Caribbean

Boasting an extraordinarily diverse population, the varied musical traditions of the Caribbean originally emerged from the colonial legacy left upon the region's West Africans, East Indians, Europeans, and natives. Since then, these groups have produced a cultural medley that has been responsible for some of the world's most renowned musicians and genres, including salsa, merengue, soca, and zouk. The Caribbean's thriving musical traditions have continually captured the world's ear. Celia Cruz, Cuba's reigning Queen of Salsa, dazzled audiences with her phenomenal energy and powerful, caressing vocal style. Driven by sharp, stuttered rhythms and whooping vocals, Merengue has proven to be a hot, infectious dance music quite removed from its melancholy roots in Martinique. Steeped in African rhythms and raised with European notions of song, the cross-pollinating Caribbean promises to offer innovative, provocative, and vibrant music for decades to come.