The music of Latin America is as diverse as the countries that make up the region. Although descriptions differ, the territories generally include those in which a romance language is spoken primarily, such as Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico and Puerto Rico. French is a romance language, but Latin American music is most often identified with Spanish and Portuguese, as well as the creoles and other auxiliary communication systems derived from them.
History
Due to the lack of archival documentation, it's impossible to know exactly when or how music emerged in the countries that currently comprise Latin America. Discovered texts, murals and artifacts indicate that the indigenous cultures living in the region when Christopher Columbus appeared in 1492 had been using musical instruments from as early as the 8th century, largely for ritual purposes. The influence of religion on early Latin American music continued after the arrival of the Spanish and Portuguese, which commenced European colonization in the 15th century, and the subsequent slave trade introduced African elements, too.
Features
Latin American music can be vocal, instrumental, or both. It typically incorporates a large number of instruments native to the country that defines the style. The music is also immediately recognizable for its distinctive rhythmic pattern based on syncopation, which stresses weak or unaccented beats instead of the more common strong or accented beats. Accordingly, there is a related emphasis on using percussion instruments to generate the beat patterns. Another major characteristic of Latin American music is the frequent incorporation of call-and-response segments, an import from African music, that contain interaction between two elements.
Structure
A prominent aspect of much Latin American music is the rhythmic structure called clave, which originated in Afro-Cuban music. The term is Spanish for "key" (of the musical type), and the pattern consists of a 3-2--or less often 2-3--note arrangement that forms the foundation of a composition. Each song usually follows a systematic arrangement, as well, that begins with a lengthy opening verse, followed by an increasingly intense chord progression (vamp) that eventually returns to the verse, before the song closes with a brief ending known as a coda.
Instruments
The musical instruments in pre-colonial Latin America were primarily of the percussion and wind variety, such as flutes, trumpets, and ornately carved drums that were used in rituals. When they arrived, Europeans introduced string instruments, including the guitar and violin, and the indigenous cultures tended to adapt them to suit their preferences. This practice gave rise to new creations, ranging from the guitar-related charango in the Andes to the berimbau bow of Brazil.
The African slave trade further widened the inventory of percussion instruments with numerous drums and striking devices, such as rattles and wood blocks, from the continent. Currently, there are more percussion instruments of African heritage than any other origin in Latin American music.
Styles
Despite the considerable variation within Latin American music, there are certain styles of songs that are more commonly and widely found. The most prominent genres include the ballad format called the Spanish Romance, which dates bag to the medieval era, and the basic son, a mixture of the melodic Spanish canción and percussive African rhythms that combined to help form Cuban-derived salsa. In addition, Latin American music is filled with many song styles that correspond with a dance, such as Brazil's samba, the Dominican Republic's merengue, Ecuador's pasillo and Venezuela's joropo.
