AfroCubism

Artist: Eliades Ochoa
Name of CD: AfroCubism
Release Date: 2010

Eliades Ochoa's AfroCubism CD is an art form on its own account, and I call it “the Mondriaan of Cuban Salsa Music”. The combination of traditional Cuban music and the West African manner in which to express it makes the album quite inspiring and very love-able.

AfroCubism is starts with the Cuban Charanga Son instrumental “Mali Cuba”. I find the 'xylophone' part to be quite exhilirating. The guitar play in the Guajira Son “Al vaiven de mi carreta” (English: “To the swaying of my cart”) will instantly take you to the "Casas dela Trova" of Havana, Cuba. The faster-paced “Karama” (English: “The Hunter”) has a very strong “Africando” swing to it, not only because of the language, but also due to the heavy Senegalese influence. It is perfect for dancing both Cuban Salsa and Rueda de Casino. The song “La Culebra” (English: “The Snake”) will sound very familiar to the Oscar D'Leon fans: the structure of the song is nearly the same as Oscar's “Mata Siguaraya”. The song “Dakan” leans heavily on West African folkloric music and is therefore excellent to mix with music for moder Salsa choreography's. The fast-paced “Nima Diyala” (English: “I Beg You My Sweetheart”) is perfect for LA Style Salsa on1 and Power on2 dancers. The guitar play in the song has a nice Santana feeling to it.

My absolute favorite on the album is AfroCubism is the “unplugged” instrumental version of the famous “Guantanamera” (English: “Woman from Guantanamo”).        

I consider the music album AfroCubism to be one of the Salsa music jewels of 2010. The mixing of traditional Cuban music with West African heritage is excellent for both the Latin music lovers who enjoy listening to great music and for Salsa dancers who loves a challenge.  

Track list
1. Mali Cuba
2. Al Vaiven De Mi Carreta [The Swaying of My Cart]
3. Karamo [The Hunter]
4. Djelimady Rumba
5. La Culebra [The Snake]
6. Jarabi [Passion]
7. Eliades Tumbao 27
8. Dakan
9. Nima Diyala [I Beg You My Sweetheart]
10. A La Luna Yo Me Voy [I'm Going to the Moon]
11. Mariama
12. Para Los Pinares Se Va Montoro [Montoro's Going to Los Pinares]
13. Bensema [Change]
14. Guantanamera [Woman From Guantanamo]


About the author:
Sederick Short is a salsa dance teacher, choreographer and entertainer. He’s been teaching Salsa from 1997, and he’s been dancing all kind of street dance styles for more than 26 years. He also grew up with music: his father was a bass guitar player and his mother was a singer in several small bands on the island of Curacao. These bands often practiced at their home since the time he was a young boy. Currently, he's also the content manager of www.onlinesalsa.com. He can be reached at sederick@onlinesalsa.com, or by typing his name on Facebook.