The Violins of Cauca: European Instruments with Afro-Colombian Traditions

By 26 August, 2016

This short video is a fantastic insight into the violin caucano, an instrument that was brought to Colombia by the Spanish but unexpectedly became an integral part of Afro-Colombian traditions found on the country’s Pacific Coast, especially in the region of Cauca.

Made from guadau bamboo the violin caucano is used to play local styles like bunde, juga and torbellino. In this video Yiovani Mina Patiño from the town of Santander de Quilichao in Cauca explains the history and current usage of this tradition.

The video was filmed at Festival Petronio Alvarez 2016 in Cali as part of the Petronio En Clave Digital network.


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