TV REVIEW : Belafonte Traces Roots of Latin Music

Far-reaching yet accessible, packed with information and still fun to watch, “Routes of Rhythm with Harry Belafonte,” takes on the challenging subject of tracing the roots of Latin music and its eventual presence in the American musical mainstream.

The show is a three-part, three-hour KCET production airing tonight, next Friday and June 29 on Channels 28 and 15,

For the most part, the show--produced and directed by Eugene Rosow and Howard Dratch--is suited to its weighty task. The well-crafted, smoothly moving script, written with authenticity by Linda Post, Rosow and Dratch, is delivered with understated panache by a soft-voiced Belafonte

The script is interwoven with an amalgam of current and archival film, interviews and an array of photographs and artwork that blend into a provocative, pleasing whole.

From the popularization of the tango in 1913 by dancers Vernon and Irene Castle to the 1980s mix of Latin and pop elements by Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine, the sounds of Latin music have tantalized the ears, feet and hearts of listeners in the United States.

But, as “Routes of Rhythm” explains, this musical blend goes back more than 500 years to Africa, where free-flowing rhythms pounded on drums accompanied every event in life, and Spain, where what later became known as flamenco was developed.

The second and third segments detail the migration of Afro-Cuban music to the United States, from Xavier Cugat’s mass popularity with the rumba in the ‘30s to Desi Arnaz, who brought Latin sounds to millions via television.

The influence of Afro-Cuban music on jazz is revealed in a profile of Cuban drummer Chano Pozo.

“Routes of Rhythm” proves to be a road that, once you get on, you won’t want to get off.