Estribillo
The estribillo is the refrain of a rumba: a short phrase that the coro repeats in answer to the lead singer. In yambú it marks the moment the dancing begins — once the estribillo starts, the couple enters the circle.
Its place in a yambú
- Diana — the opening vocal call, often sung on syllables (lalaleo).
- Canto — the lead singer's verses tell the story; the dancers wait and listen.
- Estribillo — the coro answers with the refrain, the quinto opens up, and the couple starts to dance.
For dancers
- Listen for the switch from the singer's story to the repeating coro: that is your cue to enter.
- In yambú the couple dances slowly and elegantly; there is no vacunao as in guaguancó.
- The estribillo keeps returning, alternating with improvised calls (inspiraciones) from the lead singer.
See also the estribillo in timba.
Cuban rumba is an Afro-Cuban music and dance genre characterized by complex rhythms, call-and-response vocals, and expressive, often flirtatious movements, rooted in African and Spanish traditions.
Lees meer >Guaguancó is the best-known rumba style: a flirtatious couple's dance in which the man tries to 'catch' the woman with the vacunao, a symbolic pelvic thrust, while she evades or accepts it with her movements.
Lees meer >Yambú is the oldest and slowest rumba style, born in the late 1800s in the urban neighbourhoods of Matanzas and Havana. A calm, elegant couple's dance without the vacunao of guaguancó, it is secular and danced to son clave.
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- Who sings it Chorus (the coristas, sometimes the horns too)
- Purpose Repetition, hook and rhythmic anchor
- Characteristics Short, catchy, often syncopated
Lees meer >A vocal improvisation or melodic gesture, sometimes used to transition between sections, often marking the move into the montuno or to reintroduce energy.
Lees meer >The cuerpo, also called canto, largo or verse, is where the lead vocalist sings the main lyrical content of the song.
In Timba, the canto often contains a narrative or thematic element and is supported by the rhythm section and background vocals.
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