Let's talk 'music' now

[Pacion]

We have talked about the different styles of salsa/mambo in terms of the dancing, but what about the music? Someone asked about mambo vs salsa music.

For the musicians/those in the know, Enquiring minds would like to know, :lol: how can I (we) tell the difference between Columbian/Puerto Rican/Cuban etc salsa music?

Is there anything to listen for particularly?

[borikensalsero]

WOW! What a great question, I can tell what is from where, but I haven't the slightest idea as to exactly why! I'd love to hear what our musician community has to say!! :bouncy:

[Pacion]

:bouncy:

I am glad that you liked the question Boriken :wink:

Oh, and any examples ie. naming of bands would be appreciated please, to try and put it in context :D

[borikensalsero]

Here is the tad I know...

If you are looking to see difference you are best suited looking mid 80s back, that is, in respect to Rican and New Yorican music. The 90s pretty much had one sheet of music for practically all songs coming out of PR and New York, that is still pretty much the case. hehe

Leborn Brothers - Colombia
Fruko Y sus Tesos - Colombia
Joe Arroyo - Colombia
Son De Cali - Colombia

El Gran Combo - Do I need say?
La Sonora Ponceña - Puerto Rico
Willie Rosario - Although started his career in the US, his style is Puerto Rico all the way.
Bobby Valentin - has a mix of style, but still within in, IMHO, it is mostly rican style.
Frankie Ruiz - As Puerto Rico as Puerto Rico gets in style
Eddie Santiago - Puerto Rico
Roberto Roena - Puerto Rico even if he incorporates some of a New York taste.

New York
Eddie Palmieri
Charlie Palmieri
Ray Barretto
Willie Colon (willie colon can also play a good PR style salsa) Willie was the other side of NY Style salsa, the smooth/slower speed stuff.
Larry Harlow
La Tipica 73
Los Flamboyan

A mix between cuba and the US
Johnny Pacheco

Out of all salsa styles, it is said that Puerto Rican salsa out does all the others in terms of lyrics, and flavor. Their lyrics are said to always mean something, catchy, and double sided, it is a relaxed style, with a bomba/plena touch, and why it is said that the lyrics are the better ones in all salsa styles, bomba and plena and even jibaro music in form of decima, called for imporvisational skills that were among the best anywhere in the world at the time, the ricans are said to have carried it over to their salsa.

NY Style salsa is very agressive with a great deal of socio-cultural implications describing the living conditions that latinos lived under in the US. A hard environment, a hard music to go with it. Their lyrics even spoke of crime (Juanito Alimaña, Pedro Navaja) and what it was like to be there at that time...

Colombian music, heck, I know nothing about it. Cuban salsa, beats me just as well. Don't know a lick about it either.

[salsachinita]

:oops: While I'm no expert, I know my music when I hear it. A bit like wine tasting I guess :wink: !

Here are some Cuban:

Los Van Van: famous for their own style called 'songo' in earlier days. Some of their newer materials fit into the Timba genre.
Sierra Meastra: traditional son
Orquesta Reve: their distinictive style is called 'son changui'
Charanga Habanera: I believe the rhythm is called charanga, but stylewise, this band is distintively Timba.
Maracas: another favourite of mine, also fits under Timba.

I'm still looking for a particular page in the web I've printed from, with a great listing of Timba artists :oops: .....

For now, this is an old thread for those who are interested: http://www.dance-forums.com/viewtopic.php?t=2039&highlight=timba

[salsachinita]

Just found this: http://www.afrocubaweb.com/music.html

While it's not the one I was thinking of, it's a good one 8) .

[squirrel]

boriken, I completely agree with you ... PR Salsa rulz!

It is my favourite (and so is their dancing style...)

I don't know much about Cuban Salsa either, except for the fact they use a lot of percussion... :)

Colombian Salsa... it can be quite ok to dance to... I like Sonora Carruseles... ;)

What about Grupo Niche and Los Adolescentes? Cano Estremerra? Luisito Carrion? :)

[Sabor]

i'm not great at differentiating either.. but i can definitely pick out my favorite rythm.. when i feel best on the floor.. and that is Cuban / Afro-Cuban .. i like Son very much which far as i know is of Cuban origin ..

[salsachinita]

i feel best on the floor.. and that is Cuban / Afro-Cuban .. i like Son very much which far as i know is of Cuban origin ..

:bouncy: :bouncy: :bouncy: :bouncy:

?Queres bailar, por favor, mi amor?

