Yoruba Andabo (Orisa Songs & Dance Videos)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases selected videos of Orisa [Orisha] (pronounced oh REE shah) religious songs & dances as performed by the Cuban group Yoruba Andabo (Friends Of Yoruba Culture). The Yorubas are a Western Nigeria ethnic group.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, religious, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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OVERVIEW OF THE YORUBA PEOPLE
http://www.religioustolerance.org/ifa.htm Ifa: the religion of the Yoruba peoples
"Yoruba refers to a group of cultures linked by a common language. They occupied an area bounded by the Niger River, and including what is now known as the Benin Republic, southwestern Nigeria, and part of Togo. They held a belief system in common: the Ifa religion.

Starting in the 16th century, large numbers of Yoruba natives were transported as slaves to the Caribbean and the Americas. They combined beliefs and practices from their Ifa religion with elements of Roman Catholicism to produce the syncretistic religions of Candomblé, Palo Mayombe, Santeria, Vodun, etc. These are now flourishing in the Caribbean, South America and North America, notably in Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Grenada, the Guyanas, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, St. Kitts, St. Vincent, Tobago, and Trinidad."

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Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orisha for information about specific Orisas. The dances (dance movements, clothing, mannerisms, articles carried etc) reflect the descriptions of the specific Orisa.

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INFORMATION ABOUT YORUBA ANDABO
From http://worldmusiccentral.org/artists/artist_page.php?id=4111
"Yoruba Andabo is a Cuban band and a company of 17 talented singers, percussionists and dancers, performing original sacred West African music preserved as it has been interpreted locally, after it had been brought there by slaves in the late 16th century. The ensemble takes its name from two African words loosely translated as ?the friends and followers of the Yoruba lands and culture.

Born out of spontaneous musical get-togethers held at the Havana harbor in 1961 by a group of dock workers, Yoruba Andabo - back then with another name - began performing in 1986 at the Havana seat of UNEAC (the organization grouping Cuba's professional writers and artists). Following its involvement in a recording for the local top label EGREM, the band worked in close contact with renowned singer Mercedita Vald?s, which led it to turn into a company in 1994 under the name of Compañia Folklorica Yoruba Andabo."...
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From http://www.carnegiehall.org/Calendar/2012/11/30/0930/PM/Yoruba-Andabo/
"The legendary folkloric group Yoruba Andabo ("friends of Yoruba culture") presents an evening of Cuban rumba. With singers, percussionists, and dancers, Yoruba Andabo performs ecstatic percussion-driven dances that reveal the ongoing influence of African religion and traditions in contemporary Cuba."

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FEATURED VIDEOS
(These videos are presented in no particular order.)

Video #1: Yoruba Andabo - Eleguà



AyvaMusica, Published on Dec 28, 2013

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Video #2: Yoruba Andabo - Obbatalá



AyvaMusica, Published on Jan 12, 2014

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Video #3: Yoruba Andabo - Yemayá



AyvaMusica, Published on Jan 8, 2014

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Video #4: Yoruba Andabo - Oyá Yansa



AyvaMusica, Published on Jan 6, 2014

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Video #5: Yoruba Andabo - Oggún



AyvaMusica, Published on Dec 28, 2013

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND THANKS
Maferefún (Praises be) to the Orisas who shown in these videos and thosee who are not shown in these videos.

Thanks to the drummers, singers, and dancers featured in these videos, and thanks to AyvaMusica for publishing these videos on YouTube.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Viewer comments are welcome.