| Plena is a music genre that flourished
among descendants of African slaves in Puerto Rico in the late 1800s.
Traditionally, plena is associated with the region around the city
of Ponce in the southwestern part of the island. The lyrics and melody
are the most important elements of plena. In its purest form, plena
is performed by a group of singers who accompany themselves on panderos
(a hand-held short drum that looks like a tambourine without jingles
and bigger in diameter,) guiro, and the ten-stringed cuatro. Plena
uses a rhythm that emphasizes beats one and three and is organized
into a pattern which suggests some relationship to the merengue of
Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Plena has an earthy, barrio vitality
which makes this music a vehicle of popular expression. Plena musicians
chronicle daily happenings in the life of the community, such as the
antics of politicians, a relationship gone sour, or the latest news
from the workplace. hat is reason plena is also known as “el
periódico cantao” or the living newspaper. Today plena
has been adapted to the music of bands, which play in large cities
of Puerto Rico and the U.S. mainland.
To familiarize yourself with plena and the development of Afro-Puerto
Rican music visit the following web site:
Listen to “Cortaron a Elena” by Rafael Cepeda and recorded
by Canario or “Mofongo Pelaó” by Rafael Cepeda
and recorded by Ismael Rivera and Rafael Cortijo, and identify the
African elements in these two compositions.
Preview Plena is Work, Plena is Song (VHS641). |
Answer the questions below.
1. List the major elements of plena.
2. Give examples of the events detailed in the plena selections
played in class.
3. Discuss how the bomba and plena selections that were played
in class reflect the principles of African music concepts of polyrhythm
and cross-rhythm that Professor Ladzekpo discusses in his site. |