What is Catalan rumba?
Catalan rumba (rumba catalana) took shape in the 1950s and 60s among the Romani community of Barcelona, in neighbourhoods such as Gràcia, Hostafrancs and the Raval. Musicians like Antonio González “El Pescaílla” and Peret mixed flamenco rumba with Cuban son and guaracha and with rock and roll. Later, bands such as Los Amaya and Gato Pérez kept it alive, and the Gipsy Kings made a close cousin of it famous around the world.
Its signature is the ventilador, a guitar technique in which the right hand alternates strums, muted slaps and thumb hits, so the guitar itself becomes a rhythm section. Hand claps, bongos and congas complete the groove. The music is in 4/4 and usually moves fast, somewhere between 100 and 140 BPM.
What each instrument plays
Each instrument repeats a one-bar pattern (the bell, a two-bar one). Counting the bar in sixteenths, 1 e & a 2 e & a…, this is what you hear:
- Hand claps on the four beats, each with its own weight: very soft on 1, normal on 2, soft on 3 and strong on 4.
- Cajón: bass tones on 1 and on the “and” of 2, a softer bass on 3, slaps on 2 and 4 (the one on 4 is the strongest hit of the bar) and light ghost notes on the sixteenths in between. Bass on 1 and 2& plus the slap on 4 draw the 3‑3‑2 feel of the ventilador.
- Bongos: the martillo (“hammer”). Index finger on the small drum on 1, 2 and 3, thumb and fingertips on the off-beats, and an open tone on the large drum on 4.
- Congas: the tumbao. Heel and tip strokes keep the eighth notes going, a slap lands on 2 and two open tones close the bar, on 4 (conga) and on the “and” of 4 (tumba).
- Cowbell: the bongo bell pattern. Low mouth strokes on 1 and 3 and neck strokes on 2 and 4, plus the “and” of 4 in one bar and the “and” of 2 in the other. Those two bars follow the clave: choose 2‑3 or 3‑2 to start on one or the other.
Humanize adds small random variations to every hit, a few milliseconds of timing and a little dynamics, as a real percussionist would. Turn it off if you want a perfectly even grid.
How to practise with the groove
- Start slow. Set the tempo around 90–100 BPM and play the song or your strumming pattern until it sits with the claps and the cajón.
- Anchor on beat 4. The strongest clap, the cajón slap and the open tones all fall on 4. If you drift, listen for it and land there.
- Strip it down. Turn instruments off one at a time and keep the feel. With only the claps left, you carry the groove yourself.
- Speed up gradually. Raise the tempo 5 BPM at a time up to the speed of the song. Most rumbas sit between 110 and 140 BPM.
- Take it with you. Download 1 to 10 minutes as MP3 or WAV to practise away from the screen or to load it into your recording software.
To check that your time holds without help, combine it with the gap click metronome, which goes silent for whole bars.
Frequently asked questions
Is the groove generator free? Can I use the files I download?
Yes. It is free and there is no account to create. The samples are public domain (CC0) and the file is generated on your device, so you can use it to practise, in lessons or in your own recordings.
Are these real instruments?
Yes. Every hit is a recording of a real instrument, with several strokes per instrument (for example open tone, slap and heel on the conga) and more than one sample per stroke, so the loop does not sound mechanical.
What tempo is Catalan rumba played at?
Usually between 100 and 140 BPM, counting quarter notes. The generator goes from 70 BPM, for slow practice, up to 220 BPM, and starts at 140.
What does the 2-3 / 3-2 clave option change?
Only the cowbell, whose pattern lasts two bars. With 2-3 it starts on the bar that matches the two-note side of the clave; with 3-2, on the other one. Choose the one that fits the phrasing of your song.
Why is the download a little longer than the length I chose?
The file always contains whole bars and ends with a final hit on beat 1 that is left to ring out, so it never cuts a note in half. That adds up to one bar and a second or so.
Can I change the tempo or the instruments while it plays?
Yes. Tempo, instruments and volumes change straight away, without stopping the groove. Changing the style restarts it.
Does it work on my phone and offline?
Yes. It works in the browser on phones, tablets and computers. On iPhone, tap Play to start the sound. After your first visit the groove also plays without a connection.
Will there be more styles?
Yes. Each style is a simple data file, and more grooves, such as pop-rock and rock, will be added.