rumba

This article describes the social and tournament dance rumba; for other meanings see Rumba (disambiguation)

rumba
Technology:	Latin
Type:	Ballroom dancing , ballroom dancing , ballroom dancing
Music:	Latin American music , pop music
Time signature :	4 / 4 -stroke
Tempo:	25–27 cycles per minute
Origin:	Cuba
List of dances

The rumba is a couple dance of Cuban origin, which has been one of the social and tournament dances in many industrialized countries since about the last third of the 20th century. Rumba was named Dance of the Year 2013 by the World Dance Council .

history

The Habanera is one of the best-known forerunners of rumba, as is the case with tango . It was in Argentina for Milonga (a forerunner of the Tango ), while in Cuba the bolero influenced that with the on the Son - Clave based guarachas and Guajiras constituted the repertoire of old Cuban trova. In the 1920s, Miguel Matamoros created the slower Bolero-Son , also based on the Son-Clave, and thus the musical basis of the Rumba.

A relationship with the Afro-Cuban rumba is not to be assumed. The word "Rumba" in Spanish for the Caribbean also generally stands for a night party or making music together.

Rumba emerged as a fashion dance in New York around 1930 when Don Azpiazú's version of El manisero became a hit. Rhythmically simplified, it also reached Europe in the early 1930s. The National Socialists banned rumba as a “ degenerate art ”, but interest also declined in other countries.

After the Second World War , rumba was rediscovered, but in two completely different variations. On the one hand the American- influenced square or carrée rumba , on the other hand the "Cuban style rumba" propagated by the French Pierre Lavelle, who lives in England . In the years 1956 to 1958 and 1961 to 1963 this led to violent clashes between England and France, the so-called "Rumba Wars", in which both schools wanted to establish "their" Rumba internationally. It was finally agreed to allow both variants. The slow rumba under the name Square Rumba was included in the world dance program and the more difficult Cuban Rumba in 1964 in the tournament dance program. In the international dance sport , the "Cuban style" has meanwhile established itself (the name should not hide the fact that this is also a strongly Europeanized form, which differs greatly in its characteristics from the Cuban model called Son or Bolero Son ) . Square rumba is now rarely taught in Europe - but it is mostly still widespread among dance school beginners in the USA .

Historically, the cha-cha-cha is to be distinguished from the rumba , which as an artistic tournament dance has numerous similarities to the rumba, but is derived from the mambo .

The Rumba Flamenca , which, together with other flamenco dances , has Andalusian-Moorish origins, must also be distinguished from the Rumba .

Characteristic and musicality

Artem Gaylit and Elizaveta Shibaeva, Belarus, at the Austrian Open Championships Vienna, 2012

The special artistic characteristic of rumba lies in the interplay between man and woman. In a well-danced rumba there is intense courtship; In artistic contrast, both partners now and then desert and have to be lured by the other to return. The focus is on non-verbal communication between men and women. Ideally, the audience feels invited to take part in this communication and takes part in the exciting flirtation between the dancers.

The slowing down of the tempo in recent years - currently 25 to 27 four-quarter bars per minute are danced in tournaments - has meant that dancers can incorporate details of the music into their dance. The music provides these details in the form of complex rhythms, which are generated by numerous percussion instruments.

The percussions between the beats are mainly used for beautifully danced body movements. The hip movements that are so characteristic of rumba and twisting of the body, in which body parts twist against other body parts like when wringing out a sponge, should be emphasized. Both artistically support the promotional, erotic character of the rumba.

It should be noted that the rumba was slowed down in speed, but that some elements, for example rotations, have accelerated significantly in order to be able to show the calm of the flirt between these moments of lightning-fast body movement.

Comparison with the Cuban model

The rhythm of the basic step corresponds to that of the Cuban Son or Bolero Son ; That means with a 2/4 notation: No step on the first eighth note, one step each on the remaining three eighth notes (left-right-left or right-left-right). Incidentally, the rumba differs greatly in the sequence of movements and expression, in the type of sequences and figures, the music used and in the relation of movement to music:

• The hip movement in rumba typically goes outwards on the side of the leg that is being loaded, while the upper body remains essentially straight. In the Son, on the other hand, the hips move to the respective relieved side and the upper body makes a countermovement.
• The accentuation of the third step (in 2/4 time on "2 and" ), which is essential in the son and corresponding to the clave , in the entire body movement described (step, hips, upper body) is no longer present in the rumba.
• Complicated sequences of figures, accelerated turns, ornate hand movements as in rumba hardly occur in the son. You usually stay in the closed position, usually only solving it briefly for a dile que no or simple turns and vary the step, for example, so that as a couple you move sideways, back and forth, in circular or square patterns or dance on the spot , or even suspends the step and only maintains the hip and upper body movement.
• In particular, poses with straight legs, as often seen in the rumba as a tournament dance, are unthinkable in the Son (or in the entire world of Cuban folklore and popular dances).
• The music used for the rumba often has nothing to do with the original Cuban rhythms.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ colloquially also the , male. Duden German spelling , 21st edition. True dictionary of the German language , 2nd edition 2009 of the new edition 2007, indicates "male" as the common grammatical gender and "female" as the technical grammatical gender.
2. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original dated December 31, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 

Web links

Wiktionary: Rumba  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Wikibooks: Figures in the (Cuban) Rumba  - learning and teaching materials

Wikibooks: Figures in the Square Rumba  - Learning and teaching materials

• Rumba music on www.tanzmusik-online.de
• Video of the rumba (western variant)