Guajiras
Origin and history
Guajiras belong to the so-called cantes de ida y vuelta, that group of styles which flamenco shaped from music brought over from the Americas following the intense contact between Andalusia and Cuba during the 18th and 19th centuries. In this case the origin lies in the Cuban punto guajiro, a rural genre of the island whose melody and feel were adapted to the compás and aesthetic of Andalusian cante, above all following the return of emigrants and “indianos” who brought these musics back with them.
The process of “aflamencamiento” (flamenco-ization) became established at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th, when cantaores from areas with a strong emigrant tradition, especially Cádiz and its bay, incorporated the genre into their repertoire for parties and recordings. Over time guajiras drifted away from their original rural model to gain a more lyrical and evocative character, typical of the nostalgia of someone who remembers a distant land without necessarily having set foot on it.
Today it remains a living cante, though a minor one, present above all on recordings and in recitals rather than in spontaneous fiesta, and it is usually programmed toward the end of shows for its pleasant, festive character.
Musical characteristics and compás
Guajiras are sung in a twelve-beat compás similar to that of the soleá or the bulería, though with a softer, more danceable accentuation inherited from its Cuban rural origin. The key is major, bright, which clearly sets it apart from the cantes jondos of the third or fourth degree, and its melodic development is simpler and more repetitive, designed to accompany dance.
The guitar usually plays in the key of E major or similar, with a light strumming that evokes Cuban plucking, and it is common for the verses to end with a refrain by way of a closing flourish, a resource very typical of the cantes de ida y vuelta.
Representative cantaores and performers
Among the performers who left reference recordings of guajiras, Pepe Marchena stands out as a great champion of the cantes de ida y vuelta in the 20th century, along with Manolo Caracol, as well as later figures such as Enrique Morente, who included them in his repertoire. They have also been a common cante for dance, with instrumental and danceable versions widely spread in the tablaos.
Relationship to other palos
Guajiras form part of the family of cantes de ida y vuelta together with the habanera, the milonga, the colombiana and the rumba, all of which arose from the musical exchange between Spain and the Americas. They share with the habanera their Cuban origin and their theme of nostalgia for Havana, though they differ in compás and melodic feel, livelier and more danceable in the case of the guajiras.