Chouval-bwa (chuvabwa)
The chouval-bwa is a musical style and dance from the French Antilles (Guadeloupe), born in the 1970s-80s. The term comes from « chovabwa » meaning a drum made of skin stretched over wooden circles. Chouval-bwa is a very rhythmic dance music played on wooden drums, and serves as an ancestor to zouk from Guadeloupe.
Groups like Bel-Air, Kassav’ (who modernized zouk), and the numerous traditional Guadeloupean groups perpetuate this style.
