Nicaraguans enjoy their local artist's music but also enjoy music from around the world. They enjoy the Dominican Republic's bachata and merengue, Jamaica's reggae, Puerto Rico's salsa and reggaeton and Colombia's Cumbia among other genres including pop.[2] Among the younger crowds, heavy metal and rock have become very popular.[3]
Nicaraguan music is a mixture of different cultures from indigenous tribes, European conquerors, and slaves. Styles of music vary throughout the different regions in the country. In the Caribbean coast music with African and indigenous influence are heard, in the Pacific coast the music is considered to be a mixture of the indigenous and Spanish culture and in the North/Central region of Nicaragua the music has more of a European flavor, this is because of the significant wave of Europeans, mostly Germans, that live in the region. European influenced dances like the polka and Mazurka are also danced in this region.[3]
Another popular musical genre in Nicaragua is the Chicheros, often consisting of a trumpet and trombone or other brass instruments, with additional musicians playing various percussion. This is often to be heard in private parties around the country.[3]
Instruments
The marimba of Nicaragua distinguishes itself from the other forms of marimba in Central America by the way it is played. Nicaragua's marimba is played by a sitting performer holding the instrument on his knees. They are usually accompanied by a bass fiddle, guitar and guitarrilla (a small guitar similar to a mandolin). This music is played at social functions as a sort of background music. The marimba is made with hardwood plates, placed over bamboo or metal tubes of varying lengths. It is played with two or four hammers.[1]
Indigenous theater groups performed with music and dance. Theatrical manifestations include the Elegant Knights of Huaco Bull and the UNESCO proclaimed masterpiece, "El Güegüense", among many others.
Nicaraguans in Music
One of the most prominent composers from Nicaragua is the leonés musician José de la Cruz Mena (1874-1907). He wrote a variety of romantic waltzes that display sounds inspired by common and daily experiences, or natural scenarios. Among those compositions, we found titles such as "El Nacatamal," "Los Turcos," and "Ruinas." Besides, Mena's pieces are evocative of biblical characters and love relationship; titles like "Amores de Abraham," "Bonita Margarita," "Rosalía" are part of the most representative ones. By the time, Mena gathered popularity and influenced composers from different countries of the Americas; additionally, in the late 1800s, his name reached Asia and Europe particularly Germany and Italy inspiring Giacomo Puccini's opera La Boheme.
Another relevant composer is Luis Abraham Delgadillo, with several symphonies, stage works, orchestral pieces, chamber music, songs, and piano music to his credit, and Camilo Zapata, creator of the Nicaraguan Sound. Erwin Krüger, creator of Barrio de Pescadores (Fisherman's District). Justo Santos creator of La Mora Limpia (A Clean Coffee Bean), considered Nicaragua's popular anthem.
