FROM DRUM TO HEARTBEAT, BOMBA FINDS NEW LIFE IN EAST HARTFORD
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| Dancer Brenda Liz Cepeda performing a Bomba dance. Photo: Brenda Liz Cepeda |
East Hartford, CT.- A centuries-old dialogue between dancer and drummer is alive here in Connecticut, not on stage, but in the community.
This is Bomba, a traditional Puerto Rican dance, and one of the island’s oldest living traditions. Far from the Caribbean sun, its rhythm now echoes in the heart of East Hartford.
At the center of it all is Brenda Liz Cepeda, a proud Boricua, a bearer of legacy. She comes from a family of Bomba musicians and has made it her mission to share this tradition, not only as performance, but as history, identity, and healing.
“My grandfather, Rafael Cepeda, and Caridad Cepeda, who are the patriarchs of Bomba and Plena, they're the ones who maintained Bomba and Plena for many years. Bomba came from the ancestors, from Africa, from the Congo area, who landed in San Juan, Puerto Rico,” Cepeda said.” What's important to know is that it was hidden. Bomba is resistance music. It's strong. It's about, you know, slaves, being slaves, and not wanting to be slaves. So their music expressed that, you know, their movement, their dancing. And again, it's important to know that what it looked like back then might look a little different now, because over the years that have evolved, they have changed, but the meaning is still the same.”
A rhythm born in Puerto Rico’s sugarcane fields starts with a heartbeat, not from the body, but from the drum. Brenda Liz Cepeda, in collaboration with visual artist Shaki Acevedo, is dedicated to keeping Bomba alive, passing its spirit, culture, and power to a new generation.
“We're hopefully gonna continue bringing more Bomba to East Hartford, because we need it. We need to learn our roots, our culture, and we need to do more for the young folks.” Acevedo said. “ We, as parents, sometimes our schedule is too crazy, and we have to focus on other things. But here it's never too late to embrace our culture and to come together. So our youth can learn more about it.”
In Connecticut, thousands of miles from its birthplace, Bomba lives on, not in museums or textbooks, but in the hands and feet of the Puerto Rican diaspora.
Here, it’s not just about honoring the past, it’s about protecting the future.
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This is Bomba, a traditional Puerto Rican dance, and one of the island’s oldest living traditions. Far from the Caribbean sun, its rhythm now echoes in the heart of East Hartford.
At the center of it all is Brenda Liz Cepeda, a proud Boricua, a bearer of legacy. She comes from a family of Bomba musicians and has made it her mission to share this tradition, not only as performance, but as history, identity, and healing.
“My grandfather, Rafael Cepeda, and Caridad Cepeda, who are the patriarchs of Bomba and Plena, they're the ones who maintained Bomba and Plena for many years. Bomba came from the ancestors, from Africa, from the Congo area, who landed in San Juan, Puerto Rico,” Cepeda said.” What's important to know is that it was hidden. Bomba is resistance music. It's strong. It's about, you know, slaves, being slaves, and not wanting to be slaves. So their music expressed that, you know, their movement, their dancing. And again, it's important to know that what it looked like back then might look a little different now, because over the years that have evolved, they have changed, but the meaning is still the same.”
A rhythm born in Puerto Rico’s sugarcane fields starts with a heartbeat, not from the body, but from the drum. Brenda Liz Cepeda, in collaboration with visual artist Shaki Acevedo, is dedicated to keeping Bomba alive, passing its spirit, culture, and power to a new generation.
“We're hopefully gonna continue bringing more Bomba to East Hartford, because we need it. We need to learn our roots, our culture, and we need to do more for the young folks.” Acevedo said. “ We, as parents, sometimes our schedule is too crazy, and we have to focus on other things. But here it's never too late to embrace our culture and to come together. So our youth can learn more about it.”
In Connecticut, thousands of miles from its birthplace, Bomba lives on, not in museums or textbooks, but in the hands and feet of the Puerto Rican diaspora.
Here, it’s not just about honoring the past, it’s about protecting the future.
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FROM DRUM TO HEARTBEAT, BOMBA FINDS NEW LIFE IN EAST HARTFORD
Reviewed by Maricarmen Cajahuaringa
on
July 07, 2025
Rating:
Reviewed by Maricarmen Cajahuaringa
on
July 07, 2025
Rating:
