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Timing,
rhythm & music interpretation in Salsa |
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Salsa
Instruments and the Salsa Band
Since the advent of Rock'n'Roll, western pop bands have increasingly experimented with reducing the number of band members. Some top rock bands have counted as few as three musicians. Latin music has followed the opposite trend. Traditional Cuban music from Santiago de Cuba was often performed by very small bands, but when it reached the night clubs of Havana in the 50's it was deeply influenced by the big American Swing bands of that era. Latin bands started to expand in size. Even today, bands composed of eleven to thirteen musicians are common. Latin bands often need a music director in order to perform.
The soul of a Latin band is represented by four instruments: clave, conga, piano and double bass, with the last two also playing a strong rhythmic role. Here we analyse each instrument, including the guiro and cowbell, which are also common ingredients of salsa music. We will see:
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