| |
Glossary · M
Glossary
Index
A · B
· C ·
D · E
· F ·
G · H
· I ·
K · M
· O ·
P · Q
· R ·
S · T
· V ·
Y · Z
Macuta
Traditional pagan celebration of bantú
origin.
 Mambo
The mambo first appeared under the name Diablo
(Devil), when the tres player Arsenio
Rodríguez incorporated elements of
the son montuno
into the danzón
(at the time called Ritmo
Nuevo) This new style was marked out by the
tumbadora,
the piano’s syncopation and the trumpets
playing jazz, while the tres
highlighted the rhythm.
Other musicians took the same road, such as the
pianists and arrangers René Hernández
and Emilio "Bebo" Valdés, but
it was the pianist and orchestra director Dámaso
Pérez Prado who mastered the mambo
synthesis, freeing the montuno
of the ritmo
nuevo parts, making it totally independent.
The rhythm is syncopated. The saxophones play
the syncopations, the trumpets the melody and
the double bass the accompaniment together with
the tumbadoras
and the bongos.
Pérez Prado, known as the "Mambo
king", made various recordings in Mexico
for the RCA-Victor, in which the influence of
swing is particularly evident.
Mani (Baile del)
This combat dance, similar to a martial art, developed
in the 19th Century among slaves on the sugar
plantations. This activity is meant only for men:
they form a circle with the dancer in the middle,
who begins to make movements imitating combat
and chooses one of the men forming the circle.
The chosen "adversary" then enters
the circle and both "rivals" make
movements in harmony that are halfway between
dance and fighting movements.
Maracas
Two small closed calabashes equipped with a handle
and filled with dried grains. They are shaken
to the beat, like rattles and make a characteristic
rhythmic whisper, sweet and discreet but essential.
Given that they require little physical effort,
they are generally entrusted to the main or chorus
singers.
Marimba
A type of drum.
Marímbula
Of the lamellaphone family, it is a large resonant
wooden with a thumb piano constructed in the opening
of the box; the musician makes the metal keys
vibrate by plucking them with the fingers and
the sound is amplified by the wooden box. The
length of the keys determines the note’s
pitch. The box also serves as a seat for the musician.
This rather crude instrument is frequently found
in son groups instead of the double bass.
Maruga
Term sometimes used in reference to a maraca.
Masucamba o Masucambia
Popular Cuban dance, inexistent today.
Merengue
A generic term that refers to rhythms and styles
(including country music) originating in the Dominican
Republic. It groups together the merengue cibaeño
hybrids and popular western dancing.
Montuno
Part of a musical piece in which musicians improvise
freely.
Mozambique
Dance with an Afro-Cuban rhythm that mixes the
conga with
different African influences.
Mulata
Dance style used in Cuba in the 18th Century.
|
|
