Culture of Colombia - Music

Music

• Shakira, Colombian singer

• Juanes, artist from Medellin

• Vallenato Festival in Valledupar

• Colombian tiple

• Rock to the park, one of Latin America's most important rock events

Modern Colombian music is a mixture of African, native Indigenous, and European (Spanish) influences, as well as more modern American and Caribbean music forms, such as Trinidadian, Cuban, and Jamaican. The national music of Colombia is said to be vallenato and cumbia.

Cumbia is a mixture of Spanish and African music, the latter brought by slaves. The style of dance is designed to recall the shackles worn around the ankles of the slaves. In the 19th century, slavery was abolished and Africans, Indians, and other ethnic groups mixed more fully. Styles like bambuco, vallenato, and porro were especially influential. When the waltz became popular in the 19th century, a Colombian version called pasillo was invented. International Latin, a type of pop, ballad, and salsa music are best-represented by Charlie Zaa and Joe Arroyo, respectively.

Music and dancing are very popular in Colombia, with dozens of popular vibrant styles. The most popular local musical styles are Vallenato, salsa, Merengue, Cumbia and Bambuco. The latter is a very complicated dance with many differently named steps.

Colombian rock developed after an influence of Rock en Español generating fusion of Rock Music with traditional Colombian music and other musical styles.

The musical genre of Colombian pop music has been growing recently with artists like Fonseca, San Alejo, Lucas Arnau or Mauricio y Palo de Agua. Pop with strong traces of traditional Colombian music is also currently rising. Los De Adentro and Maía represent this trend. Many Colombian artists are recognized internationally including among others, Shakira, who is the most recognized Colombian artist in the world.

Dancing to reggaeton became also very popular in Colombia during the first decade of the 21st century.