Latin Rhythms Playlist on VodPod

VodPod is a net-based video collection site with some cool widgets. I use one in the sidebar of this blog to enable readers to watch and listen to some of my favorite Flamenco and Fado artists. Today, I'm posting this note so that I can play with a new VodPod configuration in the body of my post. I've selected some tunes and artists from my "Latin Rhythms" playlist, one of several Spanish-language playlists on my personal iPOD. I've posted before about Alt. Mexican music, here. And about Mexican/American Diva Lila Downs, here. This VodPod collection contains a variety of musicians, tunes and styles. Enjoy. And let me know if any of your personal favorites belong on my list.


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Carnaval - World's Greatest Party

The world's greatest party started today. Carnaval in Brazil. In Rio, Recife and throughout the country locals are seriously strutting their stuff. Cruise by ipanema.com's site for more. Then check out Rachel's account of day one in Rio on her blog, Gringa in Rio. In Brazil, Samba is king. Samba clubs form the core of Carnival processions and parties. An Afro-Latin dance that celebrates rhythm, energy and the human body, Samba rules in Rio. Check out this fine video and see the magic of Carnaval for yourself.

Lila Downs - Mole Ole'

This post allows me to focus on a few of my favorite things. Cumbia, the music of Mexican-American Diva Lila Downs and authentic Mexican food. I've posted about the infectious rhythms of Cumbia before. And my late father-in-law's recipe for the world's greatest salsa is here.
Lila Downs is one-of-a-kind (website). Her sultry, low-register voice is unique and her background is even more unusual. A graduate of the University of Minnesota, where her American father is a faculty member, she is somehow quintessentially Mexican. You'll remember her voice from Frida, the movie. The Alt Mexican sub-genre of the whole Alt Latin scene is very exciting right now. Downs, with her stage presence, looks and voice is quite the Oaxacan Diva. Just check her out singing the praises of Mexico's national dish, Mole, in the video below. Follow this link for the history of Mole and a variety of regional recipes. Yea, that's what I'm talking about. Tasty tunes and yummy food. What's not to love?

Cumbia - Musical Gold from Columbia

Cumbia is everywhere. I've got a few bars of cumbia as my personal iPhone ringtone. Gets a lot of smiles. Cumbia is first and foremost Columbian, with origins in Guinea in Africa, according to Wikipedia's very informative article on the subject. The infectious musical style has swept Latin America and is gaining ground in USA. Los Lobos does Cumbia (Cumbia Raza). A staple of Tejano tunes, the late Selena was queen of the Cumbia. See her perform Amor Prohibido here.

Cumbia is definitely working class music, full of energy and joyful release. It is the up-beat rhythm, and the combination of instruments (image: Guiro) and voice that distinguish Cumbia for me. This is dance music. Or ginding, booty-shaking sounds, depending on your preference. Originally folk dancers used Cumbia in courtship dances, formalized encounters with eligible males and females enticing each other; making eye-contact; and touching in the proscribed, well-known movements of the dance. A wonderful tradition that continues today.

Now, Cumbia is danced in clubs and at parties where North and South Americans with hot Latin blood (or their partners) gather. At house parties in San Diego, Sacramento, Santiago, San Martin and San Antonio.

From its Afro-Columbian origins, Cumbia has developed dialects, and regional variations. In contemporary Columbia, Celso Pina is the acknowledged Cumbia King. Check out Celso in this video. In Argentina, groups like Damas Gratis define the street sound of Cumbia. In Chile, Cumbia is enjoyed by the upper middle-class and the wealthy. And Peruvians have their own take on the style. I am most familiar with Mexican versions, performed by artists like Lila Downs. From Puebla, on the great Mexican plateau, Cumbia has spread throughout the country, to the US, and now to my iPod.