Venezuela has the longest Caribbean coastline of any nation, and yet the vibrant African musical heritage thriving along that coast has been largely ignored by the nation’s media and music industry, and remains under-recognized internationally. Hugo Chávez Frías was Venezuela’s first president with acknowledged African heritage and during his regime, Afro-Venezuelan culture achieved greater participation in the national life of this petroleum-rich nation. His rise triggered intense self-examination of Venezuela’s stark social and ethnic divisions, and a cultural renaissance as well. In this program, ethnomusicologist T.M. Scruggs, a veteran of extensive Afro-Caribbean field research, guides us through the history and music behind the present upsurge in Afro-Venezuelan consciousness. Produced by Simon Rentner.