I sooooooooo need to work on my son!!!!!!

[brujo]

I think you also need to look at time periods within the music and the different artists that are representative of each era.

To say that there is a certain 'New York' sound is fairly deceiving. The salsa romantica (now ) from Marc Anthony or Frankie Ruiz is definitively different than Hector Lavoe / Willie Colon (70s - early 80s ). There are also so many branches and offshots that come off the clave based sounds. You are talking Timba, Despelote, Reggaton, Boogaloo, Son, Cha-Cha, Latin Jazz, etc etc etc.

Then you have all the artists that have a salsa based repertoire but are not strictly salsa. Lenny Kravitz has salsa songs. Mana, Cafe Quijano, Orishas, Sergent Garcia, Javier Calamaro, Ricardo Arjona all have salsa influenced sounds that are sometimes salsa, sometimes not.

[Sabor]

i feel best on the floor.. and that is Cuban / Afro-Cuban .. i like Son very much which far as i know is of Cuban origin ..

:bouncy: :bouncy: :bouncy: :bouncy:

?Queres bailar, por favor, mi amor?

I sooooooooo need to work on my son!!!!!!

me gustaria mucho bailar contigo guapisima :D .. we shall dance together someday mami.. and its going to be glorious watching u glow brighter with every boom of my heart :wink:

[salsachinita]

:D :oops: *flutter, flutter!*

[salsalawyer]

that guy is smooth!!! :lol:

[Sabor]

:lol:

people.. so that u know.. I heard that SL is known in some parts of the world as "Hot Chocolate" .. nuff said! :lol:

[squirrel]

yes, he is a smooth talker!

[borikensalsero]

I think you also need to look at time periods within the music and the different artists that are representative of each era.

To say that there is a certain 'New York' sound is fairly deceiving.

Indeed time periods need to be differentiated, for each time period was differentiated by a distinct sound, however, Rican Salsa, Colombian Salsa, and New Yorikan salsa from within those periods are totally different from one another, hence, why salsa can and is broken down with different sounds.

I can tell you exactly what period in time, and what region a song is from without ever hearing the song before.

There is just a total distinction between the sounds coming from each region. Each region used their own identity to create a certain salsa sound. It is basically like speaking a language, let say English, from the particular accent we can tell exactly where a person is from, even a relative time period given certain characteristics within their speech. I took few colombian salsa CDs to PR and, every salsero I played the music to, I mean every single one, asked what kind of salsa that was, for it was totally different to the salsa they were used to hearing: New Yorican and Puerto Rican.

The best way to explain to another knowledgeable salsa person what a particular song sounds like is telling him what era, and what region. They can from that pretty much know exactly what it will sound like.

Example, Eddie Santiago has a rican style from the Romantica era of salsa. From that, if the person knows their salsa, they can 100% know what his songs will sound like. If I tell him NY Style from the Romantica era, then I will be deceiving the person for nothing coming out of NY City, or Colombia sounded like a Rican style even if made during the Romantica Era.

Only a hand full of salsa coming from the Classic Period of salsa and Puerto Rico sound like New Yorican Salsa, and even then you can tell it is a rican band playing it. Same goes for a colombian salsa. There is just and absolute different flavor to each salsa and region.

[salsachinita]

There is just and absolute different flavor to each salsa and region.

Agreed. The closest analogy I can come up with is wine tasting. The experts can pretty much tell the vintage & the region where the grapes came from.

Not being a wine drinker (or much or a drinker anyway), it never ceased to amaze me that from a mere encounter of the wine there's so much story behind the product.

Much like the way a salsa conniseur would be able to amaze others, no 8) ?

[borikensalsero]

There is just and absolute different flavor to each salsa and region.

Agreed. The closest analogy I can come up with is wine tasting. The experts can pretty much tell the vintage & the region where the grapes came from.

Not being a wine drinker (or much or a drinker anyway), it never ceased to amaze me that from a mere encounter of the wine there's so much story behind the product.

Much like the way a salsa conniseur would be able to amaze others, no 8) ?

lol, wine!, sweet and very true...
It's like the way we think, we can always peak out who was born under what religious doctrine just by listening to them talk; buddhist, hindy, christian, santero/shaman, etc... It think it is so amazing that once knowledge becomes you, you can tell pretty much anything from the slightest of difference. WOW!!

I don't even think I'll be able to tell what is wine or grape juice! hehe