ever hearing a Timba song at a congress or a social here in Texas. When I hear Timba, it's either at a house party or at an event where most of the evening is specifically dedicated to Cuban music.

I guess my musical taste is a little more open than most people, because I can keep dancing even if a DJ played a good Timba song, followed by '80s Salsa Romantica, followed by some '70s Salsa Dura. It's just too bad that most DJ's don't take the time to include some Timba in their mixes. :(

If I had to name my favorite Timba songs, I think most of them would come from Los Van Van, such as:
"Anda, Ven Y Quiereme"
"Chapeando"
"Tim-Pop con Birdland"
"Esto Te Pone La Cabeza Mala"

Also, "El Papi" by NG La Banda is very good, and popular among dancers who like to dance to Timba music.

[MacMoto]

where I am, there is a real bias toward NY style salsa, so no timba gets played.

As far as timba songs popular among salsa dancers, that is a trick question right ? salsa dancers dance to salsa. Timba is preferred among cuban/casino style dancers, or followers of cuban music.

I suppose things are a bit different in Scotland...

The Glasgow scene is now heavily dominated by Cuban-style salsa. Although crossbody style salsa is still taught, regular club nights are now all run by Cuban-style salsa schools (there are three of these now), so the majority of the music you hear on those nights is timba (although DJs do play some salsa if crossbody style dancers are there).

Edinburgh is crossbody-style dominated (mainly on1, some on2), but we still have Cuban-style dancers -- there are Edinburgh teachers who teach the style, and we also have Cuban-style dancers travelling from outside Edinburgh to some of our nights. DJs do try to cater to them, so we get some timba played in Edinburgh (which annoys some on2 folk :roll:). It's not just those Cuban-style dancers who get up to dance to timba though -- Tim-pop always fills the floor around here.

[azzey]

not a trick question. i thought timba is son-clave based and same as any other salsa music in its underlying essence, right?

The majority of Timba has a Rumba clave throughout (except perhaps if there is a Son phrase as the intro, Cuban Mambo or Cha cha cha phrase during the song). The last beat of the clave (if talking about a normal 2-3 Son Clave) is shifted by half a beat (in Rumba clave), which puts it closer to the first beat of the next bar and makes it harder for Salsa dancers to keep time who are not used to dancing to Timba.

It's also very heavy in percussion with a *lot* of fast phrasal changes and often has a heavy influence of Rumba, Reggaeton or Folkloric dances (Eleggua, Oshun, Chango etc) throughout. There are also many Clave changes which happen in seamless almost unpredictable ways compared to Puerto Rican Salsa. Takes a considerable time to learn to dance to the music well and thats why most Salsa dancers who are used to Mambo, Puerto Rican and NY Salsa don't like it.

Also most Timba has a completely different vibe than other Salsa (NY, PR, Columbian) and often doesn't conform to their structure in terms of accents in the music, which means anybody who's *only* used to dancing to those forms of Salsa has to learn to dance to the music all over again.

More info on from: http://www.timba.com/fans/clave_debates.asp

We have native Cuban teachers living here in Scotland and they regularly collect new music in Cuba and play it the week they come back so I guess we're probably more up to date than a lot of the scenes out there. Throughout the last few years the 'popular' sound has always been changing.

[gte692h]

not a trick question. i thought timba is son-clave based and same as any other salsa music in its underlying essence, right?

In the essence, yes. Clave is still used, but usually rumba clave (2-3, or 3-2) and son clave (usually 3-2). In comparison, most of the NY salsa music is 2-3 son clave.

Now if you look at clave in general, its used to keep time. Different claves give different feeling. So the way I see timba, yes, it is like an evolved sibling/child of salsa.

So you have the same instruments, still using clave, but like azzey posted above, the phrasing is quite different, so it doesn't sound like the salsa we know here. Its like how mambo from the 50s is familiar, but doesn't sound like spanish harlem or orquesta LA-33.

most salsa dancers freak when they hear timba, lol. its too different, and not easily danceable for a CB style. Salsa dancers need a steady beat, they need to hear certain things like clave, congas, etc very clearly and in a predictable pattern. which is why ny/colombian style is great.
Cuban style is not always that way. not all bands prefer that 'regular' danceable style. there are many bands that do. A lot of the bands make their music danceable, and full of street lyrics, but the question is the audience. they dance, but not always the way its done here. so cubans are inventing their own dances on the street, as they wish, but in the US and europe, there is training involved and a style developed. So you'll see timba bands in europe and US being very danceable, but that might not be the case with all timba music.

I like music in general, there is some beautiful timba, and beautiful salsa, and there is a lot in between, but a lot of folks view this music in terms of its 'danceability' and not as 'music'.

[quixotedlm]

I like music in general, there is some beautiful timba, and beautiful salsa, and there is a lot in between, but a lot of folks view this music in terms of its 'danceability' and not as 'music'.

What's music without dance ?
What's body without soul?


Okay, that was a flamebait. So don't respond to it ;)

[azzey]

What's music without dance ?
What's body without soul?
Okay, that was <snip!>

What's dancing without a hot body.. ;)

[gte692h]

What's music without dance ?
What's body without soul?


Okay, that was a flamebait. So don't respond to it ;)


absolutely - but dance needn't be defined by numbers and styles. (sorry, i had to bite ;))

[azzey]

absolutely - but dance needn't be defined by numbers and styles. (sorry, i had to bite ;))

Even if the numbers are 38-24-36? "Your surprise partner tonight will be a 6 foot tall sweaty hillbilly farmer named moe!"

p.s. Colombian salsa rocks! http://www.la-33.com/

[gte692h]

Even if the numbers are 38-24-36? "Your surprise partner tonight will be a 6 foot tall sweaty hillbilly farmer named moe!"

p.s. Colombian salsa rocks! http://www.la-33.com/

haha, hmm, i'd take monica over moe any day.

la-33 is a groovy band. they have a certain style no one else has, especially their vocalists!
to me they are an exception though. they are more 'modern' than most.

[MacMoto]

la-33 is a groovy band. they have a certain style no one else has, especially their vocalists!
I have a thing about the even-numbered-track singer's voice :rolleyes:.

Their music has a very un-Colombian feel -- very fresh and original. I like it.