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Location:

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
North America

Contributor

Carmen Nuñez

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Guira
Merengue is a style of Dominican music and dance. During the 20th century, merengue’s original lead instrument was the guitar. By the 1940s and 1950s it was performed with accordions, like it is in this recording from La Zona Colonial. The melody is accompanied by the Guira percussion scraper and Tambora drum.