Bolero History

    The history of bolero dance is suggestive of two origins – in Cuba and in Spain. One side asserts that the dance comes from the Spanish lineage. The other half side claims Cuba as the place of conception. The lack of reconciliation between these two geographical points of origin is not to be a matter subject to argument. Whichever it was, the bolero dance we know today proves to be a well-developed dance that has withstood time and space. A glimpse of its overlapping past would help in understanding how the dance retained its validity and foothold.
    The dance was originally performed by a female alone. Now, it is mostly done in duo – a scene of a gentleman who seems to passionately court his lady partner. If so preferred, several couples may occupy the dance floor and take part in the Quadrille or in the ballet or even yet in the grand opening of a ball.
    The Spanish bolero is a ¾ dance that goes back all the way to the eighteenth century. A refined ballet dancer in the name of Sebastiano Carezo was said to be the person responsible for the dance’s invention in year 1780. He reorganized some areas of the dance and mounted it as the dominating structure of his French ballet. Also back then, fandango served as the customary dance but was kindly replaced by bolero when the latter‘s gaining popularity surpassed the former’s. It was a fine combination of the contradanza and sevillana. While in Spain, it was subdivided into five specific parts: paseo (a short introduction by the dancers); traversa (the crossing done before and after the following step); differencias (series of steps in place); finales (interaction of dancers as they pass by each other); and the bien parado (a form of courtesy, saluting each other prior to leaving the dance floor). The dance particularly is one of love and of romance and the myriad of emotions that it addresses. For quite a time now, it bears the precious title as Spain’s national dance.
    The Cuban bolero adopted certain features of the Spanish bolero. From ¾ time, it was changed to 2/4 time and it was danced more closely to the rumba style. José “Pepe” Sánchez of Santiago de Cuba is honored as the father of the trova style. He was a prominent personality of his hometown, where it is deemed to be the dance’s place of origin toward the remaining years of the nineteenth century. Also known as the creator of the Cuban bolero, he modeled the lifestyle of a trovador. Trovadors are travelling musicians who move around and visit varying places. They live by singing and playing the guitar. Later on, the dance traveled to Mexico and to other Latin American states around 1921. There, it was organized into part-roles of differing repertoires. Rafael Hernández of Puerto Rico and Agustín Lara of Mexico are just two of bolero’s leading composers.
    Incorporating later on the American stylish way of dancing, it was first introduced to United States in the middle of 1930s. The dance at this period of time was still in its classical form while the couple’s performance yields a certain conformance to a beating of drums. Such profound claim of having a special place in the heart of American dance heritage was partly the doing of Joseph-Maurice Ravel and his popular composition so named after him. His composition was intended for Ida Rubenstein, who danced the bolero on the first grand opening performance on November of 1928 at the Paris Opera House; the same was choreographed by Bronislava Nijinska. Since then, other dances resembling close affiliation with the bolero have been introduced. Some of them are the Valldemosa bolero, the Columbian Pasillo colombiano and the Bolero Viejo o parado.
    The bolero holds the current status of being a standard dance among American style rhythm dancers. Cuba, Spain and America have already fallen in love with the dance. Intent hearers and watchers would find themselves also falling for it. Truly, it never fails to put its dancers under the spell of romance and render its audience a complete serenade.