Trova music is an old genre of Cuban music, believed to exist from the 19th century when this type of music emerged as the result of the so called trovadores who activated in Santiago de Cuba. The trovadores used to move around and earn their living by playing this type of music on guitar and singing along. According to the specialists trovadores can only be defined as such if they compose their own songs, their music is made with the help of the guitar and they deal poetically with the song. There is however no doubt that trovadores have played a great role in the development of the Cuban folk music and that they have set the roots of larger groupings that have carried on the tradition. From a social point of view, it is believed that they reached every village in the country and have helped spreading this type of music all around the world.
Perhaps the most important and well known contribution of the trova music is its role in the evolution of the nueva trova. Nueva trova is a music genre originating from Cuba as well and which has appeared after the Cuban revolution, as a response to the social changes that came about. This type of music is very similar to the traditional trova meaning that there are groupings of trovadores who sing accompanied by their guitars but the main distinction is made by the content of the song. The nueva trova lyrics are highly politicized which are combined with the traditional trova style. This type of Cuban folk music is highly associated and defined by its connection to the Cuban revolution. The lyrics of nueva trova are always attempting to escape the banalities of life and are mostly focused on socialism, injustice and various serious social problems of the Cuban society.
Some of the best known exponents of this genre are Silvio Rodriguez and Pablo Milanes. Silvio Rodriguez is considered the leader of the nueva trova movement especially as a result of the lyrics he composed which are highly symbolic and representative for his genre. Many agree that this singer is the symbol of Latin American left wing, both from a musical and political point of view. Romanticism, idealism, love and revolutionary politics are the main themes of his creations. Carlos Puebla and Joseito Fernandez were old-time trova singers, from which the first wrote pro-revolution songs.
But Latin-American folk genre does not end with trova music. Argentinian composers such as Facundo Cabral, an Argentinian singer and Joaquin Sabina, a Spanish exponent of the Latin folk have also greatly contributed to this type of music getting much more popular around the world and surpassing the borders of their native countries.