General Notes about Caribbean Music

Spreading across dozens of islands, both large and small, and embracing Mexico and the seven states of Central America, the countries of the greater Caribbean region defy easy categorization. Its history is ancient and enduringly powerful. The glories of the Mayan and Aztec Empires may have passed over into myth, but the imposition of European culture and language during the Colombian era have not been able to unify these very different peoples. Without doubt, Caribbean music owes much of its diversity to the constant influx of African slaves, torn from their homelands to work on plantations around the islands. It offers much more than just calypso and reggae, which have been the most successful exports of recent decades. To survey the region’s musical richness is to witness a confluence of African, Spanish, and indigenous streams of creativity. Of course, that blend becomes the backdrop for native-born composers. But it also beckons to non-native composers—men like Claude Debussy, George Gershwin, and Louis-Moreau Gottschalk—who are inspired by Caribbean flair, passion, and rhythmic urgency.

(c) Jason Stell