Merengue & Bachata

Music is the heartbeat of the Dominican Republic — and two genres define the country like no other element:

Merengue — The National Rhythm

Merengue is fast, energetic, and impossible to sit still to. The 2/4 beat is carried by the Tambora (drum), the Güira (metal scraper), and the accordion. Merengue originated in the 19th century in the countryside — the exact origins are disputed, but the connection to African drum music is obvious.

Dictator Trujillo paradoxically made Merengue the national genre: He forced radio stations to play Merengue and used the music as a propaganda tool. After his death, Merengue became the music of liberation. Juan Luis Guerra, the most famous Dominican musician of all time, revolutionized Merengue in the 1980s with his album “Bachata Rosa" and won four Grammy Awards. In 2016, Merengue was declared an intangible UNESCO World Heritage.

The dance: Close embrace, quick hip movements, the feet move in a simple side-step. Easy to learn, hard to master. Merengue is danced in every bar, every Colmado, and on every street.

Bachata — The Music of Longing

Bachata is slower, more sensual, and more melancholic than Merengue. Originally despised as “music of the poor" (Bachata literally means “party/celebration of the lower classes"), the style emerged in the 1960s in the bars and brothels of the lower class. The lyrics are about lost love, longing, and heartache — accompanied by electric guitar, bongos, and Güira.

Romeo Santos (formerly Aventura) made Bachata a worldwide phenomenon from the 2000s — today, Bachata is taught in dance schools from Berlin to Tokyo. The romantic Bachata dance with its characteristic hip swing on the fourth beat has become one of the most popular couple dances in the world.

In the Dominican Republic, however, Bachata is danced differently than in European dance schools: less figure-focused, closer, more direct, more instinctive. Let a Dominican show you the “real" Bachata — it's a different experience than the course back home.