Tumba francesa is a secular Afro-Cuban genre of

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

, and drumming that emerged in Oriente,

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 was introduced by slaves from the French colony of

Saint-Domingue Saint-Domingue () was a French colonization of the Americas, 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 isl ...

(which would later become the nation of

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 ...

) whose owners resettled in Cuba's eastern regions following the

slave rebellion A slave rebellion is an armed uprising by slaves, as a way of fighting for their freedom. Rebellions of slaves have occurred in nearly all societies that practice slavery or have practiced slavery in the past. A desire for freedom and the dream o ...

during the 1790s. The genre flourished in the late 19th century with the establishment of ''sociedades de tumba francesa'' (tumba francesa societies), of which only three survive.

Characteristics

Tumba francesa combines musical traditions of

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

n, Bantu, French and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

origin. Cuban ethnomusicologists agree that the word " tumba" derives from the Bantu and

Mandinka Mandinka, Mandika, Mandinkha, Mandinko, or Mandingo may refer to: Media * Mandingo (novel), ''Mandingo'' (novel), a bestselling novel published in 1957 * Mandingo (film), ''Mandingo'' (film), a 1975 film based on the eponymous 1957 novel * ''Man ...

words for drum. In Cuba, the word tumba is used to denote the drums, the ensembles and the performance itself in tumba francesa.

Instrumentation

Tumbas francesas are directed by a mistress of ceremonies called ''mayora de plaza''. Performances generally begin with improvised solo singing in a mixture of

and French patois termed ''kreyol cubano'' or ''patuá cubano'' by the lead vocalist (''composé''). After the introduction, the catá (a wooden cylindrical idiophone struck with two sticks) is played, and the ''composé'' alternates

call and response Call and response is a form of interaction between a speaker and an audience in which the speaker's statements ("calls") are punctuated by responses from the listeners. This form is also used in music, where it falls under the general category of ...

singing with a group of female vocalists (''tumberas''). After the catá establishes the beat, the three tumbas are played. The tumbas are single-headed hand drums; from largest to smallest they are called premier (or manma), bulá and segón. The premier is now commonly called quinto, as it fulfills the same lead, improvisatory role as the quinto does among the

conga The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest ...

drums in

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 ...

. In the toque masón, a double-headed bass drum called tamborita (or simply tambora) establishes the rhythm together with the catá. In addition, a shaker called chachá or maruga is commonly played by the ''tumberas'' and the ''mayora'' throughout the performance. The structure of tumba francesa is related to an eastern type of

called tahona.

Toques

There are three main ''toques'', or types of tumba performance, each associated with a specific dance. *Masón. This is the first toque. It features the whole music ensemble and is associated with a

quadrille The quadrille is a dance that was fashionable in late 18th- and 19th-century Europe and its colonies. The quadrille consists of a chain of four to six ''Contra dance, contredanses''. Latterly the quadrille was frequently danced to a medley of ope ...

-style dance similar to the

contradanza ''Contradanza'' (also called ''contradanza criolla'', ''danza'', ''danza criolla'', or ''habanera'') is the Spanish and Spanish-American version of the contradanse, which was an internationally popular style of music and dance in the 18th cen ...

. *Yubá. This ''toque'' follows the masón and involves the catá and the three tumbas. It is accompanied by the main tumba dance, which is improvised. There are two subtypes of yubá: macota and cobrero. *Frenté (or fronté). Originally the final section of the yubá, this is now considered an individual ''toque''. It involves the catá, the premier and the bulá. It is played in front of the drums, hence the name. An additional toque called ''cinta'' is only performed in

Santiago de Cuba Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. It lies in the southeastern area of the island, some southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana. The municipality extends over , and contains t ...

. It is called so because the performance takes place around a tree trunk with coloured bands (''cintas''), which are red, white and blue.

Dance

The dance in tumba francesa is similar to Haitian

affranchi ''Affranchi'' (, ) is a former French legal term denoting a freedman or emancipated slave, but also a pejorative term for free people of color. It is used in the English language to describe the social class of freedmen in Saint-Domingue, and ...

, which involves a series of straight-backed, held-torso, French style figures followed by African improvisation on the final set, but tumba francesa is danced to drums instead of string and woodwind instruments. The clothes of the dancers are colorful and flamboyant.

History

Tumbas francesas can be traced back to the late 18th century when the

Haitian Revolution The Haitian Revolution ( or ; ) was a successful insurrection by slave revolt, self-liberated slaves against French colonial rule in Saint-Domingue, now the sovereign state of Haiti. The revolution was the only known Slave rebellion, slave up ...

triggered the migration of French colonists from Saint-Domingue, bringing their slaves to the

Oriente Province Oriente (, "East") was the easternmost province of Cuba until 1976. The term "Oriente" is still used to refer to the eastern part of the country, which currently is divided into five different provinces. The origins of Oriente lie in the 1607 di ...

of Cuba. By the late 19th century, following the abolition of slavery in 1886, tumba francesa societies became established in this region, especially in

and

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 ...

. Their establishment was in many ways similar to the old African ''cabildos''. Performers identify tumba francesa as ''French-Haitian'', acknowledging it as a product of Haiti which now resides in

. By the second half of the 20th century, tumbas francesas were still performed in eastern Cuba, especially the toque masón. Other toques however are only played in the context cultural associations. Three tumba francesa societies survive at the moment: La Caridad de Oriente (originally La Fayette) in Santiago de Cuba; Bejuco in

Sagua de Tánamo Sagua de Tánamo () is a municipality and town in the Holguín Province of Cuba. Overview The Sierra Cristal National Park () is partly located in the Sagua de Tánamo municipality and partly in neighboring Mayarí. The municipality is divided i ...

Holguín Holguín (, ) is a municipality-city in Cuba. After Havana, Santiago de Cuba, and Camagüey, it is the List of cities in Cuba, fourth largest city in Cuba. History Before Christopher Columbus, Columbus, the Taino people settled in huts made fro ...

; and Santa Catalina de Riccis (originally La Pompadour) in Guantánamo.

Recordings

Unlike other Afro-Cuban genres, tumba francesa remains poorly documented in terms of recordings. The 1976 LP ''Antología de la música afrocubana VII'', produced by Danilo Orozco and released by Areito, presents a variety of yubá and masón toques.

References

External links

4 videos of Cutumba performing the ''tumba francesa''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tumba francesa Cuban styles of music Dance in Cuba Latin American folk dances Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity