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Glossary · S
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Salsa
According to singer Celia
Cruz, salsa is just a different way of naming
Cuban music. It is the mambo,
the chachachá,
the son... all Cuban rhythms
combined under an only name. But salsa in itself
was born in New York toward the end of the 60’s,
created by musicians of the poor Latin neighborhoods.
When it transcended Latin audiences, the word
was imposed as a generic term to refer to the
whole group of Latin music styles, from the boogaloo
to the mambo,
right through to the old son
and including Latin house. Cubans rejected this
term for a considerable period of time, but they
did eventually accept it.
Sambi
African string instrument, made using vegetable
or metallic fibers as strings, which are stretched
over a calabash with a handle.
Santería
A synchretic Afro-Cuban religious system, resulting
from the combination of the yoruba
religion and Catholicism. The santería
is a subject that comes up frequently in salsa
songs.
Sartén
An instrument made of two old frying pans fixed
to a piece of wood which acts as a supporting
base. This is hung around the neck with a rope
and allows the musician to play while walking,
hitting the pans with drumsticks.
Septeto
Classical son formation that
has been around since 1927, and during the ’30:
guitar, tres,
double bass, bongos,
maracas,
claves and
trumpet, accompanied by a singer.
Sexteto
Musical group formed by 6 musicians: guitar, tres,
double bass or marímbula,
bongos, maracas
and claves.
Some of the musicians are also singers. The sexteto
is the typical son formation
of the 20’s. After 1927, a trumpet was sometimes
added, turning the group into a septeto.
 Shekere
Traditional instrument similar to an instrument
from West Africa, played by main singers and backup
singers. It is made up of a dried out empty calabash
covered with a net and containing beads, dried
seeds or shells, that make sounds when the instrument
is shook, amplified by the resonating cavity formed
by the calabash.
Son
Throughout the 19th Century, a fusion takes place
in the countryside of Oriente
between Hispanic and African musical elements,
to which French music is added, this latter addition
brought over by the colonists escaping Haiti.
Toward the end of that Century, this mixture takes
on a more stable form and begins to appear among
the musical forms used by the trovadores
in Santiago de Cuba and Havana.
According to some musicologists, the Cuban son
is what the blues are to the U.S.: with a simple
form and whose basis is firmly tied to its cultures
of origin; Spanish melodies framed by African
rhythms, alternating between verses and choruses
in a question-answer form between the main singer
and the chorus, simple lyrics that sum up everyday
life.
The son is definitely influenced by its countryside
"childhood". Even today it still prefers
simple and portable instruments, fixed up guitars
and light, easily built percussion instruments.
Son
Montuno
The son played at a slower
tempo.
Sonero
In the beginning, this term designated the son
singer; today, the word’s use encompasses salsasingers.
Songo
A specific rhythm invented in the 70’s by
José Luis Quintana "Changuito",
in the percussionist era of Los
Van Van.
Sopimpa
Afro-Cuban dance of the 19th Century.
Sucu-Sucu
A variant of the son invented in la Isla de Pinos at the end of 19th century.
The genre is quiet similar to the sound of son
montuno: a soloist who improvises while answering
the chorus, which repeats a fixed phrase, accompanied
by the instruments.
Tahona
Small traditional drum used in the central region
of Cuba.
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