TUNES FOR TUESDAY -- Discos Fuentes

By -
I think we have established quite well that Fania Records greatly influenced the development and recognition of Salsa music as a genre. But, how does all this connect with Colombia? Well, that's our next topic. Bear with me because we are going to go back in time again as we search for the intersection of Salsa Music with Colombian music.

This story begins in la Costa, the Colombian Caribbean coastal area, where the historic cities of Santa Marta, Barranquilla, and Cartagena are located. From these port cities, the slave trade spread the African musical influence throughout the region. Here in the Caribbean Region of Colombia, African music continued to evolve, mix, and change until it eventually spun out cumbia and vallenato among other rhythms.

It was in Cartagena that Antonio Fuentes was born to his wealthy parents in 1907. In 1920, Antonio was sent to the United States to finish High School. Apparently, during a break from his studies, Antonio visited Philadelphia's RCA studios. There he saw music being recorded and pressed to cylinders and the original 78 rpm vinyl discs.

Antonio was so impressed and inspired by what he saw that upon his return to Cartagena, he established a radio station, Emisora Fuentes, in 1932. Two years later, in 1934, he founded the iconic Discos Fuentes record label. Colombians old enough to remember vinyl records will remember the traditional yellow label. Colombians not old enough, just ask your parents or grandparents, or look around the room where the equipo de sonido is kept, you will find one.

Anyway, with his record label and radio station, Antonio Fuentes began introducing his growing audience to costal rural traditional rhythms such as mapalé and porro. This is remarkable because Colombian musical mainstream up to that point had favored rhythms that had a more European pedigree, namely bambucos and pasillos. These European based rhythms were also the music of the white elites who ruled the country from the cold altiplanos of the interior. Thus, Antonio Fuentes' station and label, ushered the beginning of the Costeño music invasion that would overtake the entire country of Colombia.

Let's pause here to sample a Mapalé. This is perhaps the fastest of Colombian folkloric dances, which is a very important fact in our story, as we shall see. . . This one is performed by street dancers in Cartagena.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Muisca Indigenous Names, from Hunza (Tunja)

By -
In response to this week’s posts on names, I have received several e-mails asking about the names of famous Colombians and their stories and about Indigenous names. I plan to spend the next three days sharing some of them. Also, I will continue to post more in the future and you will be able to find them all by clicking on the NAMES link the LABELS section to the right of the blog. Name: AQUIMÍN ( pronounced: ah key MEAN) or AQUIMINZAQUE (pronounced: ah key mean ZAH kay) When the Spanish arrived on the plains of Bogotá, 1536, they found a great nation. In fact, it was the third largest group of indigenous inhabitants in America. They called themselves the Muiscas , which meant ‘the people’. Their language was called Chibcha . The Muiscas were not a united group, but rather a collection of city states. The majority of the power was held by two main cities – what today are called Bogotá and Tunja (in Boyacá). These two cities were mortal enemies and each enlisted the loy
Read more

Popular Colombian Names

By -
Recently, I was asked to write a post on Colombian names, and popular Colombian names. I had a hard time finding a list, but eventually I did find one. According to I.N.E. - Instituto Nacional de Estadística, -- unfortunately, when I found this it doesn't say the year -- the most common Colombian boys names across all ages are: 1 JUAN CARLOS 2 CARLOS ALBERTO 3 ALEXANDER 4 ANDRES FELIPE 5 LUIS FERNANDO 6 DIEGO FERNANDO 7 JHON JAIRO 8 CARLOS ANDRES 9 ALEJANDRO 10 JUAN DAVID The girls are: 1 SANDRA MILENA 2 LUZ MARINA 3 CAROLINA 4 PAULA ANDREA 5 CLAUDIA PATRICIA 6 MARIA EUGENIA 7 PAOLA ANDREA 8 DANIELA 9 LILIANA 10 MARTHA CECILIA Just as here, names go through ebb and flow. Fourteen years ago when we were married, I attended several baby baptisms and met numerous friends of my husband. At the time, it seemed like everyone was naming their kid Juan CAMILO (boy) or Maria CAMILA (girl). I met dozens of them. Then, about 7 years later, I heard tons of SANTIAGO, JULIAN, SEBASTIAN and FE
Read more

La Madremonte

By -
Image
The myth of the Madremonte (Mother Mountain), and I do say myth though many campesinos in Colombia believe in her today, has it's roots in the indigenous cultures of Colombia and is known throughout much of Colombia including Antioquia, Caldas, Arauca, Caqueta, Amazonas, Guainia, and perhaps more departments. The Madremonte looks like a large woman. She has large, bony hands, large teeth and Betty Davis Eyes -- which on closer examination glow. Her body is covered in leaves and moss. Her hair is a tangled mess of plants and moss which often covers her face. She lives in the mountains and jungles, (in Antioquia and Caldas she lives in swamps where streams are born. People who claim to have seen her, usually report to have done so near thickets and bushes in jungle like areas. Others report having heard her bloodcurdling screams and groans on stormy nights. She rules the winds, the rains, and all the vegetation, and her role is to protect nature. She punishes those who invad
Read more