Some musical genres are just particular—particular to a region or a community, without aspiring to be universally relevant or to commercially conquer new audiences. I think of the plena this way, an ...

With its infectious call and response vocals and topical lyrics commenting on the events and gossip of the day, the music genre plena is known in Puerto Rico as the people’s newspaper. And much like ...

A blend of Spanish, African, and native Taíno music, plena is a traditional form of Puerto Rican music. The music's beat and rhythm are mainly due to the African-derived conga drums, more specifically ...

Although transnational, contemporary, and based on the Cuban son, salsa is often assumed to be Puerto Rico’s national song. Enter Plena Libre, purveyors of Puerto Rican pride and promoters of plena, a ...

From the fruits of winning both a MacArthur ("genius grant") and Guggenheim Fellowship in 2008, alto saxophonist Miguel Zenón, expands his clear vision of modern jazz and Puerto Rican folk music in ...

San Juan, 11 ene (EFEUSA).San Juan, 11 ene (EFEUSA). — La agrupación puertorriqueña Plena Libre, dedicada a interpretar música del ritmo autóctono de la plena, festejará este año sus veinte años de ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. (Photos: Getty Images, Bad Bunny, Bomba Con Conciencia) “Puerto Rico has a mix of races, and we like to defend our African roots,” ...

In the Latin music scene, there's always an innate pairing of the musical styles bomba and plena as one genre, but the two Afro-Puerto Rican genres are quite distinct. In this, the 27th segment of ...

In Santurce, a poor suburb outside San Juan, Puerto Rico, there’s a bus that doesn’t run anymore, but the stops it once madeparadasstill lend their names to the densely populated neighborhoods. Ask ...

A solid rhythm beat from stage right at the Joe Mathias Elementary School cafeteria Thursday afternoon. Gary Nunez waved his arms at the other side of the cafeteria, orchestrating a plena rhythm in ...

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