Intro to Clave--the key to Afro-Cuban rhythm 772 wds P. Pasmanick 10-06 v.

02-09

In music, clave is the name in English and Spanish of a hand percussion instrument consisting of two hardwood dowels.
One is held in the cupped hand and is struck sharply with the other, producing a dry “click”. Clave also refers to the
characteristic rhythms of the instrument. The word can also mean a secret code, an answer key, a musical key signature, a
crucial datum, or the keystone of an arch, apt descriptions of clave’s importance in Latin (specifically Caribbean) music.

The clave instrument is apparently Cuban. Possibly the first claves were resonant pegs used to build wooden ships for the
Spanish. The rhythm, however, is African in origin. One can hear the clave pattern played on metal bells in the music of west
Africa, and it traveled to Cuba and became indispensable in Cuban music. In today’s Latin music there are two main
variations, shown here in two common notations in 4/4 time: x and o (x is an eighth note, o is an eighth note rest) and “box
trains” (each box represents an eighth note space).
1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 + 8 +

1. salsa, son, or ballroom clave: xooxooxoooxoxooo

1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 + 8 +

2. rumba clave: xooxoooxooxoxooo

1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 + 8 +

3. 4/4 pulse (for reference) xoooxoooxoooxooo

The clave rhythm is sometimes part of a slightly more complex pattern played with two sticks on a hard surface. These
rhythms, called paila, cáscara, guagua, or palitos, work by adding a few notes to the basic five-note clave pattern. One
simple version calls for clave in the right hand and the pulse in the left hand, as shown in lines two and three above. The stick
pattern is played BOTH, right left, right left right BOTH. This is a very good pattern to learn. For some people it is actually
easier than straight clave, because it keeps the pulse and gives the left hand something to do.. The 6/8 “short bell” pattern
(xoxoxxoxoxox), which also adds just two strikes to the 6/8 clave, is another important variation and is played on a cowbell or
cencerro. This particular paila and bell pattern are specific to the religious bembé style and to columbia, one of the three
members of the rumba family. (6/8 clave can be shown as xoxooxoxoxoo).

It is vital to choose the correct variation for the type of music to be played. The clave (or paila, or bell) must also be played in
the correct spot relative to the other rhythm patterns. No improvisation, differentiated accentuation, or hesitation is allowed.
The clave must urge the tempo along without rushing. And the pattern must be executed assertively and perfectly, as it
provides the firm foundation, the point of departure for the conversations of the congas, the solo explosions of the quinto,
melodic improvisation, and the give-and-take of the soloist and the coro. In modern “outside” rumba styles such as
guarapachangueo the clave may be the only instrument executing an immutable pattern fixed to the pulse of the piece, and an
unwary clave player can get “pulled” away from the pattern and become lost or “crossed”. Playing clave is harder than it
looks, and poor clave spoils the music and irritates the rest of the ensemble.

One important role of the clave is to synchronize and anchor the singing (especially vital for duets). Décimas in rumba often
begin on the second note of clave (called the bombó note because in many rhythms a bass note is played in that spot by the
low drum; in the illustrations above it is shown in bold type) and the seventh syllable of the line is sung on the first note of
clave (or the downbeat, which is the same) of the next measure. Son clave sometimes starts on the second measure of the
pattern, and band players and arrangers may call this reverso or “2/3” clave. But from the percussionists point of view the
son clave pattern is always the same; it simply begins on “the other side”

While becoming an impeccable clave player is a long and humbling process (at least for me!), learning the basic pattern is
accessible to anyone willing to study, practice (in private, please), and listen to a few recordings. Straight rumba clave (or the
simple columbia paila pattern described above) is all you need to chant or sing in the rumba style. It also makes possible
further explorations of the rhythms of the African diaspora. Go for it! But keep your thumb out of the way!