Jazz Articles about Puerto Rican Batrachians

Puerto Rican Batrachians: El Hermoso Cantar del Coqu

by Javier AQ Ortiz
April 10, 2003

It is literally impossible to understand many Puerto Rican musical streams unless one is familiar with the songs of the 16 Eleutherodactylus species there. Two of them – Eleutherodactylus portoricensi and Eleutherodactylus coquí – emit a recurring percussive song, from whence derives the popular name. The former frog is endemic only in Puerto Rico and it is the island’s national symbol. There are thousands of references to the coquí in the Puerto Rican popular songbooks, and it has served as ...