Big Blog #2: The Musical Culture of Dominican Republic

 Good afternoon (or morning) everyone. I hope all are doing well. I am going to start off by talking about why I chose this topic. A few years ago, I went on vacation out of the country to Punta Canta, Dominican Republic. The people there were so nice and always happy. It is not the best looking place to live, unlike America. It is the usual foreign country. They are always cheerful and grateful for what they have and it is amazing. Now I am going to take you on a trip to the wonderful country of Dominican Republic. I hope you all enjoy!

Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic is known for their dancing talents. The citizens will dance anywhere from the park to their own houses. There are two popular genres, merengue and bachata. 

Merengue is the national music and dance of DR. They believe the merengue is a part of the Dominican essence. The lyrics of this music shares life stories and about everyday life. Instruments oriented with the merengue are güira and tambour. The rhythm can either be fast or really fast. 

Bachata is more of a slow, sensual type of music. This was known as the lower class music. After a while, this genre grew higher and higher on the totem pole. 

How do you dance to the merengue? The man is lead in the dance. The two partners sway their hips back and forth while the male is holding his hand on the right hip of the female.They step side to side occasionally. As a woman, all the job to due is follow the dance cues. 

How do you dance to the bachata? Males lead as usual. The partners will sway their hips as if they are forming a square with their feet. The two will usually do a push and pull with their hands as they dance. 

Juan Luis Guerra became a very famous merengue singer (in Dominican Republic) between 1980-1990. He has taken this genre and mixed it with pop and jazz music. Also, he is a Grammy winner and well renowned Latin artists. He is a singer, songwriter, composer , and record recorder. He was raised by a professional baseball player. A fun fact about Juan is he was influenced by a group names "The Beatles". He had an album , Bachata Rosa, consisting of love songs, that sold over five million copies. 

Folkloric Music

This type of music is influenced by the African heritage Dominican. This music style can be experienced in many different regions around DR. folkloric music is Western African spiritual music. Instruments involved with this type of music are double-headed drums, idiophones, and maracas. 

Todays Music:

I am now going to take you into what is now the music widely spread in Dominican Republic. 

Thank you all for your support during this journey. I hope to keep in touch with you all! Enjoy and Stay Safe!!!

https://www.godominicanrepublic.com/about-dr/music/

https://www.moon.com/travel/trip-ideas/dominican-dance-merengue-bachata/

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/juan-luis-guerra-mn0000291502/biography