Bomba

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Bomba is one of Puerto Rico's most famous musical styles. Although there is some controversy surrounding its origin, most agree that it is a largely African music. The rhythm and beat are played by a set of hand drums and a maraca. Dance is an integral part of the music: the dancers in move their bodies to every beat of the drum, making bomba a very wild and rich dance. Bomba is described to be a challenge between the drummer and the dancer. The dancer produces a series of gestures to which the primo drummer provides a synchronized beat. Thus, it is the drummer who attempts to follow the dancer and not the other way around. The dancer must be in great physical shape and the challenge usually continues until either the dancer or drummer discontinues. The main instruments used in bomba style music are any number of low pitched hand drums used to create a base rhythm, and a higher pitch drum which accentuates the beat with improvised patterns. Other instruments used are the palitos or cuas, which are sticks that are struck against any, usually wooden, surface. A single large Maraca usually completes the sound of bomba, though a güiro has commonly been used in orchestral arrangements. Both of these last two instruments have origins in the extinct Taino culture of the Caribbean Basin.

The basic music style was brought to Puerto Rico during the colonial slave trade. It originates in Ghana and Nigeria, West Africa, although the majority of slaves can be traced back to many different areas of West and Central Africa. The dance was mostly practiced at the northern, southern and western coasts of the island where the majority of Africa's descendants lived. The men use a series of pelvic thrusts while the women would swish their skirts around. In bomba shows, the typical apparel worn by the dancers is what slaves may have used in social gatherings. Men wear a white outfit and fedora hat and women wear big plantation skirts and a head scarf or bundaloo.

The traditional drums used in bomba are called "barriles", since they have long been built from the wood of barrels. The high pitch drum is called "subidor" or "primo", and the low pitch drums are called "buleador" and "segundo". There are several styles of bomba, and the popularity of these styles varies by region. The three most common rhythms are called "sica", "yuba" and "holandes", though there are more than 20.

So far, only Rafael Cortijo has been the only artist successful in taking bomba to the mainstream with his Combo in the 1950's and 1960's. Celia Cruz recorded bomba occasionally, her most successful recording being a bomba version of Mon Rivera's plena "A Papá Cuando Venga". Ricky Martin mixes a bit of authentic bomba rhythm with other Latino influences in his aptly-named song La Bomba.