Caura in 1884

In modern Trinidad there has been a shift in the meaning of the term Parang (from Spanish parranda). It now refers to Hispanic music that is indigenous to Trinidad (and Eastern Venezuela), and by extension it is applied to all music of Hispanic origin played at Christmas time with string instruments and sung in Spanish. However, originally, parang was not a genre; it referred to an occasion. The parranda was spontaneous and was neither rehearsed nor performed. It occurred when a group of people made music together to have fun by playing typical instruments, singing anywhere and at any time of the year. Anyone in the community could participate. In addition, the language of the songs was understood and spoken by the community which was in fact Hispanic in nature.


To illustrate this assertion let us go back in time to the month of June in 1884. We are in rural Trinidad, in the village of La Pastora, a hamlet nestling in the mountains of north Trinidad, above Lopinot, seven miles from Arouca. Everyone in La Pastora speaks Spanish. A young couple, Andrés and Marcelina have just finished building their house with the help of family members, friends and neighbours. It is now time to eat and rest. Andres takes up a cuatro, also called guitarrilla. Teodoro, another villager and friend starts shaking the shac-shac or maracas, closes his eyes and begins to sing: Qué bonita muchachita … Andrés sings a second quatrain: Tus ojos son dos luceros …. The parranda has begun.

Later, in September, a baby is baptized in the church at La Veronica, Caura, the quintessential Spanish valley. The villagers must journey to Caura along mountain trails on donkey and on foot. Hours later, after the religious ceremony, when family and friends return home to La Pastora, they all continue to celebrate the occasion by playing their typical string instruments and singing guarapos, manzanares and other joropo songs. They have learned these songs from parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts and other villagers. They have neither radio nor television, there is no internet nor youtube and they are unaware of the most popular songs currently heard in Venezuela, Chile, Spain, Colombia or Mexico. They just sing what they have always sung: and most significantly, they improvise. They contribute to the folk repertoire of compositions that they are also passing on to the young people, who will subsequently imitate them and do the same. This is happening outside of the Christmas season and the theme is not based on any of the events related to the Birth of Christ. For Christmas and specific religious occasions, there are appropriate songs to be intoned. Outside of those celebrations the community is familiar with other songs: ensaladillas, estribillos, sabana blanca, gavilan bombe, galeron, polo, and so on. The aguinaldo [note that the pronunciation is ahgheenaldo not agwinaldo] was on the Christmas theme and was sung at Christmas time. The language of all the songs was the language understood and spoken by the community: Spanish.