Havana and Flamenco: A Brief History of the Flamenco Guajira

Tracing the Latin roots of a flamenco style shaped by transatlantic rhythms

In his book Una historia del flamenco, José Manuel Gamboa refers to the “Cantes andaloamericanos” with the subtitle “A vueltas con la ida y vuelta” — a phrase that highlights the ambiguity of what are commonly known as cantes de ida y vuelta (round-trip songs). These flamenco styles are believed to have Latin American influence, though flamenco scholars argue that not all of them can be definitively traced back to the Americas. As Faustino Núñez points out in his online encyclopedia Flamencópolis, styles like the colombiana lack concrete proof of Latin origin. Hence, the metaphorical “round trips” are often one-way journeys — or perhaps something else entirely.

In the classic RTVE documentary series Rito y Geografía del Cante, singer Manolillo el Herraor offered his own interpretation: “I don’t think cantes de ida y vuelta have a ‘vuelta’ [return]. They only have an ‘ida’ [departure]. They’re from here, not from there. They might’ve adjusted it in their way, but it’s from here.” In that same episode (Imported Flamenco Songs, 1971), Antonio de Canillas performs one of the most enduring palos in this category: the guajira. Unlike others, this flamenco style has clear Latin — specifically Cuban — origins.

From Havana to Cádiz and Málaga: How the Guajira Crossed the Atlantic

The cultural and commercial exchanges between Spain and Latin America go back centuries. As flamenco scholar and lawyer José “Pepe” Luque Navajas explains in Rito y Geografía del Cante, “The departure dates back to the 16th and 17th centuries. It involved the export of Spanish popular songs to America with the conquistadors. There, they evolved with the local creole culture and came back again. The ‘ida’ wasn’t recent; the ‘vuelta’ was.”

In the case of the guajira, Faustino Núñez describes it as a flamenco adaptation of the punto guajiro or punto campesino, a Cuban rural song form. Over time, these Cuban styles made their way to Spain, where a new version of guajira was created and gradually aflamencada — or transformed into a flamenco style.

The guajira flamenca brought with it a unique rhythmic structure: the compás de amalgama, a complex 6/8 and 3/4 alternation that is now a defining feature of many flamenco palos. As Gamboa notes, “Its rhythm is key. That alternating 6/8–3/4 pattern likely influenced the compás structure of major flamenco styles like soleá, seguiriyas, and more recently, bulerías.”

The tight commercial and migratory ties between Cádiz and Havana, along with the wars that led to Cuba’s independence from Spain, set the stage for this cross-cultural exchange. Even flamenco tangos evolved during this time. The Tangos del Piyayo, for example, were created by a Málaga-born singer who took flamenco tangos to Cuba and returned with a guajira-like flair — blending two worlds in a single melody.

From El Guajiro to Sandra Carrasco and Rocío Márquez

The lyrics of the guajira have evolved over the decades. “The first recorded guajiras had mainly social and political themes. Later, they often praised the virtues and beauties of the Pearl of the Caribbean,” writes José Manuel Gamboa. Today, it’s common to hear lyrics about sipping coffee and strolling through Havana with a lit cigar, or short love stories such as:

“I entered a little pasture / met an Indian girl,
Her name was Juliana, / I don’t know her last name.
I let my horse go and said good afternoon.
I told her: I’m here looking for the oxen,
And she replied: ‘Mameye, I think you’re looking for me.’”

The first to sing these guajiras in the 19th century were Silverio Franconetti, Curro Dulce, Medina el Viejo, Antonio Chacón, and Manuel Escacena. Flamenco researcher Rafael Chaves Arcos adds two more forgotten names who shone during the era of the cafés cantantes: El Guajiro and El Petrolo. In the 20th century, Pepe Marchena and Enrique Morente brought their own style to these Latin-influenced flamenco songs.

Today, rising voices like Rocío Márquez and Sandra Carrasco are bringing new life to the guajira, often including it in their albums. It’s still common to hear this palo in theaters, tablaos (often accompanied by fans or castanets), or in intimate guitar and singing recitals. At the Tablao de Carmen, on some nights, the singers remember Cuba — and bring this emotional and timeless flamenco legacy to life.