La Paloma
Overview
La Paloma, Texas
La Paloma is a census-designated place in Cameron County, Texas, United States. The population was 354 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Brownsville–Harlingen Metropolitan Statistical Area. La Paloma means "the dove" in Spanish...
.
"La Paloma" is a popular song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
, having been produced and reinterpreted in diverse cultures, settings, arrangements, and recordings over the last 140 years. The song was composed and written by Spanish composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Sebastián Iradier
Sebastián Iradier
Sebastián Iradier Salaverri , a.k.a. Sebastián Yradier, was a Spanish Basque composer.Iradier was born in Lanciego, in the province of Álava. His publisher in Paris urged him to "universalize" his name, from Iradier to Yradier...
(later Yradier) after he visited Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
in 1861. Iradier may have composed "La Paloma" around 1863, just two years before he died in Spain in obscurity, never to learn how popular his song would become.
The influence of the local Cuban habanera
Habanera (music)
The habanera is a genre of Cuban popular dance music of the 19th century. It is a creolized form which developed from the contradanza. It has a characteristic "Habanera rhythm", and is performed with sung lyrics...
gives the song its characteristic and distinctive rhythm.
