Music of Latin America “¡Viva México!”

In This Unit, We Will…  Explore the geography of areas with Latin American music  Explore the instruments used in Latin American music  Listen to music from different Latin American cultures, populations, and religious groups  Sing songs from Mexico and other Latino regions

“What Will I Be Doing?” You will be doing three different things…  #1: Creating connections between content areas – Geography, History, Art, Technology, and Music  #2: Listening to new music that you may never have heard before  #3: Learning melodies, harmonies, and rhythms from different cultures

Geography  Latin America includes…  South America and those parts of the Americas colonized by the Spanish and the Portuguese  Mexico  Central America  The Caribbean  Brazil  Argentina  Chile

Languages Spoken  Spanish is the “principal language”  Portuguese  Native American languages  European languages Over 420 languages!

Religions  Roman Catholic Christianity is the majority  Protestant  “Indigenous Rituals”  Argentina = Jews, Muslims

Characteristics of Latin American Music European influencesAfrican influences Indigenous People Of Bolivia

Characteristics of Latin American Music  HARMONY: Took folk melodies and popular music and adopted European harmonies, like guitar strumming  Parallel Thirds: Singers and instrumentalists added a second melody two scale steps away  Distinct Dance Rhythms: Music they can dance to! Left – Tango Right – Rumba

Harmony  Took folk melodies and popular music and adopted European harmonies, like guitar strumming  Lots of ORNIMATION (extra little decorative notes)  Instrumentalists alternate between chords and rhythmic phrases (example: strum, strum, pick, pick, pick, strum, strum)  Spoke of their culture in their songs (folk)

“Sisquistrí”  Solo harp, six-course Spanish guitar, lead singer and chorus  TRANSLATION: “All the little flowers with the captivating faces, We dedicate this beautiful verse to you From these poor singers. I have a nice wish to tell you the truth… Because when I see you, you turn your head away If you do it because I am ugly, complain to my mother! No woman is ugly when she dresses and she dances and the dance platform sways this way in our land!”

Parallel Thirds  Singers and instrumentalists add a second melody two scale steps away  “Escualo”  Solo violin, cello strumming the parallel third, light percussion

Distinct Dance Rhythms  Music they can dance to!  African drumming had a BIG influence on Latin American culture  Dances were used in everyday life in Africa and mixed well with their celebratory use in South American culture  Tango Dancing Competion Tango Dancing Competion  Adele "Someone Like You" Rumba Dance Competition Adele "Someone Like You" Rumba Dance Competition

Other Types of Music  Samba –Originated from the “Brazilian Carnival,” translates to mean “dance circle.” Samba  Carmen Miranda – Famous Brazilian actress Carmen Miranda  Bossa Nova – Derived from the Samba, more harmonic and less percussive Bossa Nova

Latin American Instruments  INDIGENOUS INSTRUMENTS: Wooden flutes, drums, and rattles  EUROPEAN INSTRUMENTS: Chordophone (guitar), harp, trumpet, clarinet, accordion, and saxophone  AFRICAN INSTRUMENTS: Idiophone (bells), many types of drums (conga, bongos, claves, timbales), and the marimba

Indigenous Instruments  Wooden flutes, drums, and rattles  South American Tribal Flute South American Tribal Flute  South American Street Performers South American Street Performers

European Instruments  Chordophone (guitar), harp, trumpet, clarinet, accordion, and saxophone

African Instruments  The Marimba  Super Mario Bros Theme Super Mario Bros Theme  Hedwig's Theme Hedwig's Theme

A Short Presentation  Anthony Ybarra Anthony Ybarra Presentation at the University of California Santa Barbara African American Rhythms in Latin American Music (26.34 minutes)