The emblematic couple dance of the Colombian Andes: a gentle courtship with handkerchiefs, set to string music in a lilting rhythm.
Bambuco is often called the most representative music of the Colombian Andes. Played on the tiple, bandola and guitar, it has a characteristic rhythm that shifts between three and six beats. The dance tells a story of courtship in several figures — invitation, flirtation, chase, handkerchief play and finally agreement — performed with modesty and elegance. In the nineteenth century bambuco became a symbol of national music, and in Huila and Tolima it lives on in fiestas, schools and folkloric groups.
