ABSTRACT
Timba can be described and analysed from different perspectives. From one point of view, it can be seen simply as the name of a new style of music that emerged in Cuba in the 1990s. From another perspective, it can be regarded as a social phenomenon and an artistic movement that manifests itself through a multiplicity of signs. In both cases, timba appears as an expression of Cuban popular culture that largely feeds on a dialogue with the life and problems of Cuban urban Blacks. This chapter and the next one discuss issues of musical style, content and meaning in timba songs, and look at their connection with a particular black youth subculture that emerged during the perı´odo especial.
