(sharriff) there is a direct relationship-- we like to say a marriage-- between the music and the dance. the musicians actually control the tempo. mandiani is a social dance which means that it's not ceremonial or ritualistic. i like to say that mandiani is like doing our street dance-- you know when we're just "hey," that's what we do here to self entertain, or to have a house party, or to celebrate in some fashion. we have to remember what we do in this country is for the stage, "yes! this is great! thank you very much!" we applaud the entertainment of it. traditionally, this is how people explain their existence. this is how they honor holy spirit. this is how they honor their own life force and their connection with spirit. this is not a performance for them. this is their life. (male translator) mantanzas is a province where a group of friends from my neighborhood-- the neighborhood of simpson-- we always enjoy ourselves with a rumba. we're always ready to put a rumba together at a moment's notice. the caribbean is a very vibrant area of musical encounters for the past 400 years--