charanga

This article is about the Cuban musical style, not to be confused with the musical instrument "charango".

Charanga is a term given to traditional ensembles of Cuban dance music. They made Cuban dance music popular in the 1940s and their music consisted of heavily son-influenced material, performed on European instruments such as violin and flute by a Charanga orchestra. (Aviva 2004, p.199). The style of music that is most associated with a Charanga is termed 'Danzon', and is an amalgam of both European classical music and African rhythms.

Origins

In Spanish, charanga is a generic name for a band that plays popular, festive music, often a marching band. In Cuba it has quite a different meaning.

The first charanga francesa in Cuba was formed at the turn of the twentieth century, possibly by the Antonio (Papaíto) Torroella (1856–1934), whose orchestra was active by 1894. These orchestras play lighter versions of the danzón without a brass section and emphasizing flutes, violins, and piano. The percussion was provided by pailes criollos, now known as timbales. The style continued into the 1940s with flautist Antonio Arcaño and Las Maravillas (Morales 2003 p13). Charangas are still widespread today, though the danzón is now a relic music.

Orquesta de Antonio María Romeu, founded in 1910 (photo is later). It was one of the first charanga francesas.

The Charanga francesa, developed from the Orquesta típica to play danzón, consists of piano, bass, timbales, and other percussion, two violins, and a flute (Manuel 1990 p27).

Sources

• Chomsky, Aviva (2004). The Cuba Reader: History, Culture, Politics. ISBN 0-8223-3197-7.
• Manuel, Peter (1990). Popular Musics of the Non-Western World: An Introductory Survey. ISBN 0-19-506334-1.
• Morales, Ed (2003). The Latin Beat: The Rhythms and Roots of Latin Music, from Bossa Nova to Salsa and Beyond. ISBN 0-306-81018-2.

Genre Representatives

Orquesta Aragón

Ritmo Oriental

Charanga 76

La Charanga Forever

La Charanga Cubana (Los Angeles)

External links

• Sample Charanga Music
• Article on Charanga

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