Colombian Dancers at 8 Countries in 1 Day

Carolina Velandia and Samuel Bello Ulcue will perform folk and modern dances of Colombia including Cumbia, Carranga, Salsa, and Sanjuanero!

They will dance for 20 minutes and then spend time interacting with the audience.

Cumbia: National dance. Representative of the Caribbean cost that merge the European, African, and Indigenous melting pot of Colombia. The dance is mostly performed by couples in large groups. The dance represents joy, sorrow, and romance. Cumbia generalized and expanded through Latin America, but the Colombian traditional dance was the main influence for other regions.

Carranga: Music for the Colombian Andes mixed Bambuco, Torbellino, Rumba and merengue. It represents agriculture and peasants’ culture from the regions of Cundinamarca, Boyacá, and part of Santander.

Salsa: “Salsa is the harmonic sum of all Latin culture " (Willie Colon). The Colombian version dance over the percussion with the feet. The standard percussion instruments are bongos, congas, and timbales. The roots came from Cuban and New York in the twentieth century but the Colombian version became famous for its dance style, where the radio on the 1960’s decade play a crucial role to introduce and popularize the music.

Sanjuanero: Originally from the Huila Region, a translation of St. John's Festivities Song, this is a traditional Colombian bambuco song. Its music was written in 1936 by Anselmo Duran Plazas and is Colombia's most recognizable folkloric songs. It is also the anthem of the Festival Folclórico y Reinado Nacional del Bambuco.

This performance is free and will be held in the main lobby as part of “8 Countries in 1 Day.” It is sponsored by the Friends of the Library.

For additional information, please contact Samantha at samanthah@dkpl.org or at (815) 756-9568 ext. 1701.