Internationally well known, Mambo is one of the most remarkable danceable-music genres, revered by dancers at various continents but just a few know its real history.

Like other genres of danceable music monopolizing world wide attention, this one is original from Cuba and particularly from Havana, its capital where, along many years, has evolved and crystallized particular forms of producing music and dance which has capted diverse sectors of populace`s attention, nationally and abroad.

Mambo is outcome of an evolutive process starting on early XX century decades in Danzón, its antecedents go back to begginings in a row of links born from French Contradanza presence in Cuba, ending XVII century, bringing up Cuban Contradanza on early years of XX .
In this criolla form changes occurred and determined emergence of a new modality called danza, becoming Danzón in the final years of XIX due to Miguel Faílde`s idea, a musician from Matanzas.

Mambo appeared as a new rhythm in the last section of a work entitled Mambo, danzón composed by Orestes López in 1937 and featured a year after by Arcaño y sus Maravillas Orchestra. This rhythm of syncope character was similar to those achieved by tres players who were interpreting in Cuba Son Montuno, genre of folklore music which conquered the capital around the 20s. In this way, around the same epoch, tresero and composer Arsenio Rodríguez experimented with a rhythm called Diablo.

Around first years of 40th decade, thanks to some musicians labor, highlighting: Israel (Cachao) López, Orestes López, Andrés Echevarría (Niño Rivera), Bebo Valdés and René Hernández, this last part of syncopated conception, named Mambo, set apart Danzón adquiring its own development; occuring then experiments around rhythm, melody, harmony and instrumentation, having changes in musical functions which traditionally made some instruments plus exploitation of this genre within Jazz Band Orchestra, holding new ideas and way of doing, above all in the treatment of trumpets, trombones and saxophones, often influenced by Jazz, and Cuban percussion instruments such as tumbadora and pailas among others.

As result of all this musical work, in 1949, Mambo was just gaining excitement among Cuban dancers achieving great popular acceptance. All these serie of experiments and changes in genre development had its climax on the novel conception of Damaso Pérez Prado, who was the first one presenting it around the world with Mambo 5 and Qué Rico Mambo, recorded for record label RCA Victor, in Mexico, country where he lived since 1949. He was known as Mambo King during two decades due to his popular titles.

Mambo was not unaware of dynamics at music developing in Cuba, since its concretion as genre, it ran around assimilation, feedback and interchange processes together with other genres of Cuban music. As examples we have: Mambo Rumbón by Gilberto Valdés and Pent House Mambo by Bebo Valdés where rhythms coming from Rumba and Afro Cuban music with Yoruba antecedent were used; La prieta linda by Memo Salamanca with a deep Cha Cha Chá presence created by Enrique Jorrín in 1951 and at the same time derived from Mambo and Danzón; Encantado de la vida having Bolero influence among others.

Mambo peaked such a popular top place that some arrangers ''mambeados'' were also made to famous composition, highlighting: El Manicero by Moisés Simons and La Malagueña by Ernesto Lecuona.

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