Description:

Dafnis Prieto from NYU talks about the meaning and the structure of Afro-Cuban music. He describes Afro-Cuban music as a combination of what the African community produced in the time of slavery and the development of that music since plus the mix of African people with Europeans and their musical influences. He describes the development of Cuban country music that originally started as a trio of two guitars and a maraca or a bongo and eventually became an ensemble. Afro-Cuban music's rhythm has rich syncopation that is influenced by the Spanish. Also in this segment, Mr. Prieto discusses what it was like growing up in Cuba and absorbing the music and way of life there.