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37-447: Matanzas is called the City of Bridges , for the seventeen bridges that cross the three rivers that traverse the city (Rio Yumuri, San Juan, and Canimar). For this reason it was referred to as the "Venice of Cuba." It was also called "La Atenas de Cuba" ("The Athens of Cuba") for its poets. Matanzas is known as the birthplace of the music and dance traditions danzón and rumba . Matanzas

74-526: A montuno as a final part of his El Bombín de Barretto . This was a swinging section, consisting of a repeated musical phrase, which introduced something of the son into the danzón (a tactic which was to recur again). Because of the popularity of son in the 1920s and 1930s, Aniceto Díaz in Rompiendo la rutina in 1929 added a vocal part, thereby creating a new genre called the danzonete. Later development led to more syncopation , which eventually led to

111-464: A 16-bar melody. The introduction and paseo again repeat before a second melody is played. The dancers do not dance during these sections: they choose partners, stroll onto the dance floor, and begin to dance at precisely the same moment: the fourth beat of bar four of the paseo, which has a distinctive percussion pattern that's hard to miss. When the introduction is repeated the dancers stop, chat, flirt, greet their friends, and start again, right on time as

148-469: A cello, flute, timbales , güiro , and doublebass . Charanga and típicas competed with each other for years, but after 1930 it was clear that the days of the típica were over. In 1898, a piano was included in a charanga for the first time. In Antonio María Romeu 's hands a piano became standard. Its musical flexibility, its ability to influence both melody and rhythm, made it invaluable. In 1926, in his arrangement of Tres lindas cubanas , Romeu incorporated

185-410: A coastal ridge. The city of Matanzas is divided into four neighborhoods: Versalles, Matanzas, Playa and Pueblo Nuevo . The municipality is divided into the barrios of Bachicha, Bailén, Barracones, Bellamar, Camarioca, Cárcel, Ceiba Mocha, Colón, Corral Nuevo, Guanábana, Ojo de Agua, Refugio, San Luis, San Severino, Simpson y Monserrate, Versalles and Yumurí. In 2022, the municipality of Matanzas had

222-607: A piano solo for the first time. His was Cuba's top charanga for many years. Similar to other dances in the Caribbean and Latin America, the danzón was initially regarded as scandalous, especially when it began to be danced by all classes of society. The slower rhythm of the danzón led to couples dancing closer, with sinuous movements of the hips and a lower centre of gravity. The author of a survey of prostitution in Havana devoted

259-413: A population of 163,631. With a total area of 317 km (122 sq mi), it has a population density of 520/km (1,300/sq mi). Matanzas is served by Juan Gualberto Gómez Airport , 15 km east of the city. The city has two railway stations. The main station is on the main line from Havana to Santiago de Cuba . The electrified Hershey train operates by a different route to Havana from

296-497: A separate station in the barrio of Versalles. Matanzas is also served by Viazul and Astro buses. After two failed attempts Matanzas had a tramway in 1916 (initially as Ferrocarril Eléctrico de Matanzas , then as city owned Compañía de Servicios Públicos de Matanzas in 1918 and Compañía de Tranvías de Matanzas in 1926). In 1952 it acquired tramcars from Havana Electric Railway , but converted with buses by new owners Omnibus Urbanos SA in 1954. The Via Blanca highway connects

333-411: A syncopated open vamp in which soloists may sometimes improvise, creating an ABACD or, more common, ABACAD. In danzón, the mambo section is the final section of an arrangement. It was first devised by Orestes López , who added syncopated motifs taken from the son, together with improvised flute variations. He called this type of danzón ritmo nuevo (new rhythm). Orestes' danzón Mambo was the start of

370-440: A trend continued by Arcaño y sus Maravillas . Via Blanca (Cuba) Vía Blanca ( I-3 ) is a highway in northern Cuba , connecting the capital city of Havana and the city of Matanzas . A second section extends eastwards from Matanzas to the tourist town of Varadero and to Cárdenas . Even if it is a motorway ( autopista ), it is part of the national highway named " Circuito Norte " (CN). The motorway, connected to

407-493: A whole chapter to the iniquities of dancing, and the danzón in particular. Articles in newspapers and periodicals took up the theme: Apparently, the danzón, which later became an insipid dance for older couples, was at first danced with "obscene movements" of the hips by young couples in close embrace, with bodies touching, and by couples who might come from different races... So, behind the concern about music and dance were concerns about sexual licence, and about miscegenation ,

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444-578: A wider range of music. Danzón was also very popular in the Gulf Coast state of Veracruz , Mexico, because of the strong Cuban influence in the region. Later on, danzón developed in Mexico City , specially in the famous Salón México ; it has survived as a dance longer there than in Cuba. Danzón also flourished in the city of Oaxaca , and many famous danzones were composed by Oaxacan musicians such as

