Contextualizing a Latin American Music Video:Natalia Lafourcade's "Nunca es Suficiente" Richard Francaviglia Last year, while researching the geographical roots of popular "salsa" music heard throughout Latin America, I encountered a cumbia-influenced version of a song titled "Nunca es Suficiente." I knew that the original version of this love song by Mexican singer-songwriter Natalia Lafourcade was a bit up-tempo, but wondered how it would sound when given an even more lively cumbia treatment. For those unfamiliar with the term cumbia, it is a musical style that features a distinctive Latin American beat and melodic incorporation of percussion, vocals, and other instrumentation. If that definition seems a bit vague, I suggest listening to some songs in that genre, which will give you a good idea of how it sounds and feels. Your first reaction—unless you do not have a pulse—is to embrace the rhythm and almost involuntarily sway to it. Cumbia is one of those musical genres that persuades on two levels: it simultaneously invites one to listen and to dance. That explains why the best way to understand it is to experience it firsthand. Regarding cumbia's geographical origins, there is considerable speculation and disagreement. Most claim it originated in Colombia, while others may simply say "the Caribbean." As to cultural origins, the safest bet is a combination of Indigenous, Spanish, and African—no surprise, since all three cultures have played a major role in the region's history. In fact, some claim that the word cumbia itself derives from African roots, cumbe meaning to dance in several languages in the western part of that continent. Others suggest that it means "to party" in a number of Caribbean dialects. In either case, cumbia involves a physical and even sensual engagement with one's surroundings. As a friend from Panama put it, "With cumbia, you hear and feel the music—which is very liberating." The phenomenal spread of cumbia in Latin America is noteworthy. In a region of tremendous musical diversity—folk music styles as well as more elite musical traditions—this rhythm-driven genre seems to know no borders. [End Page 164] Although cumbia may have originated about three hundred years ago (or more) in one part of Latin America, in more recent years it has become one of the defining aspects of a broader regional cultural identity. There is no question that it has found its way into all of Latin America in the past fifty years or so. As a Pacific Coast-oriented geographer, I've heard it playing on radio, television, and other devices from Baja California way down into South America. In fact, when I first noticed versions of it in 1992, I was in the Pacific port of Guayaquil, Ecuador, and thought its Caribbean quality sounded a bit out of place, but nevertheless very delightful. As I later traveled south along the foothills of the central Andes, cumbia seemed to have caught on there as well. In my most recent studies focusing on South America's arid west coast, I noticed that it had even found a home in string bean-shaped Chile, from locales as remote as the Atacama Desert in the country's far north to its populous heart in the vicinity of Valparaíso and Santiago. From the U.S.-Mexican border to Tierra del Fuego is an impressive geographical range, indeed; moreover, the growing popularity of cumbia in the United States confirms its broad appeal, not only among Latinos but among increasing numbers of gringos as well. That said, I should note that even within Latin America, there appear to be some regional variations in cumbia that may depend on earlier local styles that may also determine its rates of acceptance. To understand more about this, however, one would have to conduct research very quickly, since things are changing so rapidly. I should note that I was not consciously studying music on my trips to Latin America, with my main interest being cultural landscapes. Rather, I've enjoyed listening to it as the soundtrack to which people live their daily and nightly lives. One thing has now become clear to me: cumbia is a...
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May 23, 2024
Syeda Noreen Kazmi + 2
Open Access
