AFRO LATIN AND

AMERICAN MUSIC
What is Afro-latin Music?

Afro-Latin American music is a term that refers to the

fusion of African and Latin American cultures through
music. It includes genres such as salsa, cumbia,
merengue, and bachata.
What is the history of Afro-Latin American music?
◦ The history of Afro-Latin American music can be trace during the European
colonization and slave trade in Africa Latin America is comprised of different
regions such as the Caribbean Islands, Mexico, and Central and South
Americas which are of diversified cultures of the European, Moors,Mexicans,
and other tribes if Africa. European countries contributed religions and
languages like Spanish and Portuguese.
◦ Their music is identified by their rhythms, which they adapted from the
elements of Moorish music and African and Caribbean music in the slave
trade from 1550 to 1880. The enslaved Moors of North America in 1776 were
prohibited from playing drums, but in the Congo Square in New Orleans,
Caribbean slaves were free to play their drums for recreation and
entertainment and also for communication
What are the characteristics of Afro-Latin American
music?
◦ These are the characteristics of Afro-Latin American music
◦ 1. Conversation: Call and response" - a performance of voice interaction as
an answer to the first chant.
◦ 2. Improvisation: Non-scripted ways of singing that allow for sincere
conversations. It is a framework where the artist has freedom in creating
themusical mood.
◦ 3. The voice as an instrument: It is the manipulation of a freely controlled
piece where they can change the tone of voice, its tempo, the creation of
moods,and even changing the range and voice power.
◦ 4. The instrument as a voice: The instrument serves as a "singer" along with
the range and voice power
What is African music?
◦ African music is a rich and diverse cultural heritage that exist in
hundreds of different languages. The music in Africa always has
the technique of "call and response" in which a person leads by
singing a phrase and followed and answered by a group of
singers. They usually perform by singing and using percussion
instruments played either by hands or with sticks, drums, and
others, and they them also for communication to convey news, to
teach, to tell a story, and for religious purposes; this includes the
Maracatu..
What are the other vocal forms of african music?
◦ There are some vocal forms of African music that includes:
◦ 1.Blues-This is a gloomy flok music of African- american origin, which
is naturally in a twelve-bar order. This was developed in rural areas in
the United States by the end of the 19th century and became popular
upon the migration of the African-Americans in the cities in the 1940s.
This urban blues gave birth to rock and roll, and rhythm and blues.
◦ 2.Soul-This is a kinds of music combining the basics of rhythm and
blues and gospel music, which was popularized by the African-
Americans. It is characterized by vocal emphasis and an emotional
and improvised delivery. The performers associated with this kind of
music are Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, 0tis Redding, and James
Brown.
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◦ 3.Spiritual-This kind of music is always with a Christian or

religious theme. This kind of music is monophonic in nature and
in a capella, which is the origin of the music which we call blues.
A spiritual song provides comfort and eases the boredom from
their daily activities. They are an expression of spiritual devotion
and a desire for freedom from bondage.
◦ 4.Call and Response-This is a sequence of two different phrases
usually played by two or more musicians. It is a direct response
from the first phrase; is is a commentary response.
What is Latin-American music?
◦The rhythm and styles of Latin -American music are
influenced by the United States and other countries in
Europe like Spain and Portugal.Latin music is the
combination of four musical elements, musical styles,
cultural backgrounds, language, and geography. Some of
the musical styles are tango, bossa nova, merengue, and
salsa and also other genres such as reggae, jazz, rock, and
Latin pop.
What are the different instruments used in
Latin-American Music?
◦ 1. Bombo -It is a dual-headed drum made from a deep tree trunk with
patches made up of calf or goat skin; it is played using two sticks.
◦ 2. Chajchas - It is a rattle made up of dried hooves from sheep, llama,
or goat and is worn with a wrist cloth bracelet.
◦ 3. Zamponas - It is a panpipe-type of reed made up of bamboo that are
tied together.
◦ 4. Charango This is an instrument made from the shell of an
Armadillo. This is a ten-string guitar instrument.
◦ 5. Quena - It is a flute made of bones or bamboo that has a
vertical-notched reed.
◦ 6. Cajon - It is a rectangular box made of wood; it is played and
used as a drum.
◦ It is used by tapping its front part while the musician sits on it.
◦ 7. Maracas - These are instruments made of gourd-like coconut
shells with beans,
◦ seeds, or small pebbles placed inside; they are played by shaking.
◦ 8. Claves - These are a pair of hardwood sticks playe by striking
them together.
What are the vocal and dance forms of Latin-
America?
◦ 1. Cumbia - It is a type of dance and music similar to salsa and uses
instruments like accordions, guitars, and percussions.
◦ 2. Tango - This is a lively and spirited dance of tgwo people. It is a passionate
kind of dance that shows expression and connection, and is performed in a
traditional or modern style.
◦ 3. Cha-cha - This is a Latin-American ballroom dance with the basic pattern
of three steps with a shuffle. It has a fast rhythmic pattern.
◦ 4. Bossanova - This a style of music that was derived from samba, which is
an original Brazilian music. It gives more emphasis on percussion and
melody.
◦ 5. Pasodoble - It is Spain's traditional couple dance. It uses music that is
traditionally played in bull fighting.
◦ 6. Reggae This is a Jamaican form of music and dance with strong,
accented, and supplementary beats. In the 1960s, it was known as the ska
and is a variation of rhythm and blues. The popular artist of this genre was
Bob Marley.
◦ 7. Rumba - This is a kind of song and a dance that originated from Cuba with
a percussive rhythm and a combination of Cuba's musical and dance
traditions.
◦ 8. Foxtrot - It is a ballroom dance of two quick slow steps and two quick
steps and is executed alternately in 4/4 time signature.
What is maracatu?
◦ Maracatu is an Afro-Brazilian dance procession performed during Carnival in
Recife, Pernambuco. The maracatu originated in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries, when plantation owners allowed slaves to elect kings and queens and
parade during holidays—singing, dancing, and drumming—while dressed in the
costumes of European royal courts. These groups, which were then known as
Congadas and were linked to black religious brotherhoods, mixed Catholicism
with African religious practices. After the abolition of slavery (1888) this tradition
was incorporated into the Carnival celebrations of Recife and given the name
maracatu. These groups now parade during carnival dressed in elaborate Louis XV
costumes of various stock characters: king, queen, princes, princesses,
ambassadors, Roman soldiers, baianas (Bahian women), and slaves. A central
figure is the dama do paço (court lady), whocarries a small doll representing an
ancestor of the group.
What are the african styles of music?
◦ 1.Afrobeat
◦ Afrobeat is a combination of American jazz, funk and Nigerian beat.
◦ 2.Afropop
◦ Afropop as certain people call some of the new popular music of Africa is
spiced with elements of carious African and western rhythms.
◦ 3.Bikutsi
◦ Bikutsi the late addition to Cameroon popular dance music, the style
created by five musicians from that west African country to react to zouk
style dance music from Martinique that had monopolized Cameroon
airwaves in the early nineties.
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◦ 4.Chimurenga
◦ Chimurenga is the liberation war music of Zimbabwe. It is a
mix of the traditional mbira music with electric guitar use as
a tool of the liberation struggle by this country’s
internationally known artist Thomas Mapfumo.
◦ 5.Fuji Garbage
◦ Fuji Garbage comes from Nigeria. It is a drums based Yoruba
music, with guitars; accordions and talking drums.