The music and dance originating from rural neighbourhoods of the Dominican Republic has come a long way to where it now sits in the modernized era of an ever changing music genre world. One can see over time how Bachata has evolved into the smooth melodious rhythm it is now through the influences of Salsa, Zouk, Tango, Cha-Cha and even a bit R&B, Jazz & Hip Hop.
The circumstances surrounding the creation of Bachata take shape over a period of about 40 years; Bachata was primarily created by servants at work day’s end. As most inferior music & dance cultures have done in the past, Bachata has had a progressive rise in popularity that was much unexpected. Bachata was played in bars & brothels, and was considered ‘low class’ & ‘unrefined’. There were conditions put in place concerning airplay, for instance it was not played on radio before 10pm due to its unsavoury birth & reputation. The 60’s however saw an improvement when musicians were authorized officially to start recording their songs. From past to present Bachata has made an incredible impact beyond the Latin Community travelling with its instructors to far countries.
If you listen to Bachata music and understand the words, they tend to speak tales of heartbreak, sadness, and lost love. These artists & musicians have a remarkable talent of taking life experience and creating a tale so enthralling that you find yourself experiencing their moment of deception, pain or trouble.
If you want to learn more about bachata, here are some links that we recommend:
- Bachateame – History section (http://bachateame.com)
- Wikipedia – Bachata (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bachata)
- IASO Records – An Overview of Bachata Music (http://www.iasorecords.com/bachata-overview.cfm)