Comiendo y Cantando - Pio Leyva Examples – Music
Comiendo y cantando is a son sung by Pío Leyva. You hear the typical "gon-gon, gon-gon" bass line of son in it, here played on the Spanish guitar, but the pattern stays easy to recognise.
This bassline has its roots in the marímbula, an Afro-Cuban instrument derived from African lamellophones (often called “thumb pianos”). The marímbula, with its deep plucked tones, essentially provided the bass voice in early son ensembles.
About Pío Leyva
Pío Leyva (Wilfredo Leiva Pascual, Morón 1917 – 2006) won a bongo contest at the age of six and made his singing debut in 1932. From 1950, when he signed with RCA Victor, he recorded more than 25 albums. He sang with Benny Moré, Bebo Valdés and Noro Morales, among others, and wrote the guaracha El mentiroso. Later he was one of the singers of the Buena Vista Social Club.
What to listen for
- The bass line: follow the "gon-gon". Son was traditionally danced contratiempo: no step on beats 1 and 5, with the emphasis on 4 and 8.
- Call and response: singer and chorus take turns, a hallmark of son.
- The tres (of Spanish origin) and the clave rhythm (with Bantu roots) together form the core of son.