Cuban Salsa History (Part 5) Tumba Francesa

The word Tumba Francesa is often heard in the salsa context and is a common source of confusion among Cuban salsa students. It can refer to a Rueda move, a type of dance, a rhythm, a collection of societies, a title of various songs and albums, a style of drumming, a type of drum etc. It is easy to see why many people get mixed up with this term and do not quite know what to make of it in relation to the dance they are learning.

One of the most influential migrations on Cuban music and culture came from Haiti especially after the Haitian slave revolution of 1791. Haitians came to Cuba from every part of Saint-Domingue, as Haiti was called at the time, as well as areas of Louisiana. They settled all around Cuba although they had their greatest impact on eastern Cuba and Santiago de Cuba in particular. While they comprised of white French, free people of colour and black slaves they were collectively referred to as “los franceses” by the Cubans they met on the island. This was due to the unique culture, skill set and know-how they brought to the island based on the influences of French colonialism that was distinctly different from the Spanish colonialism that had influenced the life of Cubans thus far.
The impact reached from areas such as fashion, music and philosophy to changes that would permanently affect the landscape and economy of Cuba such as the introduction of coffee, cotton and indigo plantations by French planters.

One of the greatest influences on Cuban music and dance that arose from this period was the formation of mutual aid-societies among former Haitian slaves who had made it to Cuba. These societies were very similar to other cabildos that already existed in Cuba since the 16th century with the key difference being that the Africans belonging to these societies had mixed their original African traditions with French-Haitian culture thus creating distinct societies in Cuba with their own set of culture, music and dance.

The word tumba is believed to come from the Bantu language where it means drum. When the newly formed societies referred to both their dances and drums by the word “tumba”, Cubans described this as “tumba” danced and played by French people or simply “tumba francesa”.

Mozambique

Pedro Izquierdo or Pello el Afrokán was born in Havana in the Jesús María neighborhood in 1933. He is the creator of the rhythm of Mozambique and its associated dance. Pello’s musical background started with his family, with his father who was a percussionist in Belisario López’ band and his cousin Mongo Santamaría who was a famous jazz musician. He worked in the docks of Havana while playing as a musician on the streets of Havana. In 1945, at the age of 12, Pello performed at the Martí Theater with his brothers Gilberto and Roberto. He started his career writing commercial “jingles” for the radio station CMQ.

Pello created his first conjunto in 1959 and played at the famous nightclub Tropicana at a time where many new international composers, performers and artists were dominating the musical scene. The influence of pop music had also spread to Cuba where the youth were keen to dance to and listen to the new trends around the world. This was at odds to the philosophy of the state under Fidel Castro who was trying to revive the traditions of Cuba and placed importance on its African roots. Interestingly, Pello is said to have composed a song “Bailando Mozambique me voy a cortar caña” based on a composition by Juanito Márquez after Fidel Castro urged him to write an inspirational song that would encourage volunteers to help with the sugar harvest in Cuba. It was under these conditions in 1963 that Pello unveiled his new rhythm, which he named Mozambique. It was said to be one of the first music genres to be created after the Cuban revolution, with the rhythm being a fusion of Afro-Cuban rhythms from Yoruba, Conga, Abakuá amongst others, having a chorus-response structure similar to rumba. The original conjunto of Pello was made up of twelve congas, two bombos, three bells, a sárten, five trumpets and five trombones.

Mozambique was first premiered on a Cuban television show called Ritmos de Juventud in July 1963 and continued to be featured for a period of four years. It became a dance craze in Havana, where it was danced by those of different social classes and backgrounds at celebrations, parties and carnivals. The dance is characterised by the bending of the knee by the dancer as they lower their body while the foot is advanced. The foot is then replaced with the body returning to its original stance.

Pello travelled to many parts of Europe and Russia performing. It was said that his rhythm caused a sensation in Paris’ Olympia Theater in 1965 where he played with el Gran Music Hall de Cuba. In 1979 he played in the Carnegie Hall in the United States and Japan. Many established musicians such as Carlos Santana and Eddie Palmieri recorded cover versions of his song “María caracoles”, Carlos Santana infusing rock with the original Afro-Cuban rhythm.

Sadly, Pello passed away in September 2000 but his contribution to Cuban music is recognised far and wide. Rafael Lam in his book “Los reyes de la salsa” alludes to how Mozambique was one of the important precursors of modern timba. Famous compositions by Pello include “Ileana quiere chocolate”, “Camina Como Cómico”, “María Caracoles”, “Nace en Cuba el Mozambique” amongst others.