The catá or guagua is a Cuban

percussion instrument A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

which originated in the

eastern region Eastern Region or East Region may refer to: * Eastern Region (Abu Dhabi): Al Ain *Eastern Region, Ghana *Eastern Region (Iceland) *Eastern Region, Malta *Eastern Region, Nepal *Eastern Region, Nigeria * Eastern Region, Serbia *Eastern Region, Ugand ...

of the island. It is classified as a directly struck idiophone, traditionally made out of a hollowed

tree trunk Trunks are the Plant stem, stems of woody plants and the main structural element of trees. The woody part of the trunk consists of dead but structurally significant heartwood and living sapwood, which is used for nutrient storage and transport ...

, which the player hits with wooden sticks or mallets. The resulting sound is dry and penetrating, similar to that of the

claves Claves (; ) are a percussion instrument consisting of a pair of short, wooden sticks about 20–25 centimeters (8–10 inches) long and about 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) in diameter. Although traditionally made of wood (typically rosewood, ebony ...

, although with a different pitch. Of Congolese origin, it is an essential instrument in

tumba francesa Tumba francesa is a secular Afro-Cuban genre of dance, song, and drumming that emerged in Oriente, Cuba. It was introduced by slaves from the French colony of Saint-Domingue (which would later become the nation of Haiti) whose owners resettled i ...

yuka Yuka may refer to: *Yuka (music), an Afro-Cuban style of music *Yuka (mammoth), mammoth specimen found in Yakutia, Russia *Manshu Yuka Kogyo K.K. Ssuningkai, a Japanese-German pre-WWII industrial co-operation People *Yuka (name), a Japanese pers ...

and some

rumba The term rumba may refer to a variety of unrelated music styles. Originally, "rumba" was used as a synonym for "party" in northern Cuba, and by the late 19th century it was used to denote the complex of secular music styles known as Cuban rumba ...

ensembles.

Use

The catá is primarily used in the

tradition from eastern Cuba, which originated in the early 19th century. Its role in tumba francesa is to provide the main rhythm in the form of a ''

cinquillo A cinquillo is a typical Cuban/Caribbean rhythmic cell, used in the Cuban contradanza (the " habanera") and the danzón.Mauleón, Rebeca (1993: 51). ''Salsa Guidebook: For Piano and Ensemble''. Petaluma, California: Sher Music. The figure is als ...

'' pattern. In fact, in

Saint Domingue Saint-Domingue () was a French colony in the western portion of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, in the area of modern-day Haiti, from 1659 to 1803. The name derives from the Spanish main city on the island, Santo Domingo, which came to re ...

(current

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

), from where the tumba francesa was imported, the word catá (of

Bantu Bantu may refer to: *Bantu languages, constitute the largest sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages *Bantu peoples, over 400 peoples of Africa speaking a Bantu language * Bantu knots, a type of African hairstyle *Black Association for National ...

origin), denoted this rhythm. The catá is considered a reconstruction of idiophones from the Congo region, brought by slaves to the Caribbean. The catá has been incorporated into

Cuban rumba Rumba is a secular genre of Cuban music involving dance, percussion, and song. It originated in the northern regions of Cuba, mainly in urban Havana and Matanzas, during the late 19th century. It is based on African music and dance traditions, n ...

, where it "locks" with the

, establishing the

clave rhythm The clave (; ) is a rhythmic pattern used as a tool for meter (music), temporal organization in Brazilian and Afro-Cuban music, Cuban music. In Spanish, ''clave'' literally means key, clef, code, or keystone. It is present in a variety of genres ...

. In the context of rumba, the term ''guagua'' is more common, as in

guaguancó Guaguancó () is a subgenre of Cuban rumba, combining percussion, voices, and dance. There are two main styles: Havana and Matanzas. Percussion * battery of three conga drummers: the ''tumba'' o "''salidor''"(lowest), ''tres dos'' (middle, playin ...

, or ''

palitos Claves (; ) are a percussion instrument consisting of a pair of short, wooden sticks about 20–25 centimeters (8–10 inches) long and about 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) in diameter. Although traditionally made of wood (typically rosewood, ebony o ...

'', which refers to the sticks. Nonetheless, these have been replaced by the ''caja china'' ( wood block) or the more durable

jam block A jam block is a percussion instrument developed as a modern, hard plastic version of the woodblock. They are popularly used for their durability when compared to the traditional woodblock. They were created by Martin Cohen, founder of Latin Per ...

, made of plastic. The guagua is also used in

, one of the oldest genres of Afro-Cuban percussion. Musicologists from

Guantánamo Guantánamo (, , ) is a municipality and city in southeast Cuba and capital of Guantánamo Province. Guantánamo is served by the Caimanera port near the site of a U.S. naval base. The area produces sugarcane and cotton wool. These are traditi ...

, such as Ramón Gómez Blanco, hypothesize that the catá pattern was adapted by the

marímbula The marímbula () is a plucked box musical instrument of the Caribbean. In Cuba it is common in the changüí genre, as well as old styles of son. In Mexico, where it is known as marimbol is played in son jarocho; in the Dominican Republic, ...

players in

changüí ''Changüí'' is a style of Cuban music which originated in the early 19th century in the eastern region of Guantánamo Province, specifically Baracoa. It arose in the sugar cane refineries and in the rural communities populated by slaves. ''C ...

, highlighting the common Bantu roots of tumba francesa and changüí.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cata Central American and Caribbean percussion instruments Idiophones struck directly Unpitched percussion instruments Cuban musical instruments

Use

See also

References