Tango Cubano
Maria Roumpalou
Tango is not widespread in Cuba . But it is still alive ! It is mainly found in Havana and in Santiango de Cuba . On this Caribbean island where music and dance have always been a creative expression of the heart and soul of its people and their culture , whether happy or tortured . It was back to the early decades of the twentieth century that the beautiful and fascinating music of tango reached Havana from Buenos Aires and gained significant popular acceptance . The peak of its popularity was in the 1940s . The remarkable and sustained growth of the tango culture in this socialist island has a lot to do with the steady stream of Argentine artists and extensive tours to this Caribbean country .
However , it needs to be stated , that , although enjoying popularity around the world , Tango has Cuban roots ! The Tango was derived from the traditional Cuban dance called the Habanera and even though many people associate the tango with Argentina , many Cubans claim it to be theirs .
Habanera rhythm and a couple of closely related variations are the quintessential tango syncopations . The habanera rhythm is central in tango music . In some version , it is used to create the pulse of the music , or as syncopated rhythmic accents in the accompaniment or melody . It can be found in all tango forms , tango , milonga and vals .
In Argentina , candombe , canyengue , milonga still exhibit their black roots — up-beat , lively and joyous . The tango took a turn about a century ago and became whitewashed . The more staid and less life-positive tango survived . In the warmer island atmosphere where tango was introduced at the 20s , it eventually fizzled out , while the habanera rhythms lived on .
After 1959 , a few artists still performed in scenarios on the island or on the radio or in theatres , among them were Maizani Azucena , Tita Merello , Alberto Castillo , Hugo del Arril , Libertad Lamarque , Rosita Quiroga , Eladia Blazquez , Susana Rinaldi , Enrique Santos Discepolo , Astor Piazzolla , Angel Vargas , Osvaldo Pugliese , Horacio Ferrer and others / They incorporated nott only Cuban rhythms , as well as other foreign genres that had more acceptance and sympathy than the tango .
During its peak , many Argentine musicians settled in Havana and spread the tango trend , promoting the formation of many groups — Conjunto Rio de la Plata , Los Romanticos Gauchos , Orquesta del Rey Diaz Calvet , Trio Landa-Llerena-Tabranes , Duo Los Camperos and the orchestras of several radio stations — Mil Diez , Radio Havana Cuba Cadena Azul .
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