Music of Mexico and Central America Essay

tuneful expressions in teleph unmatchable exchange the States and Mexico argon real diverse. Types of practice of medicine in this geographic component part guard interchangeableities with new(prenominal) cases of Latin American melody but yield their distinctive differences. For instance, the marimba of Guatemala cannot be comp bed to a char portion outra melody from Argentine. Also, it is sooner easy to mariachi for merengue and debility versa if one doesnt know the subtle differences in the midst of the two genres. The simple(a) variety of peckers, the varied aspects of texts, poetic structures, languages, and bounce rhythms in the medicament of primordial America and Mexico prove the fullness of these regions farming (Campbell et al. 9).Music tends to reflect the heathen values, behaviors, and surroundings of a given geographic region and its wad. For this reason, tuneful traditions in primeval America and Mexico bedevil grown very diverse by mea ns of centuries. Descendants of Native Americans, Africans, and Europeans who settled in commutation America, Mexico, and the entire Latin America retained more features of their melodious roots and creative respective(a) blends of Latin American medicament. Latin American songs touch on several(a) themes.Mexico, and countries in Central America such(prenominal) as Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Nicaragua capture many recognise songs that atomic number 18 passionately sung by large number, often with lyrics expressing loneliness, longing, and unconditional love. Aside from love songs, medicinal drug in the Latin American region in addition have themes of current events and hi bilgewater, such as the nueva cancion of Chile and corridor of Mexico. Some songs also try to establish a association between the singer and the supernatural, such as the songs that Chilean female shaman singers sing or the dances and chants that believers of Afro-Brazilian bahia perform.These types of songs are quite unlike from other(a) melodic traditions in the rest of the world but they are quite emblematic in Latin America. In addition, Mexico and Central American countries also have a long collection of childrens songs, tribute songs, and songs of the seasons. Instruments utilise in the music of Central America and Mexico usu completelyy involve the guitar. The instrument is quite prominent in most Latin American cultures, especially those influenced by Hispanic traditions.Artists from Mexico and other Latin American countries like Brazil, and Venezuela commonly maintain use of the maracas, clave, and guiro to produce the effect they pauperization. Drums are also very outstanding in the music of the region and motley types of drums are used for different genres. Melodies are usually composed of notes in the minor key and rhythms which are crosses of threes and twos. Native Americans are know to produce pentatonic melodies while people of Afr ican descent frequently employ syncopation in their melodic styles.Perhaps the best known feature of Mexican and Central American music is its ability to m quondam(a) people dance. Its easy to dance to Latin American music, whether alone or in synch with partners (Campbell et al. 9). Over the years, radio, film, and television system have popularized Mexican music to higher levels. Listeners worldwide are qualified to recognize Mexican music although they sometimes confuse it with other types of music from the Latin American region. The icon of Mexican music is the mariachi a Mexican musician wearing a charo costume (Hutchinson 1192).Mariachis are known all over the world to transmit the meaning of being a Mexican. This melodic group can sing anything, from ballads to songs about the vicissitude, from songs describing bar scenes to odes to regions and towns. Mariachis are also popular for their uniforms called charros. A charro consists of a bolero-type jacket, tight pants wi th a tap of intricately woven design, and a wide-brimmed hat filled with ribbons, chains, and silver buttons.This uncommon Mariachi costume is very similar to the simpler costumes that cowboys wear. Aside from the costume, Mariachis and cowboys also have origins in the said(prenominal) place, which is in Jalisco and other adjacent states (Kermecker 49). A mariachi band usually consists of three or four guitarists. Bands would usually tomboy together for township at gazebos or quioscos in the Main Square or zocalo. immediately in Mexico, up to eighteen mariachi musicians can organize in a main square and play any song that the townspeople want to hear.Aside from the guitar, mariachis use instruments such as vihuelas (smaller guitars with five strings), guitarrones (six-string vihuelas with big bellies), violins, harps, and trumpets for the energetic accents of Mexican songs. The term mariachi could have originated from the French word mariage, which would make sense since mar iachis usually play at weddings. However, experts today insist that mariachis have existed long before the French came to Mexico. The name might have originated from the Mexican word mariachi which refers to a small platform for musicians and dancing couples.Mariachis can be found all over Mexico, but especially in places such as Garribaldi in Mexico City and in Guadalajara, in the Plaza de Los Mariachis primed(p) at the intersection of Independencia Sur and Mina. Visitors at these places can pay mariachis to play them any Mexican song they want (Kernecker 49). Mariachis can employ other Latin American musical instruments to play their songs. They can use the the marimba, a hugely popular musical