481-574: Is reflected in many popular Cuban music genres, in Cuban Latin jazz , salsa , songo and timba , the latter building upon the charanga orchestration. Groups like Los Van Van and Orquesta Revé developed from charangas. Their make-up and orchestration (by Juan Formell ) has been so greatly altered that it is difficult to identify traces of danzón; indeed, their present styles owe more to son than to danzón. The addition of brass instruments such as trombones and trumpets, and conga drums signalled

518-496: Is the official musical genre and dance of Cuba . It is also an active musical form in Mexico and Puerto Rico . Written in 4 time , the danzón is a slow, formal partner dance , requiring set footwork around syncopated beats, and incorporating elegant pauses while the couples stand listening to virtuoso instrumental passages, as characteristically played by a charanga or típica ensemble. The danzón evolved from

555-547: The A2 (Havana Ring Road) , was opened in 1960. Its construction begun in 1945 with the bridge of Bacunayagua , on the Mayabeque / Matanzas province border. This is the highest Cuban bridge and was completed in 1960. It is mostly a four lane highway , with some divided sections. It runs east-west for 85 km between Havana and Matanzas, crossing the town of Santa Cruz del Norte , and an additional 53 km east to Varadero, at

592-581: The Orquesta Faílde ) was first performed in Matanzas , danzón had emerged as a distinct genre. Creation of the new danzón form is generally attributed to Faílde. The classical composer Manuel Saumell has also been cited as a key figure in its delineation. The English contradanza was the predecessor of the " habanera ", also known as danza criolla . Out of this Creole genre, the Habanera ,

629-427: The danzón-chá , nuevo ritmo , cha-cha-chá , pachanga and mambo . From the 1940s to the 1960s danzón and its derivatives were highly popular in Cuba, with several truly fine charangas playing most days of the week. Orquesta Aragón kept up an exceptionally high standard for many years, but the danzón itself gradually dropped out, and is now a relic dance. Danzón has never ceased to influence Cuban musicians, and it

666-703: The harbour area , Regla and Guanabacoa , before crossing the Vía Monumental in Habana del Este . A brief section in Luyanó includes the route of the Carretera Central highway. The motorway-type section (138 kilometres (86 mi)) starts in Havana, on a roundabout ( Rotonda de Cojímar ) before the Monumental , and ends north of Cárdenas . In Matanzas city center it crosses the seafront. It

703-549: The Cuban contradanza , or habanera ( lit. ' Havana -dance'). The contradanza, which had English and French roots in the country dance and contredanse , was probably introduced to Cuba by the Spanish, who ruled the island for almost four centuries (1511–1898), contributing many thousands of immigrants. It may also have been partially seeded during the short-lived British occupation of Havana in 1762. Haitian refugees fleeing

740-439: The city with both Havana in the west and Varadero in the east. The University of Matanzas is the province's high learning education institution. The Aqueduct of Matanzas, today a national monument, was built in 1870 and is still providing the city with water from the spring Manantial de Bello . An ingenious construction built 1912 exploited and till 1912 by Fernando Heydrich and Company. Danz%C3%B3n Danzón

777-455: The famous Nereidas and Teléfono de larga distancia, both works of Amador Pérez Dimas , from the town of Zaachila , near Oaxaca city. Today, people still dance danzón in Mexico, particularly in the main plazas of Veracruz, Oaxaca and Mexico City, and in yearly festivals across Mexico. The dance had a second revival in the 1990s, especially among Mexico's senior citizens. A film called Danzón

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814-524: The island's revolution of 1791–1804 brought the French-Haitian kontradans , contributing their own Creole syncopation. In Cuba, the dances of European origin acquired new stylistic features derived from African rhythm and dance to produce a genuine fusion of European and African influences. African musical traits in the danzón include complex instrumental cross-rhythms , expressed in staggered cinquillo and tresillo patterns. By 1879,

851-494: The middle of the river, the fishermen flipped the boats, and due to the Spanish soldiers' heavy metal armor, most of them drowned. Only two women—one said to be the beautiful María de Estrada—survived, the result of being taken by a Cacique . De Estrada is said to have later escaped the "power of the Cacique" and married Pedro Sánchez Farfán in the city of Trinidad . According to municipal historian Arnaldo Jimenez de la Cal, "[i]t

888-476: The mixing of races. As with other similar cases, the criticism was to no avail. The danzón became hugely popular, and was the dominant popular music in Cuba until the advent of the son in the 1920s. At length the Cuban government made Faílde the official inventor of the danzón – but not until 1960 , by which time the danzón had become a relic, and its 'child', the chachachá , had taken over. In 1910, some 30 years after Faílde's early days, José Urfé added

925-593: The northern tip of Peninsula de Hicacos (the section between Matanzas and Varadero is a toll road ). Most of the highway runs along the Straits of Florida shoreline. This is one of the busiest highways in Cuba, as it joins the two tourist destinations of Havana and Varadero . Vía Blanca starts at the Ciudad Deportiva , on the south-western side of Havana, between Cerro and Diez de Octubre . It runs for 12 km through Luyanó and Old Havana border,

