Guajira is a music genre derived from the

punto cubano Punto guajiro or ''punto cubano'' – or simply ''punto'' – is a sung genre of Music of Cuba, Cuban music, a poetic art with music. It became popular in the western and central regions of Cuba in the 17th century, and consolidated as a g ...

. According to some specialists, the punto cubano was known in Spain since the 18th century, where it was called "punto de La Habana", and by the second half of the 19th century it was adopted by the incipient Spanish

Flamenco Flamenco () is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the Gitanos, gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and Region of Murcia, ...

style, which included it within its "palos" with the name of guajira.Manuel, Peter: The guajira between Cuba and Spain: A study in continuity and change. Latin American Music Review, volume 25, No. 2, Fall/Winter, 2004. Guajira was utilized by Spanish Zarzuela composers, such as

Ruperto Chapí Ruperto Chapí y Lorente (27 March 1851 – 25 March 1909) was a Spanish composer, and co-founder of the Sociedad General de Autores y Editores, Spanish Society of Authors and Publishers. Biography Chapí was born at Villena, the son of a loc ...

, who included it in his well known play "La Revoltosa", from 1897. Two years later, in 1899, the Cuban composer Jorge Anckermann inaugurated a new genre with his song "El arroyo que murmura", the first Cuban guajira. This song became a model that was adopted by many other Cuban composers at a later time, and was frequently included in the Cuban Zarzuela and vernacular theater. The Cuban guajira preserved the characteristic rhythm of its ancestors, the

and the Spanish guajira, which was the sesquiáltera or horizontal

Hemiola In music, hemiola (also hemiolia) is the ratio 3:2. The equivalent Latin term is sesquialtera. In rhythm, ''hemiola'' refers to three beats of equal value in the time normally occupied by two beats. In pitch, ''hemiola'' refers to the interval of ...

Its form usually alternates a first section in minor mode, with a second section modulating to its direct Major relative. Its lyrics frequently refer to rural themes in an idealistic and bucolic way, and generally evoke the goodness of rural life and romantic love stories.Sánchez de Fuentes, Eduardo 1923. El folklore en la música cubana. La Habana. p56

Guajira de salón, or guajira-son

From the 1930s, the guajira was refined and popularized by the singer and guitarist Guillermo Portabales, whose elegant style was known as guajira de salón or guajira-son. This is nothing but another case of synonymy within the Cuban popular music, because in spite of being named as guajira, the style of his songs was nothing else but those of the Cuban Son and

Bolero Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It h ...

-Son; although their lyrics were always related to rural themes.Linares, María Teresa y Núñez, Faustino: La música entre Cuba y España, Fundación Autor 1998, p. 75. Since the thirties until his death in a traffic accident, in 1970, Guillermo Portabales sang and recorded numerous guajiras de Salón through North and South America with great popular acclaim. Other renowned performers of guajira-son were Celina González, Coralia Fernández, Ramón Veloz y Radeúnda Lima. One of the most famous guajiras-son is the , composed by Joseíto Fernández and internationally popularized during the 1960s by the American folk singer

Pete Seeger Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and social activist. He was a fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s and had a string of hit records in the early 1950s as a member of The Weav ...

Etymology

The term is a feminine form of ''guajiro'', which comes from the Antillean

Arawak The Arawak are a group of Indigenous peoples of northern South America and of the Caribbean. The term "Arawak" has been applied at various times to different Indigenous groups, from the Lokono of South America to the Taíno (Island Arawaks), w ...

and means "lord, powerful man". In

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

it is used to name those people who work or live in the fields, or to name people who behave like them because they can be rude or with little knowledge (cfr.

Hillbilly ''Hillbilly'' is a term historically used for White people who dwell in rural area, rural, mountainous areas in the United States, primarily in the Appalachian region and Ozarks. As people migrated out of the region during the Great Depression, ...

). Also colloquially, it can refer to people who live outside the capital of Cuba, la Habana, and in rural areas without being farm workers. In some sentences, it is used to encourage a shy person, like in "no seas guajiro y pregúntale" ("don't be a peasant and ask her").

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guajira (music) Cuban styles of music

Guajira de salón, or guajira-son

Etymology

See also

References