African Sonorities in Iberian America: The Traditional Afro-Esmeraldan Marimba from Ecuador

Abstract

Musical instruments reflect a social-historical process and a specific cultural reality in their sonorities, the materials from which they were built and their physical layout. They serve as vehicles for interpreting the different cultures of which they form part. This article examines the socio-cultural, historical and organological context of the musical instrument representative of Afro-descendant culture from the Pacific coast of the north of Ecuador: the marimba. It looks at its origins, materials and construction techniques, as well as its representative musical characteristics. The Afro-descendant population of the province of Esmeraldas, created progressively from the Afro-American diaspora to the present day, adopted the marimba as an icon of its culture, a warm timbre that represents it.