MUSIC OF LATIN AMERICA

The music of Latin America is the product of three major influences – Indigenous,

Spanish-Portuguese, and African. Sometimes called Latin music, it includes the

countries that have had a colonial history from Spain and Portugal.

INFLUENCES ON LATINAMERICAN MUSIC

1. Indigenous Latin- American Music

Before the arrival of colonizers, the

natives were used local drum and
percussion instruments such as the
guiro, maracas, and turtle shells, and wind instruments
such as zampona (pan
pipes) and quena (notched-end
flutes) .These are made from tree
trunks, animal skins, fruit shells, dry
seeds, cane and clay, hardwood trees, jaguar
claws, animal and human bones, and specially-treated
inflated eyes of tigers.

2. Native American/Indian Music

Some of the Native American music includes courtship songs, dancing songs,
and popular American or Canadian tunes like Amazing Grace, Dixie, Jambalaya,
and Sugar Time. Many songs celebrate themes like harvest, planting season or
other important times of year.

3. Afro-Latin American Music

The African influence on Latin American music is most pronounced in its rich and
varied rhythmic patterns produced by the drums and various percussion
instruments. Vocal music was often deep chested
while instrumental music greatly relied on resonant drums and sympathetic
buzzers to produce rich sounds and occasional loud volume levels to reflect their
intensity.

4. Euro-Latin American Music

The different regions of Latin America adopted various characteristics from their
European colonizers. Other European influences were manifested in the texture of Euro-Latin
American music, from unaccompanied vocal solos to those accompanied by stringed
instruments.
5. Mixed American Music
.
This musical fusion of Latin America combining native instruments with European
counterparts and musical theories was further enriched by the instruments brought
by the African slaves. This infusion of African culture resulted to introduction of other music and
dance forms such as the Afro- Cuban rumba, Jamaican reggae, Colombian cumbia, and the
Brazilian samba.

6. Popular Latin American Music

Latin America has produced a number of musical genres and forms that had been
influenced by European folk music, African traditional music, and native sources.Some of these
Latin American popular music forms are tango, bossa nova, samba, son, and salsa.

MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS OF LATINAMERICA

1. Tlapitzalli - is a flute variety from the Aztec culture made of clay with
decorations of abstract designs or images of their deities.

2. Teponaztli - is a Mexican slit drum hollowed

out and carved from a piece of hardwood and used for both religious
and recreational purposes.

3. Conch- is a wind instrument made from a seashell usually of a large sea snail. It is
prepared by cutting a hole in its spine near the apex, then blown into as if it were a
trumpet.

4. Rasp- is a hand percussion instrument whose sound is

produced by scraping a group of notched sticks with another
stick, creating a series of rattling effects.

5. Huehueti - is a Mexican upright tubular drum used by the Aztecs and other
ancient civilizations. It is made of wood opened at the bottom and standing on
three legs cut from the
base, with its stretched skin beaten by the hand or a wooden mallet.
6. Whistles- are instruments made of natural elements such as bone from animals.
The eagle-bone whistle is the most common whose function is to help
symbolize the piece’s purpose.

Incan Instruments

Among the Incas of South America, two instrumental varieties were most common:

a. Ocarina - was an ancient vessel flute made of clay or ceramic with four to 12 finger
holes and a mouthpiece that projected from the body.

b. Panpipes (Zamponas) were ancient instruments tuned to different scalar varieties,

played by blowing across the tubetop.

Andean Instruments
The Andean highlands made use of several varieties of flutes and string instruments that
include the following:

a. Pitus - are side-blown cane flutes that are played all year round.

b. Wooden Tarkas are vertical duct flutes with a mouthpiece similar to that of a
recorder, used during the rainy season.

c. Quenas - are vertical cane flutes with an end-notched made

from fragile bamboo and are used during the dry season.

d. Charango- is a ten-stringed Andean guitar from Bolivia. It

is the size of a ukulele
and a smaller version of the mandolin, imitating the early guitar and lute brought by
the Spaniards.

Mariachi - is an extremely popular band in Mexico whose original ensemble consisted of

violins, guitars, harp, and an enormous guitarron (acoustic bass guitar). Mariachi music is
extremely passionate and romantic with their blended harmonies and characterized by catchy
rhythms.