Punto music

The Panamanian Punto is an autochthonous musical genre. . Unlike the Tamborito and the Panamanian cumbia, it's danced as a "demonstration" between dances.

Basic Steps and choreographic conformation

When starting the dance, the man should be kneeling on the floor with his left knee on the floor and his right knee up and grabbing the woman's hand. The woman walks in step with the beat of the drums around the kneeling man while holding his hand.

The woman returns to her original position and looks at her partner with much love. He rises, places himself in his original position, and looks at her with a flirtatious gaze. He then initiates the dance with the following steps repeated in order, two or three times:

El Paseo (Walking): The male and the lady describe a wide circle as if they were each occupying the ends of a diameter. El Zapateo: In which the dancers, face to face, show off this very skillful Spanish dexterity of a change of music is performed. El Escobillao: That separates the couple widely, as it runs with a backward movement often, The Seguidilla: With which they move closer to each other to rotate with much serenity and finesse in the center of the circle until the change is indicated and start the Paseo phase again.

Instruments

The orchestra of "El Punto" is made up of a Rabel or an accordion, flute, Spanish guitar, mejorana and drum. Originally drum use was not a part of the orchestra.

Its characteristic compass is that of 6/8, which corresponds, in terms of rhythmic-classical, to a yambic dipodia. In the melodic cantilena of the point alternate two and three, with the trio predominating; The accompanying formula is invariably of ternary subdivision.1

The rabel or violin criollo

Descendant of his Arabic ancestor Rabeb, which retains, as the Rabel pastoral of Spain, its three cords and the function of interpreter of the melody. The lid is usually made of raft and the rest of the instrument of cedar or Jamaico tree. To make the bow, which is given curved and similar shape is used the binder. The ropes come out of the horse's mane.2

The mejorana

The top and bottom of the "resonator" box are flat and parallel. The cradle, handle or neck is so short that it almost seems to be tailor-made. The resonator body has an elongated eight-shape. This guitar measures from 55 to 60 cm in length. There are two varieties determined by the string and the tuning; The "marjoram" of five and the four-string bocona.

The Spanish guitar

Musical instrument of universal use, because it has multiple uses of tradition in the music of the Panamanian folklore, commonly accompanies the violin in replacement of the marjoram.

The accordion

Coming from Austria, he was brought to Panama in the mid-nineteenth century by European sailors and adventurers who, in large numbers, crossed the isthmus to California. There is news of its sale in the Isthmus for more than 160 years in an advertisement in the newspaper the star of Panama in 1850.3 By the end of the 19th century, during the Thousand Days' War, Panamanians used the accordion as a substitute for the violin in popular dances. Primary source testimony from musicians and recordings of "cumbias" and "crosses" during the Thousand Days' War affirm the use of the accordion in the dances of the town during that time.4

Tambor Repicador (Drum reamer)

Drum of cylindrical form, of sound acute, is covered with deer leather, moored with ropes and wedges that give tension to the leather, generally it is the one that adorns the melody of percussion with its pealing in setback.

Tambor pujador Bass drum of sound, that puja without varying, of the same constitution of the picker, however is a little thicker in relation to the first one.

La Caja redoblante Hispánica

A creole drum based on the Spanish redoblante, which bears the compass. Hollow cylindrical instrument made of wood covered with deer leather, has patches on its two sides, and is played with two bobbins or sticks. Normally it is accompanied by a thin rope stretched in one of its patches of leather, so that when executed it emits a vibrating sound accompanied with the sound of the leather.

Regional Variants

The Punto Santeño: First is the presentation of the male to the lady to the people present. This consists of walking, dancing, brushing, jumping, and then the seguidilla where the man carries his hands up. This is the most popular form in the country.

The Punto Ocueño: It does not have scrounging before beginning the dance, the man takes the lady by the arm and walking it walks by all the wheel. They start the ride equidistantly from each other, and then a shoe, but not like the santeño, but they execute their own style. Then, the game is played with a set of hands. Then the shoe is repeated, follow and walk.

Chorrera Punto: The Salon Point and the Devils Point are practiced. The latter is the one danced by members of the Grandiablos dance at the end of their demonstration. Both are danced with very specific music and choreography different from that of the Santean form. While the "point" of the room is dance of a single pair each time, the "Diablos", is performed in pairs collectively. All the characters of the dance intervene and certainly with much humor in this pairing. It is fun to see the devil dance with the Angel with whom he had moments before a good altercation, or with the Soul, a "point" with movements for nothing innocent.

The Punto of Parita: It presents / displays between its movements a very striking figure that denominate "dancear", very similar to the one of the moments of the "Punto" of saloon Chorrera.

The Punto of Mejorana: They are quite similar to the dances of Zapatero. Their actual variation begins in the formation of their round. Couples can not, as in the case of Zapatero, occupy any place. We could say observing the execution, which is a great wheel formed by small rounds described by each of the couples when mobilized to carry out the phase of the Walk, figure obliged, in all the executions of a dance of "Punto". Also noteworthy is the fact that males are those who go outside the circle and not the females, a position that is not observed in other dances of this type. In addition we must add an unusual beat of polleras, that move vertiginously, according to the taste of the lady, in any direction. Its Seguidilla is something very striking, accompanied by Zapateos and finials in which the woman is displacing of backs and the man advancing towards her, of front and with the arms in stop. Their music is very beautiful, especially what they designate with the name of "punto costeño", which invites in one of its moments, to realize the most attractive movements of the execution under the commotion that sows in the performers the arpeggio series corresponding to that moment.