Information on Caribbean Bachata

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Recommended: Globalization And Music

Canciones de arargue, or songs of bitterness – was the original name for the creolized form Bachata. Many closely associate Bachata with the other Caribbean styles of the African diaspora such as merengue and son. In Intro to Music Cultures of the World we were tasked with attending a world music concert. I chose to attend a Bachata concert because I already had an interest in Caribbean music. The concert was not as I had expected, but was rather intriguing and thoroughly enjoyable. In this report I hope to analyze Bachata’s roots, report on its concert style, and compare it to another piece in the genre.
Bachata is a creolized music, meaning that there is both European and African influence. It is also a descendent of a few different Dominican Republic and Cuban forms of music – primarily son, but also merengue and ranchera. Son is music of the African diaspora, commonly involved in debates of African retention. Elements of African music, such as call-and-response and preference for polyrhythm survived the middle passage and are deeply rooted in Caribbean tradition. Stringed instruments are believed to have been part of the European influence on the area, as well as harmonic patterns, as well as verse-chorus structure and prominent duple meter. Modern groups consist of two electric acoustic guitars, an electric bass guitar, a guira (A Dominican Republic percussion instrument), and bongos (Hutchinson). Bachata is thought to have originated in the rural areas, being the music of choice at rural friendly gatherings, similar to son’s roots. Bachata then migrated to the cities with the impoverished as they looked for work. With this move the music transformed into something entirely different from its romantic, seren...

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...n… interesting; however, Bachata surprised me and instigated a revival in my interest in Caribbean music. I believe I have grown musically since attending the concert and look to attend more in the future. All considered, Bachata is a valuable repertory filled with references from multiple music-making cultures from across the world.

Works Cited
Hutchinson, Sydney. "Bachata." Oxford Music Online. Oxford University Press, 2 June 2011. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
Ross, Karl. "Bachata: The Other Dance Music - Once Confined to Girlie Bars and Brothels, the Dominican Republic's Bachata Is Making Inroads in the Latin Music Mainstream." Billboard - The International Newsweekly of Music, Video and Home Entertainment Apr 28 2001: Sec Latin Music 6,Pack: LM-36. ProQuest. Web. 15 Nov. 2013.
Various Artists. El Molde. 2004. Smithsonian Global Sound for Libraries. Web. 15 Nov. 2013.

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