Introduction

The first African slaves were brought to the Americas in the 1500’s; African music survived in a subliminal stage for almost two centuries, transmitted in a semi-clandestine way among slaves crowded in barracks and dying of exhaustion. African music in Cuba emerged from this larval stage during the nineteenth century, with the massive importation of slaves—especially from Nigeria, Cameroon, Benin and the Congo-- that marked the sugar boom in the island as Cuba took over the sugar market that had been vacated by the Haitian revolution and the newly independent former British colonies.

In this module, it is essential to stress the difference between the way African culture fared in the Spanish and Portuguese colonies as opposed to the British colonies, where African instruments, dances and rituals all but disappeared. The two main traditions, the Yoruba from Nigeria and Cameroon (from which most religious music developed) and the Bantu from the Congo (where the Congolese yuka and makuta gave rise to popular dances like the conga, the rumba and the mambo) will be discussed.

As you listen to the musical selections, watch out for the following characteristics: polyrhythmic structures, or the simultaneous playing of different rhythms on different percussive instruments; individual singer and chorus refrains; absence of instruments other than percussion.