Guajira (music)

Guajira de salón, or guajira-son#

From the 1930s, the guajira was refined and popularized by the singer and guitarist Guillermo Portabales, whose elegant style was known as guajira de salón or guajira-son. This is nothing but another case of synonymy within the Cuban popular music, because in spite of being named as guajira, the style of his songs was nothing else but those of the Cuban Son and Bolero-Son; although their lyrics were always related to rural themes. Since the thirties until his death in a traffic accident, in 1970, Guillermo Portabales sang and recorded numerous guajiras de Salón through North and South America with great popular acclaim. Other renowned performers of guajira-son were Celina González, Coralia Fernández, Ramón Veloz y Radeúnda Lima. One of the most famous guajiras-son is the , composed by Joseíto Fernández and internationally popularized during the 1960s by the American folk singer Pete Seeger.

Etymology#

The term is a feminine form of guajiro, which comes from the Antillean Arawak and means “lord, powerful man”. In Cuba it is used to name those people who work or live in the fields, or to name people who behave like them because they can be rude or with little knowledge (cfr. Hillbilly). Also colloquially, it can refer to people who live outside the capital of Cuba, la Habana, and in rural areas without being farm workers. In some sentences, it is used to encourage a shy person, like in “no seas guajiro y pregúntale” (“don’t be a peasant and ask her”).

See also#

• Music of Cuba
• Punto guajiro