1950s2020sPeak: 1980s

Joropo

About Joropo

Joropo is the national music of the Venezuelan plains, the sound of the llanero cowboy built on harp or bandola, cuatro, and maracas over a driving waltz-like pulse. Its songs celebrate the vast grasslands, cattle work, and love, and its most famous number, Alma Llanera, serves as an unofficial national anthem. Simón Díaz refined its tonada ballad form into art, and Caballo Viejo became one of the most covered Latin songs ever written.

Key Artists