instrument in Central and southern America. Marimbas are marimbas that consist of several wooden plates of different sizes and thickness.Modern versions of the instrument have hardwood bars of uniform thickness and tubular metal resonators that enshroud six to seven octaves. Two to five players would play these xylophones with warm, mellow tones (Apel 505). Central America is a geographic region that is located in the southernmost part of the North American continent connecting South America to the southeast. A large part of Central America rests above the Caribbean Plate, making the region geologically active and the site of relatively frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.Cities in Central American countries have been destroyed by earthquakes before, such as Managua, capital of Nicaragua and El Salvador. However, the volcanic lava from eruptions has made the region agriculturally fertile, enabling it to carry huge populations of people. While modern Latin American music is recognisable end-to-end Central America, indigenous music in the region have received the least exposure among other types of music in the westward Hemisphere. For instance, Garifuna music from the Garifuna people of Belize, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala has quite a limited audi ence.Instruments used in this type of music accept tree garaon or drums the primera which improvises the segunda which produces counter rhythms, and the tercera which takes care of bass lines. Two wires are stretched over the tops of the drums to generate the abuzz sound that is typical of West African music. Other instruments used in Garifuna music are guitars, claves, shakers, scrapers, and bottle percussions (Nidel 291). In terms of modern music, one popular genre is Punta rock which is a dance music similar to Trinidadian Soca.The standard ensemble to play Punta rock includes instruments such as synthesizers, system, electric bass, and keyboards. The song La Punta of the Punta rock genre became popular in Honduras during the 1980s (Nidel 291). People in Central America absolutely love listening to the marimba. In Guatemala, the xylophone used is considered the national instrument. Marimbas of all sizes and styles are made in the domain. Some models are designed to be get by by a single player while others are so big that seven people are needed to play them.Musical genres like the meringue and other dance compositions usually rely on the xylophone to produce the bass rhythms (Apel 505). During the later parts of the 20th century, marimba in Mexico became popular in the southernmost state of Chiapas. The instrument is also compete in neighboring states of Tabasco, Oaxaca, Veracruz, and in the nations capital. Mariachis and other musical groups playing marimba are scattered all throughout the soil but they are especially concentrated in Mexico City and Chiapas. In terms of performance, multiple players playing marimbas are more common in Mexico than single players.In Mexico today, marimba music is mostly a regional phenomenon. It is associated with the southern part of the estate and is often placed in the same category as popular music genres like jarocho from Veracruz, mariachi from Jalisco, and norteno from northern Mexico (Beck 9). In the state o f Veracruz, street musicians called ambulantes typically play marimba for people. These musicians would perform and compete with each other for twenty-four hours a day in the streets and in buildings. The type of marimba in this seaport city is known for its sharp-edged and heavy syncopated style.The unique characteristics of marimba in Veracruz indicate its Afro-Cuban influences (Beck 224). Mexican music is primarily of Hispanic flavor because of the imposition of European musical culture on the natives by Spanish conquistadors. In Mexico today, nobody knows what real pre-Columbian music sounds like. Even the type of music that natives play in Indian communities is noticeably influenced by the Spanish. African slaves though tempered this music by adding their own style to it. Mexicans are proud of these traditional musical genres, although many of them now listen to Western rock and pop (Hutchinson 1192).There are many popular genres of Mexican music that are meant for singing ins tead of dancing. bingle is the corrido, a narrative form of music thats derived from old Spanish ballads. The genre spread throughout the country as armies of the revolution roamed across the land. Corrido has since become a popular mode of expression for unfluctuating citizens and artists. Another genre is called cancion which means song, literally. Cancion highlights the romantic and sentimental aspects of Mexicans, and is therefore of course lackadaisical and slow.An example of cancion is Las Mananitas, which is usually sung to serenade people on their birthdays. Finally, theres the ranchera genre which is a mix of Mexican country and Western styles. The genre was originally associated with the cattle men from the Bajio region. Ranchera featured conspicuously in many Mexican films from the 1930s to the 1940s and consequently became known all over Latin America as the typical music of Mexico (Hutchinson 1192). The Mexican Film and recording industry are powerful forces through out the entire Latin American region.They helped several Mexican artists to become home plate names, drawing fans and profit to the industry. Some of the most popular Mexican artists include Pendro Infante, Pedro Vargas, Miguel Aceves Mejia, Jorge Negrete, and the Trio Los Panchos. Songwriters and composers can also gain popularity in Mexico, such as Agustin Lara who is a prolific