Reviews
The best survey of Cuban music available.~Juan Flores, Hunter College, author of From Bomba to Hip-Hop ""well conceived and enlightening"" ~World ""an excellent introduction"" ~Le Nouveau Politis BOOK REVIEW Hispanic American Historical Review August 2003 Roy' s book is an introduction to Cuban music, stressing its deep historical background, concentrating on a few crucial artists, and drawing a line at the borders of Cuba itself. Roy' s strength lies in her explanation of musical structure and in the excerpts she provides from interviews with Cuban musicians, ranging from vaunted composers to local buskers. She provides an insightful description of the major typologies of rumba, ably sketching their common threads and linking their differences to contextual factors such as contrasting practices of urban and rural leisure. In addition, in letting the musicians speak for themselves, she comes closest to translating both the joy and the intricacy of the music. She transcribes the words of a Havana rumbero, who recalls unlocking the secret of a local refrain, ' Rabo de mono amarra a Ramon [the monkey' s tale wraps up Ramon]' (p.56). The phrase, nearly an aural palindrome, reveals the foundational influence of both medieval Spanish verse, with its complex verbal doublings, and central African tales of trickster deities in the guise of animals. The requisite musical response, discovered by the rumbero in the midst of improvisation-' Por que rabo de mono no me amarra a mi? (Why doesn' t the monkey' s tail wrap up me?)' -adds the elements of thinly veiled sexuality and gamesmanship, completing the rumba palette. On one hand, Roy asserts that in the early decades of the twentieth century in Cuba, ' everything African was considered by the dominant elite to be lowly, vulgar and uncultured' (p. 30). But she provides ample evidence of Cuban elites of the period enjoying Afro-Cuban music, in contexts ranging from carnival street processions to their own salons and concert halls. Exploring the coexistence of a rhetoric of disdain and repression with everyday practices of sponsorship and participation would help to illuminate not only Cuban music but also the knotty issues of race on the island. ~ From Publishers Weekly From Rumba to rap, Paris-based writer Maya Roy surveys the history of Cuban music, showing how the island's colonial history led to a unique fusion of musical influences from around the world. Cuban Music examines the ritual music of slaves: popular songs and the impact of Catholic liturgies, the roots of dances like the mambo and the cha-cha-cha; and the fate of music after the Communist revolution, when many musicians emigrated and new experimental groups formed by Cubans on and off the island. Roy also discusses Buena Vista Social Club and the controversies stirred by the film's nostalgic view of Cuba's 1950's ""golden age., The best survey of Cuban music available.~Juan Flores, Hunter College, author of From Bomba to Hip-Hop ""well conceived and enlightening"" ~World ""an excellent introduction"" ~Le Nouveau Politis BOOK REVIEW Hispanic American Historical Review August 2003 Roy s book is an introduction to Cuban music, stressing its deep historical background, concentrating on a few crucial artists, and drawing a line at the borders of Cuba itself. Roy s strength lies in her explanation of musical structure and in the excerpts she provides from interviews with Cuban musicians, ranging from vaunted composers to local buskers. She provides an insightful description of the major typologies of rumba, ably sketching their common threads and linking their differences to contextual factors such as contrasting practices of urban and rural leisure. In addition, in letting the musicians speak for themselves, she comes closest to translating both the joy and the intricacy of the music. She transcribes the words of a Havana rumbero, who recalls unlocking the secret of a local refrain, Rabo de mono amarra a Ramon [the monkey s tale wraps up Ramon] (p.56). The phrase, nearly an aural palindrome, reveals the foundational influence of both medieval Spanish verse, with its complex verbal doublings, and central African tales of trickster deities in the guise of animals. The requisite musical response, discovered by the rumbero in the midst of improvisation- Por que rabo de mono no me amarra a mi? (Why doesn t the monkey s tail wrap up me?) -adds the elements of thinly veiled sexuality and gamesmanship, completing the rumba palette. On one hand, Roy asserts that in the early decades of the twentieth century in Cuba, everything African was considered by the dominant elite to be lowly, vulgar and uncultured (p. 30). But she provides ample evidence of Cuban elites of the period enjoying Afro-Cuban music, in contexts ranging from carnival street processions to their own salons and concert halls. Exploring the coexistence of a rhetoric of disdain and repression with everyday practices of sponsorship and participation would help to illuminate not only Cuban music but also the knotty issues of race on the island. ~ From Publishers Weekly From Rumba to rap, Paris-based writer Maya Roy surveys the history of Cuban music, showing how the island's colonial history led to a unique fusion of musical influences from around the world. Cuban Music examines the ritual music of slaves: popular songs and the impact of Catholic liturgies, the roots of dances like the mambo and the cha-cha-cha; and the fate of music after the Communist revolution, when many musicians emigrated and new experimental groups formed by Cubans on and off the island. Roy also discusses Buena Vista Social Club and the controversies stirred by the film's nostalgic view of Cuba's 1950's ""golden age.
