Critical Review #7: Duany

Duany attempts to looks at salsa from an anthropological perspective. He first defines salsa as the "popular Puerto Rican song and dance forms as they have evolved in the last two decades" (186). He then describes its history and background from the 1960s, by referring to topics such as the seis, the difference between the high/low grounds in Puerto Rico, and the connection with the bomba. He asserts that Puerto Rico is a culture of "mixes"; the salsa follows this pattern, being a "mixture of mixtures" (187). Finally, he concludes that the salsa is a dance of the working class, that voices the problems of this disadantaged group, thus creating a community between them all.


Discussion Question: Can we see any connections between salsa and metal, since both are toted as being music for the working class? (I can't.)