composer of romantic boleros, which are Latin dance types of music However, despite the popularity of these artists, mariachis are still the most popular musical groups in the country (Hutchinson 1192).Musica tejana, Texas-Mexican music or simply Tex-Mex has attained a huge following all over Mexico, Central America, and the whole Latin American region today. The genre look ats influences from various musical styles, such as bolero, ranchera, and cumbia. It is very flexible and can even draw get the better of from other genres such as reggae, country, rap, pop, and disco. Musica tejana is also known as tejano music in Mexico, Texas, and other parts of the United States (San Miguel 3). The term tejano may also refer to people of Mexican descent who live in Texas.Musica tejana has been created by Tejanos to reflect the sensibilities of their laddie Tejanos and Mexicans. Tejanos started demanding that traditional Mexican music meet their sensibilities as early as 1920s. Early in the 20th century, much of musica tejana was formed by squeeze box sounds. After World War II, Tejano musicians tried to change elements of Mexican music to their musical style. Artists incorporated female duet and vocal singing into musica tejana, which was antecedently instrumental in nature. They also continued to use the bajo sexton and accordion to produce their music.Saxophones, and trumpets later known as los pitos or thrust section, were also employed to create musica tejana. During the second half of the century, Tejanos continued to adapt Mexican music by using instruments such as guitars, keybo ards, organs, and brass instruments (San Miguel 7). Tejanos have lived alongside Anglos for a long time and conflicts between the two races are discernible in the musica tejana that evolved from this relationship. Corridos expressed the historical conflict between Mexicans and Anglos in South Texas during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. check to experts, old corridos were basically narrative ballads that told the adventures of a hero and were sung to simple tunes. In many ways, singing corridos was a symbolic means to urge on the dominant Anglo culture. An example of this type of corridor is The Corrido of Gregorio Cortez, a narrative ballad that tells the story of a hero who single-handedly fought the law of the Anglos and won (San Miguel 8). Traditional Mexican songs like canciones reflected the changes that occurred and the attributes that were retained by Tejanos in the state.Canciones are composed of various types of songs, including corridos, canciones roma nticas, canciones rancheras, and canciones tipcas. The corridor and cancion tipica dominated vocal music by Tejasnos throughout most of the nineteenth century. During the late nineteenth century, the cancion romantica started to emerge and compete with other types of cancion. In the twentieth century however, the cancion ranchera attained a huge following, which made it the dominant type of song among Mexicans in Texas and for those who lived near the border (San Miguel 8).Aside from musica tejana, there are many other musical genres that has gained wide popularity in Central America. One is cumbia, a Colombian style of folk dance music thats considered to represent Colombian culture, like Vallenato. Cumbia is especially popular in Panama, some other country in Central America. The region is mostly inhabited by mestizos who are people of European, African, and indigenous descent. The culture of the Azuero region located in the west of the country has come to dominate Panama.The cou ntrys resource for music such as cumbia is very similar to the musical preferences of its neighboring country, Colombia. The most significant native instrument in Panama is the mejorama, a guitar with five strings, which looks quite similar with the Venezuelan cuatro. The mejorama are often used by musicians in the country to play songs termed torrentes. The most recognized Panamanian musician in the world is Ruben Blades who became a star in the Fania horse barn of New York musicians. Blades started his career with doo-woop but branched off to different musical styles later (Nidel 291).While it is true that music is the universal language, the music of Mexico and Central America is still very unique in their own well-disposed and historical contexts. The mariachi of Mexico reflects the energetic Mexican people and their passionate tendencies. Dances with fast beats illustrate the festivity of Mexican culture while slow and languid songs show the longing of Mexicans for intangibl e things such as love, honor, and the past. Whether its marimba, corridor, cancion or ranchera, Mexican music stands out as among the best and most slanted types of music in the world.Central America also has a rich collection of Latin American music, such as musica tejana, bolero, and cumbia. Each country in this region has a different past that is reflected in their favorite(a) musical styles. As each style crosses and mixes with each other, the music of Central America is bound to get richer in the future. Through modern forms of confabulation and broadcast such as the Internet, Latin American music in Central America may gather more followers in regions far away from it.The various kinds of Mexican and Central American music all have their own flavors and they must be preserved for generations to come. They contain the spirit of the Latin American culture and must therefore be listened to by new generations of Latinos and other artists and ordinary people outside of the regio n. work Cited Apel, Willi. 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