Editing Mambo (music) (section)

===Origins in Cuba===
{{Main|Danzón-mambo}}
The earliest roots of mambo can be traced to the ''[[danzón-mambo|danzón de nuevo ritmo]]'' (danzón with a new rhythm), later known as danzón-mambo, made popular by the orchestra [[Arcaño y sus Maravillas]] conducted by flautist [[Antonio Arcaño]].

[[Orestes López]] and his brother [[Cachao|Israel López "Cachao"]], main composers of the Maravillas, were the first to denominate a final upbeat, improvised section of the popular Cuban [[danzón]] as a ''mambo''. This innovation was a key step in the process of evolution of the danzón, which over the years had progressively lost its structural rigidity to the benefit of musicians and dancers alike. Prior to the ''danzón de nuevo ritmo'', in 1910, [[José Urfé]] had first added a [[montuno]] (typical [[Son (music)|son]] improvised closing section) as a final part of his composition ''El bombín de Barreto''. This was a swinging section consisting of a repeated musical phrase, which introduced some elements of the son into the danzón. During the mid-to-late 1930s, some members of the Arcaño group were saying ''vamos a mambear'' ("let's mambo") when referring to the montuno or final improvisation of the danzón.<ref>Sublette, Ned. ''Cuba and its Music: From the First Drums to the Mambo''. Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2004: 508</ref> It was Arcaño's cellist, [[Orestes López]], who created the first danzón called "[[Mambo (1938 song)|Mambo]]" (1938).<ref name="DavidGarcia">{{cite journal |last=Garcia |first=David F. |title=Going Primitive to the Movements and Sounds of Mambo |journal=[[The Musical Quarterly]] |year=2006 |volume=89 |issue=4 |pages=505–523 |doi=10.1093/musqtl/gdm006}}</ref> In this piece, some syncopated motives taken from the son style were combined with improvised flute passages.<ref>Orovio, p. 130.</ref>

Antonio Arcaño described the mambo as follows: "Mambo is a type of syncopated ''montuno'' that possesses the rhythmic charm, informality and eloquence of the Cuban people. The pianist attacks the mambo, the flute picks it up and improvises, the violin executes rhythmic chords in double stops, the double bass inserts a ''[[tumbao]]'', the ''timbalero'' plays the cowbell, the ''güiro'' scrapes and plays the ''maracas'' rhythm, the indispensable ''tumba'' ([[conga drum]]) reaffirms the bass ''tumbao'' and strengthens the ''timbal''."<ref>Giro, Radamés: Todo lo que usted quiso saber sobre el Mambo. Panorama de la música popular cubana. Editorial Letras Cubanas, La Habana, Cuba, 1998, P. 212.</ref>