Movement II from Suite No. 2 by Victoriano Valencia Rincon

Movement II - Bambuco

This second movement is a bambuco. A bambuco is an original folk music form that is very popular as a Colombian national dance and is associated with the many music festivals celebrating Colombian traditions. The bambuco is characteristically associated with the central Andean region of Colombia, the valleys of the Cauca and Magdalena rivers and also the foothills and plains adjacent to them. There are varying examples of the bambuco in Columbian music. Some examples are in song form and are generally slow and can be very sentimental, nostalgic and poetic in nature. In contrast to this vocal style, there exists an instrumental example and is sometimes called bambuco fiestero. This instrumental bambuco is rhythmic and animated reflecting the dance it accompanies. A syncopated triple time combining elements of 3/4 and 6/8 identifies the characteristic rhythm of the bambuco. Traditional instrumentations used for the bambuco are extremely diverse. The make-up of the ensemble is quite flexible and commonly reflects the regional and social contexts of the musical performance. Within the perspective of Colombian Andean music, the bambuco is distinguished for many reasons and is found throughout the mountainous Andean region and is also common to the cities and rural areas. The history of the bambuco as musical genre and dance can be traced back to the colonial period and has been documented in the cultural heritage of Columbia as far back at 1819.