Importance of Boleros

There comes a time when you sit back and put on the music that your mom or grandparent would listen to, and just reminisce. The music soothes you, takes you back to the times when they would cook while they sing these memorable songs. Surely the particular music brought them back to a different time frame of their lives as well. These moments that you both wish would last forever, but unfortunately only the music does, as time passes by so quickly. At the end of the day, each moment is but only a fleeting one.

One of the types of music I envision whenever I get this type of nostalgia is a bolero. Not specifically while my mom cooks, but in general as they tie into an important part of our Latin culture. While the traditional bolero originated in Cuba in the late 19th century, it surely spread globally making its mark and forming into different versions of itself. The traditional bolero traveled as far as Vietnam, and as close to our Mexico and Puerto Rico. 

We have a few favorites that are internationally known and classics from our golden era. Here are our highlights to help us ponder about those simpler times, when our elders cooked and danced to these beautiful love songs. Let us continue and welcome this tradition into our spaces and into our next generation.

1. “Sabor A Mi” by Trio Los Panchos

2. “Ya Tu Veras” by Virgina Lopez y su Trio

3. “Quizás, Quizás, Quizás” by Celia Cruz

Photo credit by Ricardo Betancourt