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Entity reports on how Cuba is a mix of Afro-European dance and music traditions.

In Cuba, the question, “Would you like to dance?” is almost always followed by a resounding, “Yes.”

Music and dance weave the fabric of Cuban culture. Whether they are street performers, professional dancers or audience members, Cubans cannot seem to stop dancing. The cha cha cha, ballet, habanera – Cuba is the pioneer of many entertaining and diverse dances now popular around the world. And, of course, you can’t have dance without music!

Cuba, and specifically the cities of Havana and Santiago de Cuba, has a long and complicated history as the true melting pot of the world. Because of West African, Spanish and French influences and the heritages of its people, this Caribbean island boasts an eclectic and entertaining blend of music and dance styles.

African slaves, European immigrants and those who practice Santería – an Afro-Caribbean religion with added elements of Roman Catholicism –  largely influenced music and dance in Cuba.

Areíto, a dance performance that originated from natives of Cuba – the Taíno, Arawak and Ciboney people – contributed to the development of folk music. Son, another popular and long-lasting genre of music, was introduced by farmers of Spanish descent and has a “distinctive rhythm” boasting “a bass pulse that comes after the downbeat.”

After the Haitian Revolution of 1791, Haitians fled to Cuba and brought with them the charanga and their own style of danzón – the official original dance and music of Cuba. This dance was considered highly sensual and romantic in character with couples pressed firmly together with their feet almost touching.

The African style of danzón is called habanera. The cha cha cha also originated from the danzón. The tango, conga, bolero and mambo, along with the previously mentioned dances, all originated in Cuba.

Although these forms of dance have evolved and are performed around the world, the threads of dance have been sewn into the hearts of Cuban people and culture since the 19th century.

Dancers in Cuba have rock star status and entertain audiences around the world as members of numerous Cuban dance companies. Cuban ballet dancers, as this Huffington Post article points out, are paid more than doctors in some cases. Along with funding for ballet training, the Cuban government has always recognized dance as a highly influential and significant art form.

Although The New Yorker points out that dance may evolve quickly because foreign trade relations are opening up, there is no doubt that Cuban culture still highly revolves around its diverse dance and music styles.

Edited by Casey Cromwell
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