Habanera (music)

The habanera is a musical style or genre from Cuba, and is one of the oldest mainstays of Cuban music.

In the mid-19th century, the habanera developed out of the contradanza which had arrived from France via Haiti with refugees from the Haitian revolution in 1791. The main innovation from the contradanza was rhythmic, as the habanera incorporated Spanish and African influences into its repertoire.

It is believed that the habanera was brought back to Spain by sailors, where it became very popular for a while before the turn of the century. The habanera was danced by all classes of society, and had its moment of glory in English and French "salons" (ballrooms) from where it eventually made its way into Bizet's opera ""Carmen"". Popular knowledge has it that the habanera married the tango flamenco and exiled itself in Argentina where it eventually became the tango.

Back in Cuba the habanera developed into the danzón with the formation of charangas and the further inclusion of African elements. In the 1930s, habanera performer Arcano y sus Maravillos incorporated influences from conga and added a montuno (as in son), paving the way for the mixing of Latin musical forms, including guaracha, also played by a charanga orchestra. Guaracha (sometimes simply called charanga) also drew from Haitian musical forms, has been extremely popular and continues to entertain audiences.

In Catalonia the habaneras have become specially popular in the sailor zones. The habanera El meu avi (My grandfather) is known by pactically all the population.