Spanish music has the ability to captivate audiences worldwide. Artists such as Julio Iglesias and Enrique Iglesias have achieved worldwide pop icon status due to the global appeal of Spanish-language music.
Spain boasts an active classical music scene, boasting professional orchestras and esteemed opera houses. Kiko Veneno provides modern takes on traditional Spanish tunes, while Sephardic musicians Aurora Moreno and Luis Delgado keep traditions alive.
Corridos
Corridos are an expressive form of Mexican folk music that often dramatizes real events while embellishing details to further the plot and honor their heroes. Written as four-line stanzas with abcd rhyme patterns and typically featuring either waltz or polka rhythms.
Tradition dictates that these songs be performed on a Spanish guitar known as a renquito (pronounced rinquito). Additionally, other folk instruments like the tumbadora or tololoche – stringed bass-type instruments similar to double basses – may also be employed.
Modern Corridos have evolved into more of a hybrid genre that draws elements from other genres such as Latin Trap and Reggaeton. Rap artist Bad Bunny recently released a track with Grupo Frontera that showcased a corrido feel complete with placid tempo and dem-boy beat reminiscent of corridos from years past. Nataneel Cano is considered a leading voice in this field and is often called the “King of Corridos Tumbados.”
Merengue
Early merengue music originated primarily in rural settings. Urban centers began adopting it around 1920 after Blind accordionist Juan Espinola became well-known; his recordings helped spread merengue across America and internationally.
Merengue music became more renowned in the United States with the arrival of Dominican musicians in the 1960s and 70s, particularly New York City with its large Dominican population – becoming an important hub for its development, exchange with other musical styles, and exchange between musicians of different styles.
Merengue music is fast-paced and rhythmically synced, featuring catchy melodies with lyrics that are easy to remember and sing along to. One signature feature of merengue is its percussive rhythm el maco, which has more in common with disco than typical merengues; due to this ease, songs from different genres can easily be transformed into merengue through fusilamiento; this process also allowed artists like Wilfrido Vargas, Johnny Ventura, Milly Quezada and Jocelyn y Los Vecinos helped bring new sounds into merengue genre music scene.
Musica Llaneera
Musica Llanera originates in Venezuela and Colombia’s vast plains (llanos), where it serves as the folk music for cowboys known as llaneros. This genre can be identified by traditional instruments like the harp, bandola llanera, cuatro and maracas; reflecting rural life while honoring love, landscapes and daily experiences of these cowboys or llaneros.
Corrido songs typically address social issues such as telling the tale of a popular figure or telling heroic accounts about hardworking individuals; however, some artists produce narcocorridos that glorify drug traffickers’ lives.
While most llaneros are male, women have increasingly become an important part of this genre’s music-making community. Rogelio Ortiz of Delmarva Public Media interviewed one such musician from Cimarron: Ana Veydo.
Vallenato
Vallenato music of Colombia owes its influence both from Africa and Europe, specifically African drumming brought over by slaves while its rhythmic and lyrical structures draw from European ballads and romances.
Vallenato music is defined by three signature instruments: accordion, guacharaca (ribbed wooden stick used to rub against notched gourd), and caja vallenata (small drum).
Vallenato music has traditionally been performed by traveling troubadours known as “romanceros,” who sing love songs and anecdotes about daily life. But over time it has evolved and adapted to new trends to reach a broader audience; for example Carlos Vives incorporates elements of rock into his Vallenato tunes while more female artists enter this genre and break gender norms.