Zamba is a traditional dance of Argentina. It is a style of Argentine music and Argentine folk dance. Zamba is very different from its homophone, the samba - musically, rhythmically, temperamentally, in the steps of the dance and in its costume. It has six beats to the bar and is a majestic dance, performed by couples who circle each other waving white handkerchiefs very elegantly. It has common elements with the cueca.
Zambas are composed about many themes, from those that celebrate people or events of Argentine history, to those that describe the beauty of a region, or of its women. There are zambas of political protest, and even one called Aerolíneas Argentinas . The bombo legüero drum is prominent in the playing of the zamba.
The name "zamba" refers to a colonial term for zambo (people that are descendants of Amerindian and African people). It is therefore called zamba because its lyrical content was aimed at its native listeners.
The dance originated in the Argentine province of Salta in the Creole genre known as the zamacueca of Peru, in 1824 at the same time that Peru, under José de San Martín, obtained independence. It came to Argentina through Upper Peru, a region that is modern day Bolivia and through Chile between 1825 and 1830. [1] [2]
The Zamba is a slow dance in three-quarter time played primarily on guitar and bombo legüero. The steps of the dance are a walking step, an alternate step (two steps at one time), and a tip toe alternate step or "sobrepaso punteado" (three steps at one time). The Zamba also requires a handkerchief.
Peruvian culture is the gradual blending of Amerindian cultures with European and Asian ethnic groups. The ethnic diversity and rugged geography of Peru allowed diverse traditions and customs to co-exist. Peruvian culture has been deeply influenced by Native culture, Spanish culture, and Asian culture. Other minor influences on their culture are Chinese, Japanese, and other European peoples.
Buenos Aires, officially the Buenos Aires Province, is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of the province and the province's capital until it was federalized in 1880. Since then, in spite of bearing the same name, the province does not include Buenos Aires city, though it does include all other parts of the Greater Buenos Aires metropolitan area. The capital of the province is the city of La Plata, founded in 1882.
Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Argentine Milonga, Spanish-Cuban Habanera, and Uruguayan Candombe celebrations. It was frequently practiced in the brothels and bars of ports, where business owners employed bands to entertain their patrons. It then spread to the rest of the world. Many variations of this dance currently exist around the world.
Peruvian music is an amalgamation of sounds and styles drawing on Peru's Andean, Spanish, and African roots. Andean influences can perhaps be best heard in wind instruments and the shape of the melodies, while the African influences can be heard in the rhythm and percussion instruments, and European influences can be heard in the harmonies and stringed instruments. Pre-Columbian Andean music was played on drums and string instruments, like the European pipe and tabor tradition. Andean tritonic and pentatonic scales were elaborated during the colonial period into hexatonic, and in some cases, diatonic scales.
Cueca is a family of musical styles and associated dances from Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia. In Chile, the cueca holds the status of national dance, where it was officially declared as such by the Pinochet dictatorship on September 18, 1979.
Música criolla, Peruvian Creole music or canción criolla is a varied genre of Peruvian music that exhibits influences from European, African and Andean music. The genre's name reflects the coastal culture of Peru, and the local evolution of the term criollo, a word originally denoting high-status people of full Spanish ancestry, into a more socially inclusive element of the nation.
The Chacarera is a dance and music that originated in Santiago del Estero, Argentina. It is a genre of folk music that, for many Argentines, serves as a rural counterpart to the cosmopolitan imagery of the Tango. A dance form played by contemporary musicians as soloists or in small ensembles of voice, guitar, violin and bombo drum, the Chacarera is often legitimized by its “origin” in the remote province of Santiago del Estero.
Marinera is a partner dance that originated along the coastal regions of Peru, using handkerchiefs as props. The dance is a mix of Spanish contradanza and Andean zamacueca, and is a stylized reenactment of a courtship, showing a blend of the different cultures of Peru. The dance has gained recognition throughout South America and is known as the most prominent traditional dance of Peru. The city of Trujillo has been recognized as the national birthplace of the marinera since 1986. The Marinera Festival, a cultural event dedicated to marinera held in Trujillo, although as of 2023 the festival has been held in the city of Lima. These annual competitions of the dance have taken place since 1960. In 2012, the Congress of Peru observed nationally October 7 as a commemorative day for the marinera.
Tondero is a dance and guitar rhythm from Peru that developed in the country's northern coastal region (Piura–Lambayeque).
María Luisa Anido was an Argentine classical guitarist and composer.
Dance in Peru is an art form primarily of native origin. There are also dances that are related to agricultural work, hunting and war. In Peru dancing bears an important cultural significance. Some choreographies show certain Christian influence.
The bombo criollo, or simply bombo, is a family of Latin American drums derived from the European bass drum and native Latin American drum traditions. These drums are of smaller dimensions than the orchestral bass drum, and their frame can be made of wood or steel. They can be held vertically or diagonally on the body or a stand. The specific make of the instrument depends on the regional tradition. In Argentina, the bombo criollo is called bombo legüero and played in many folkloric styles. In Cuba, bombos are the largest drums played by the street comparsas in Santiago. In other countries, the term tambora is commonly used.
Afro-Chileans are Chilean people of African descent. They may be descendants of slaves who were brought to Chile via the trans-Atlantic slave trade, or recent migrants from other parts of Latin America, the Caribbean or Africa.
The Carnavalito is a traditional indigenous dance from the Argentinian Altiplano and puna regions, usually performed during religious festivities. Its current form is an expression of a syncretism between Pre-Columbian and Spanish colonial culture. It is a collective dance which is joyful in nature.
Luis Pereyra is a dancer and choreographer of Tango Argentino and Argentine folk dances.
European Argentines, are Argentines who have predominantly or total European ancestry, belong to several communities which trace their origins to various migrations from Europe and which have contributed to the country's cultural and demographic variety. They are the descendants of colonists from Spain during the colonial period prior to 1810, or in the majority of cases, of Spanish, Italians, French, Russians and other Europeans who arrived in the great immigration wave from the mid 19th to the mid 20th centuries, and who largely intermarried among their many nationalities during and after this wave. No recent Argentine census has included comprehensive questions on ethnicity, although numerous studies have determined that European Argentines have been a majority in the country since 1914.
Córdoba is a province of Argentina, located in the center of the country. Its neighboring provinces are Santiago del Estero, Santa Fe, Buenos Aires, La Pampa, San Luis, La Rioja, and Catamarca. Together with Santa Fe and Entre Ríos, the province is part of the economic and political association known as the Center Region.
Más Allá del Sur is Argentine electrotango band Tanghetto's third studio album. The album was released in November 2009.
The Labour Gathering Party was a political party in Argentina, led by José Penelon. It emerged from a dissident wing of the Communist Party of Argentina in the late 1920s. The party would exist for decades, mainly based in Buenos Aires, but its influence waned over the years.
The folkloric music of Argentina traces its roots to the multiplicity of native indigenous cultures. It was shaped by four major historical-cultural events: Spanish colonization and forced African immigration caused by the slave trade during the Spanish domination ; the large wave of European immigration (1880–1950) and the large-scale internal migration (1930–1980).