From Cuba to Africa and back

...world music crossing the Atlantic

Africa's influence on New World music is hardly news, but beginning in the 1930s, in the throes of global economic crisis, the Gramophone and Victor companies began to repackage their Latin American catalogues with Ghana, Nigeria and the Congo region in their sights, marketed as the GV Series. Powerful radio transmitters broadcast the music to keen West African audiences, and local performers began to incorporate Cuban elements into their repertoire. The spread of the phonograph and the increased availability of affordable musical instruments, especially following World War II, only enhanced the popularity of Cuban dance music, and the rest is history.

Michael Stone listens to some interesting new releases:
Out Of Cuba: Latin American Music Takes Africa By Storm, Los Afro-Salseros de Senegal and Kekele from Cuba to Africa and back.