Los Carnavales de Oriente

Carnavales de Oriente was almost been omitted from this collection. This track, recorded in 1928 by Septeto Matamoros, could easily be considered "Western" conga (Havana/Matanzas style) because of its bass drum accent. But the inclusion of the corneta china , Miguel Matamoros' origins in Santiago, and the prominence of La Conga del Tivoli and its Western-influenced "conga-columbia" at the time of this recording justify its inclusion.

Miguel Matamoros, the group's leader, and one of Cuba's most iconic singers and composers, was born in Los Hoyos in 1894. Surely, he heard his neighborhood's conga as a youth, but we will never know why chose not to emulate its style on this track, whose refrain would become quite famous. It is impossible to know whether the musicians were consciously emulating Tivoli's columbia or a Western Cuban conga when they made this recording; it may not matter. This track is included in the collection because it is probably the closest we'll ever get to hearing La Conga del Tivoli.

Matamoros' verse evokes the imagery and hyperlocal soundscapes of Santiago's carnival, referring to a Carabalí woman (presumably part of this cabildo's comparsa) and three neighborhoods known for their rival comparsas and deep carnival traditions: Los Hoyos, El Tivoli, and El Guayabito:

Verse:

Los carnavales de oriente

Son cosas tradicionales

Cuando suenan sus cantares

Arrollan al continente

El barrio del Tívoli,

Los Hoyos y El Guayabito

Los payasos que bonitos

La negra Carabalí...

Coro:

Al carnaval de oriente me voy

Donde mejor se puede gozar

Translation:

Verse:

The Eastern carnivals are traditional [well-established, deeply entrenched]

When their songs ring out

They sweep up the continent

The Tivoli neighborhood,

Los Hoyos and El Guayabito [other neighborhoods]

The clowns are so beautiful

The black Carabalí woman...

Chorus:

I'm going to the eastern carnival

Where you can have a great time.