962-405: The organizing principle of sub-Saharan African rhythm, known in Cuba as clave . Danzón is elegant and virtuoso music, with dance. A danzón, in its original form, was not sung, and did not feature any improvisations, unlike some other Cuban genres. A danzón has the following typical structure: The classic form is thus ABAC or ABACA. A danzón-chá or danzón-mambo typically add another part (D),

999-459: The paseo finishes. Early danzón was played by groups called orquestas típicas , which were based on wind instruments. They had several brass instruments ( cornet , valve trombone , ophicleide ), a clarinet or two, a violin or two and tympani ( kettle drums ). At the beginning of the 20th century, the lighter and somewhat more elegant sound of the charanga emerged (see Early Cuban bands ). Initially, they were small orchestra of two violins,

1036-534: The ribbons to make pleasing patterns. This account can be corroborated by other references, for example, a traveler in Cuba noted in 1854 that black Cubans "do a kind of wreath dance, in which the whole company took part, amid innumerable artistic entanglements and disentanglements". This style of danzón was performed at carnival comparsas by black groups: it is described that way before the late 1870s. Faílde's first danzóns were created for just such sequence dances. Faílde himself said "In Matanzas at this time there

1073-484: The sugar industry, particularly during the first half of the nineteenth century. For example, in 1792 there were 1900 slaves in Matanzas, roughly 30% of its population. In 1817, the slave population of Matanzas had grown to 10,773, comprising nearly 50% of the overall population. By 1841, 53,331 slaves made up 62.7% of the population of Matanzas. Census figures for 1859 put the Matanzas slave population at 104,519. Matanzas

1110-458: The year Miguel Failde 's Las alturas de Simpson was first performed (in Matanzas ), danzón had emerged as a distinct genre. Danzón went on to interact with 20th century Cuban genres such as son , and through the danzón-mambo it was instrumental in the development of mambo and cha-cha-chá . The danzón developed from the habanera , a creolized Cuban dance form. By 1879, the year Las alturas de Simpson composed by Miguel Failde (leader of

1147-406: Was a kind of square dance for twenty couples who carried arches and flowers. It was really a dance of figures (sequence dance), and its moves were adapted to the tempo of the habanera, which we took over for the danzón." The form of danzón created by Miguel Faílde in 1879 ( Las alturas de Simpson ), begins with an introduction (four bars) and paseo (four bars), which are repeated and followed by

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1184-425: Was bombarded by American Navy vessels on 25 April 1898, just after the beginning of the war. The name Matanzas means " massacre " and refers to a putative slaughter in 1510 at the port of the same name, in which 30 Spanish soldiers tried to cross one of the rivers to attack an aboriginal camp on the far shore. The Spanish soldiers had no boats, so they enlisted the help of native fishermen . However, once they reached

1221-482: Was born in 1879 another Cuban genre, called danzon, a sequence dance , in which all danced together a set of figures . The first use of the term danzón , which dates from the 1850s, is for just such a dance. Havana's daily paper, El Triunfo , gave a description of this earlier danzón. It was a co-ordinated dance of figures performed by groups of Matanzas blacks. The dancers held the ends of colored ribbons, and carried flower-covered arches. The group twisted and entwined

1258-478: Was founded in 1693 as San Carlos y San Severino de Matanzas . This followed a royal decree (" real cédula ") issued on September 25, 1690, which decreed that the bay and port of Matanzas be settled by 30 families from the Canary Islands . Matanzas was one of the regions that saw intensive development of sugar plantations during the colonial era. Consequently, many African slaves were imported to support

1295-431: Was released in 1991 directed by María Novaro. Danzón no. 2 by Mexican composer Arturo Márquez (b. 1950) is a popular piece in orchestral concerts. The basic timbales part for danzón is called the baqueteo. In the example above, the slashed noteheads indicate muted drum strokes, and the regular noteheads indicate open strokes. The güiro also plays this pattern. The danzón was the first written music to be based on

1332-582: Was the first act of rebellion of natives in Cuba." The city is located on the north shore of the island of Cuba, on all three sides of the Bay of Matanzas. The bay cuts deep in the island, and three rivers flow in the bay inside city limits (Rio Yumuri, San Juan, and Canimar). To the south-east, the landscape rises into a hill called Pan de Matanzas , divided from the Atlantic coast by the Yumuri Valley and

1369-526: Was the site of several slave insurrections and plots, including the infamous Escalera conspiracy ( es ) (discovered in late 1843, see also Year of the Lash ). Due to the high number of both slaves and, importantly, free Afro-Cubans in Matanzas, the retention of African traditions is especially strong there. In 1898, Matanzas became the location of the first action in the Spanish–American War . The city

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