MILLENNIALS LOOK TO TRADITIONAL MUSIC TO HELP PRESERVE PUERTO RICAN CULTURE
the beachfront Puerto Rican community of Piñones, the vibrant music of bomba fills the breezy air, as duelling drummers beat in rhythmic unison. The sounds come from Corporación Piñones Se Integra , an organization that teaches locals and tourists the art of bomba as a way of passing on the music to future generations. One of Puerto Rico’s traditional Afro-Caribbean musical forms, bomba is considered a rhythmic dialogue between the dancers and the drummers. Puerto Ricans hope this musical dialogue will turn into actual dialogue that will be a key part in preserving the Afro-Puerto Rican culture. Maricruz Rivera, the founder of Corporación Piñones Se Integra, emphasized that this is especially important given the racial tensions both in Puerto Rico and in the states. “There’s a lot of discrimination of black people,” said Rivera. “So with this organization we believe we deserve better things for our people, and we wanted to get together to develop this community.” Rive