What is Bachata?

Bachata (originally meaning an informal gathering among family and friends) is a style of dance that originated in the Dominican Republic around the 60s as a rural dance and over time has become a world-wide phenomenon. Today it boasts multiple dance and music styles and fusions including Bachata moderna, Bachata sensual, and even Bachatango (Bachata + Tango). Here at For the Love of Bachata, our passion for Bachata lies primarily in Bachata as it is currently danced in the Dominican Republic.

Naturally, since its birth, Bachata has evolved a lot both as a music genre and as a style of dance. With time, both have incorporated new elements and inspirations as the younger generations take over. However, it still maintains its traditions of feeling the music deeply and being something that can be enjoyed by any age. This is a dance you can share with your grandma, your aunt, or your father. Thankfully, Bachata continues to thrive in DR and was even named an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2019 by UNESCO. To many people in the studio-dancing and dance-congress world, they still give the name “Traditional Bachata” or even “Dominican Bachata” or “Authentic Bachata” to this modern style. Here, we prefer to just call it by the name used by Dominican dancers and musicians - Bachata.

THE MUSIC

Bachata as a music genre contains a minimum of 6 instruments, though depending on the musicians’ inspiration, can include others. The 6 core instruments are: bongo, guira, lead guitar (also called a requinto), 2nd guitar, bass guitar, and voice. Most of the instruments have a prescribed rhythmic pattern which changes predictably between rhythmic sections such as verse, chorus, and instrumental breaks. The lead guitar and the voice are the exceptions to this rule, as they contribute to the melody. The most common instrument for studio-trained dancers to hear is the bongo (it sounds like takay-dukay-takay-BOOkay or tak-tak-tak-BOO depending on the rhythmic section) and many people dance starting on the 1st beat of the 4-beat rhythmic pattern, finishing with a break or tap on the strong 4th beat. In DR, however, you will find Dominicans dancing on any count. What is important is the feeling of your movement with the music and your consistency. Another fun fact: the follow is the one who begins dancing first and sets the timing and the lead then picks it up and begins.

ROLE OF LEAD & FOLLOW

Historically, the roles of lead and follow have been assigned by gender. Over time, these roles are adjusting as people abandon their fixed notions of gender roles and open themselves up to new options. It is extremely common in the studio-dance or dance-congress world to find women leading and men following or two people of the same gender enjoying a dance. This often has nothing to do with sexuality and everything to do with finding a new way to enjoy the music. In fact, many dancers have found that being able to switch roles has enabled them to get more dances and to even use their new learning, let’s say, as a lead, to understand better how to follow and vice versa. In the Dominican Republic you can see some places where this new open-thinking is embraced. However, as with many Latin cultures, the societal viewpoint has not modernized as quickly as it has in the United States and other western cultures and these choices can be met with criticism.

WHAT DOES BACHATA DANCING LOOK LIKE?

The most essential component to any fundamental step of Bachata is 3 steps and a break of some sort, which can be a tap, a push into the ground, a syncopation, or another variation. Aside from this, sometimes it feels like the sky is the limit. The basic steps can be done totally in place, from side-to-side, forward-and-back, or in some other combination such as in the shape of a box, a zig-zag, and others.

Similarly to the ways our languages easily develop local dialects (I am from Pittsburgh, PA and we have a “Pittsburghese” dialect that includes words such as “nebby” and “slippy,” for example), dances also often develop regional differences and preferences in their native culture as well. Each town in DR has the potential to create or harbor its own unique style, so explaining what Bachata looks like may be a challenge. In the studio-dance or dance-congress world for (“Traditional”) Bachata, instructors often teach a wide variety of fundamental steps, often called shapes, to give the students flexibility to dance with many people in many different environments. This variety can also enrich the dancer’s creative experience. As studio-trained dancers, there is no shame in not dancing 100% in congruence with a regional style of Bachata as if we were bonafide Dominicans. That may not be a realistic goal for many and the stress of dancing with 100% accuracy to a single style could hold us dancers back from engaging in a wider selection of dance opportunities, such as when we travel to attend different socials, festivals, and congresses. Our main purpose as dancers is to have fun while expressing ourselves through the music. Connecting to the native culture can deeply enrich that connection and expression, for sure, as can learning multiple styles so that we can be flexible enough to dance with the many types of dancers we will eventually meet.

History & Roots

The direct antecedent to Bachata is a sub-genre of Bolero called Bolero Campesino, which was popular in DR. It is also a guitar music with a heavy bass-line that is so prominent, people usually dance it beginning on the 3rd beat to stay in time with the bass (3, 4, 1——-, 3, 4, 1——-). Bolero is not the only influencing genre or dance style to contribute to the creation of Bachata, but it deserves a lot of the credit.

The early years of Bachata coincided with the death of dictator Rafael Trujillo, who had strictly controlled music production in the country during his reign. He was personally a big Merengue fan and promoted and even commissioned songs to be written about his political influence, elevating Merengue to a high status while oppressing some other genres. Music recording was strictly controlled during this time and Trujillo prohibited poor, rural musicians to record their music (much less allow it to air on the radio), relegating them to low-society events such as brothels and informal gatherings. Even after the fall of the dictatorship, access to recording was limited and musicians playing Bachata were not always able to preserve or distribute their music outside of live music opportunities. The road to recognition was a long, hard one for Bachata as the stigma of its low-class, rural roots followed through the decades. However, this identity became woven into the early music and contributed to the early themes. One of Bachata’s first names was “Música de Amargue” (Bitter Music), highlighting the pain shared in many songs. Juan Luís Guerra, with the release of his album Bachata Rosa in 1990, carved a new niche for romantic and poetic lyrics to exist inside Bachata, and due to his influence, today you can find a variety of themes in this beautiful genre we all know and love.

SOURCES/LEARN MORE

Bachata: A Social History of Dominican Popular Music, Deborah Pacini Hernandez

Adam Taub, Documentary Filmmaker, Bachata Researcher & Dance Educator

Areíto Arts, Bachata Researchers, Dance Educators, & Musicians

Carlos Cinta, Creator of “Bachata Breakdown,” Bachata Musicality Educator, Dance Educator, & DJ

ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDED READING:

Bachata and Dominican Identity/Bachata y la identidad dominicana, Julie A, Sellers.

The Modern Bachateros, Julie A. Sellers

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