Tag Archives | Carnival

Conga and Carnival in Santiago de Cuba

Cuban conga music developed from rhythmic street parade performances by groups of musicians called comparsas which play music and dance in Cuban streets during festivals like Carnival.

The genre in the Western Cuban city of Havana is different from that of the Eastern city of Santiago de Cuba, which features a “Chinese horn.” SantiagoDeCubaCity.org says it like this: “I believe that there is not to have born for not feeling the contagious rhythm of La Conga, because still being dead, Oriental conga or Conga Santiaguera makes you resuscitate.”

Now is the Time!

“Ahora es Cuando es” is a Cuban carnival song arranged in the style of a conga from Santiago de Cuba. You can hear a bit of percussion from original from the Smithsonian Folkways album “Carnaval in Cuba.” In Havana, Cuba’s capital, musical performances during “carnaval” are most often presented to the community as a formal performance, while in Santiago de Cuba the Carnival parade is composed of members of the community–the audience and the parade are one.