Guaguanco

The guaguancó is a rhythm that originated in Havana, Cuba, coinciding with the abolition of slavery on the island in 1886. The guaguancó is one of the forms of the rumba and contains a fusion of various Afro-Cuban profane rituals. The other two important varieties of the rumba are the Yambú and the Columbia.

Rhythm and dance

The guaguancó, generally with anonymous texts, is interpreted with three tumbadoras and by a type of wooden box struck with sticks or with the hands, called a cajón. The percussionists are joined by a chorus that responds to a soloist. The dancers present a choreography in which the man chases the woman with highly erotic movements. Although she rejects him at first, in the end she consents to him. This act, which represents the "conquest" from man to woman, it receives the name of vacunao.

The oldest compositions, called "guaguancó del tiempo de España", correspond to the end of the Spanish colonial era in Cuba.

Syncretism in the guaguancó

The guaguancó is the result of a syncretism of African and Spanish influences. This last presence is noted above all by the use of texts based on tenths. According to Mongo Santamaría, famous "rumbero", the guaguancó arose when Afro-Cubans tried to sing flamenco.^{[citation required]}