Bomba is one of the traditional musical styles of Puerto Rico.[1] It is the mixture of the 3 different cultures of the Island, the Spanish, African and Taino cultures. The base rhythm is played by 2 or more drums or "Barriles"(the translation is Barrels because they are made from Barrels of Rum) called "Buleadores", one "Barril" called "Primo" or "Subidor", cuá (two sticks that were originally banged on the side of the Barril and a maraca.[1] Dance is an integral part of the music: The drum called "Primo" replicates every single move of the dancer, this is called "Repique". Although the origins are a little scarce it's easy to spot the elegance and poise of the Spanish Flamenco and the energy and soul of African dances.[1]
While bomba can be used as the generic name for a number of rhythms, its real meaning is about the encounter and creative relationship between dancers, percussionists, and singers. Bomba is a community affair that still thrives in its traditional centers of Loíza, Santurce, Mayagüez, Ponce, and New York City. [2]
Bomba is described to be a challenge/connection between the drummer and the dancer. The dancer produces a series of gestures to which the primo o subidor drummer provides a synchronized beat. Thus, it is the drummer who attempts to follow the dancer and not the other way around. The dancer must be in great physical shape and the challenge usually continues until either the dancer discontinues.
Bomba also is composed by 3 or more singers and a solo singer, the singing has a dinamic similar to those of "Son" were the lead singer sings a corus and the other respond, and in between coruses the lead singer will improvise a verse. The theme of most Bomba songs is every day life and activity, Like the case of a certain song called "Palo e Bandera" that talks about a love triangle between a female dancer, a female singer and the singer's husband the "Primo" player. The Wife realizes her husband is cheating on her with the dancer and decides to teach her a lesson on the dancefloor (Also called Batey, which means front yard).
[From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]
History
Created on Puerto Rico's colonial sugar plantations by African slaves and their descendants, bomba is the most purely African music genre of Puerto Rico and one of the oldest, dating back to the 1680s. Bomba's roots may trace back to the Akan people of modern Ghana, the original ancestors of much of the black population of Puerto Rico. Performing and dancing the bomba provided a social and political outlet for a people burdened with the hardships of slavery; bomba was danced at the sugar plantations on Saturday nights and holidays, usually in open areas in the sugarcane fields or in the plazas of the town square. Although the bomba developed as a secular dance form, it provided an outlet for spiritual expression and release as well. Forbidden from worshiping their ancient African gods, the African communities fused their customs onto the worship of St James. During festivals that honored the Christian saint, bomba music was played and a traditional mask, called "vejigante" in Spanish, was worn. The mask was supposed to scare away the evil spirits and pirates that populated the Caribbean.
Bomba dances were performed during important social or community events. As with other music traditions that originate in West Africa, dance and music are inseparable counterparts in a bomba performance.
Some historians say that the bomba first developed Loíza, a town on the Northeast coast of Puerto Rico with a strong African presence. Regardless of its original birthplace, the genre continued to develop in coastal towns such as Ponce, Loíza Aldea and Mayaguez where in the 1800s large communities of black workers gathered around sugar cane mills. As the workers moved San Juan and other urban areas, bomba (as well as plena) became a part of urban cultural life.
Traditional bomba ensembles featured two or three differently pitched drums, typically made from rum barrels and called barriles, a single maraca, a pair of sticks ("palitos") called cuá or fuá that tap out a fixed organizing rhythmic timeline on the side of the drum or another resonant surface. A solo singer is answered by a chorus call-and-response style, singing over the great variety of rhythmic patterns that comprise the bomba.
The lyrics are generally of topical nature, revolving around the life of the community and island history, and include improvised parts referring to the dance and music performed. Lyrics are delivered in alternating stanzas and responsorial parts. Traditionally, a bomba started with a female solo voice called "laina", singing a phrase that evoked a primitive call, answered by the chorus, and supported by the musicians who provided the 2/4 or 6/8 rhythm with various percussion instruments.
The barrel shaped drums or barriles are covered with tightly stretched skins and played by hand. The lower pitched drum is called the buleador, and it plays a supporting fixed rhythmic pattern. The smaller, higher pitched drum is called the subidor, primo or repicador. The drums are accompanied by the rhythmical beating of the sticks and maracas. There are many rhythmic patterns and variations that comprise the bomba family, and some bombas have names that reflect their African origin, such as cocobale, babú, belén, cunyá, yubá and sicá, which is the bomba rhythm most often adopted by modern orchestras. Other bomba styles are named for the type of dance it is associated with, such as the bomba Holandes or the leró, which is a French derivative of the word "rose", referencing the formation of the dancers that symbolized a rose.
Traditionally bomba is danced by a mixed couple who take turns showing off their skills, competing with each other and with the drummer. The dancers proceed in pairs and without contact. The excitement and sensual tension in the music is generated by the often improvised interactions of the singer and chorus, the drummers' rhythmic exchanges, and the suggestive "conversation" between the highest pitched drum and the dancer. The drummer follows the movement of the dancer; dancer and drummer cajole, tease and challenge each other to what appears to be a sensual dual, which lasts as long as the dancer's stamina continues. The effect is that of an intimate visual and musical exchange between singer, drummer and dancer.
Bomba and plena continue to be present in the cultural life of Puerto Rico, and are symbolic to the Puerto Rican identity.
No festivity or public celebration is complete without the bomba and the plena. It is impossible to discuss bomba and plena today without mentioning one of the most famous exponents of Puerto Rican folk music: The Cepeda Family—with several generations of musicians who dedicated themselves to preserving the African heritage in Puerto Rican music. The family is well known for their performances of bomba and plena and is considered by many to be the keepers of the flame. As part of their efforts to preserve the Puerto Rican musical heritage the Cepeda family founded the Bomba and Plena School of Puerto Rico of Don Rafael Cepeda in the 1970s, naming the school after the family patriarch.
Bomba and plena broke out of the folkloric milieu and became a popular craze in the mid-1950s, when conguero and bandleader Rafael Cortijo and singer Ismael Rivera started their famous orchestra. They modernized the folkloric arrangements for bomba and plena by adding piano, bass, saxophones and trumpets. They updated the rhythm section by introducing percussion instruments of Cuban origin including timbales and bongos, and substituting the barriles with congas. This orchestra introduced bomba and plena to all levels of society in Puerto Rico, its expatriate communities and to other parts of Latin America. Contemporary-salsa and Latin-jazz musicians, including Eddie Palmieri, Descarga Boricua and La Sonora Ponceña continue to record updated, stylized versions of bomba. Nili Belkind
[http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/view/page.basic/genre/content.genre/bomba_696/en_US]
Rhythmic Styles
There are several styles of bomba, and the popularity of these styles varies by region. There are 3 basic rhythms and many others that are mainly variations of these 3, they are: "sica", "yuba", and "holandés".
duple metre
- bambulaé
- belén
- calindá
- cocobalé
- cuembe or güembe
- cunyá
- danué
- gracima
- holandé or holandés
- Paulé
- seis corrido
- sicá
triple metre
- corve
- holandé seis por ocho
- leró
- mariandá
- rule
- yubá
Instruments
The traditional drums used in bomba are called barriles, since they have long been built from the wood of barrels. The high pitch drum is called "subidor" (riser) or "primo" (cousin), and the low pitch drums are called "buleador" and "segundo" (second), Not less important are the "Cuás" that are two wooden sticks banged on a wooden surface and a large Maraca that keeps time.
