The villancico de negro is a Baroque paraliturgical subgenre that rose to popularity in the 17th and 18th centuries on the Iberian Peninsula. Colonialism promoted the spread of Spanish practices in the Americas, and the villancico de negro developed in both Spain and New Spain. This genre capitalized on misrepresentational techniques that mock African people by using caricatures and specific character roles. Written from a European lens, the villancico de negro uses language, characters and imagery through music and text to portray an idea of African people and musical features. While this music has been revived around the world, this document explores the nature of performing this music in the 17th and 18th centuries, the challenges presented in performing a historically informed performance of the villancico de negro today, and why such performances are inappropriate.

Last modified

• 05/28/2019

Creator

• Tyrone A. Clinton Jr.

DOI

• https://doi.org/10.21985/N2849S

Keyword

• Habla de negros
• Black characters in music
• Villancico
• Villancico de negro
• Baroque
• Negrillas

Rights statement

• In Copyright