ss="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Generally speaking, Punta is the music of the Garifuna people, a mixture of African and Latin beats.

Punta Rock is the most popular form of Garifuna music. It is considered to have been created by Pen Cayetano and his Turtle Shell Band, when they fused traditional Garifuna rhythms with electric guitar licks and catchy lyrics, sung predominantly in the Garifuna language.

Basic instrumentation in a Punta Rock band includes two hand beaten drums (bass and treble), maracas, and turtle shell percussion, along with rhythm guitar and call-and-response vocals. In the mid-eighties, Sound Inc., a major Punta Rock band acquired a set of electronic equipment, including synthesizers, samples, electronic drums, and a PA system. They used this new gear to build on the sound and bring it into the modern era.

Though originating in Belize, Punta Rock has been adopted by musicians in Guatemala and Honduras, who have placed their own stamp on its sound, adapting it for their own uses. Variations in language, instrumentation, and tempos expanded the genre, and now there are a plethora of bands and solo artists from these areas as well as many who are based in the United States. Belize’s Stonetree Records and Andy Palacio have helped to introduce the music to the world through print, radio, television, and recordings, which only add to the growing popularity of the genre.

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Contributed by: Jake Gold