The clave
A five-stroke pattern over two halves (a “strong” one with three strokes and one with two) that organizes all Afro-Cuban music. All the instruments align with its direction.
Patterns (one bar in sixteenth notes, 16 slots)
- Son clave 3-2: x..x..x...x.x...
- Son clave 2-3: ..x.x...x..x..x.
- Rumba clave 3-2: x..x...x..x.x... (the third stroke is delayed by a sixteenth note)
- Bossa nova clave: x..x..x...x..x..
The first half of the son clave 3-2 (x..x..x.) is the tresillo, the 3+3+2 cell found everywhere: from mambo to reggaeton, from pop to rock 'n' roll.
Direction
In a “3-2” piece the melodic phrase and the breaks treat the three-stroke half as the first half; changing direction for no reason “crosses” the clave, and anyone who plays Latin music perceives it immediately as a mistake.
In modern production
- Reggaeton and dembow: the snare and kick pick up the tresillo over a four-on-the-floor kick.
- Afrobeats and amapiano: log drum and percussion with figures derived from the clave.
- Pop: synths and basses in 3+3+2 to give a Latin flavor without changing genre.
Example in A minor
Tresillo bass over Am – Dm: A (1) – A (4) – E (7) | D (1) – D (4) – A (7); piano with a montuno that emphasizes the strokes of the “part 2.”
Real-world example
The “Bo Diddley beat” of the song “Bo Diddley” (1955) is essentially a son clave 3-2 played on the guitar: from there it passed into rock 'n' roll and pop.