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Music of El Salvador
Mariachi and son jarocho, marimba ensembles of Guatemala, Garifuna punta, Panamanian tamborito and the corrido ballad tradition.
Sung and searched in Spanish. The YouTube button above can run your search in that language.
Roots and traditions
Folk music
Musical repertoire consists of xuc, danza, pasillo, marcha and canciones. The Xylophone is a representative folk music instrument. Some of the most well known songs are "El Carbonero" and "El Torito Pinto". Marimba is one of the traditional folk music styles performed in El Salvador and was first introduced by African slaves. Two versions, of the percussion instrument that has intonations like a piano, the marimba de arco, which was played with a bow, and the marimba criolla were introduced. A coup d’état in 1932 resulted in the massacre of around 30,000 people and destruction of both the indigenous population and the original marimba de arco. The modern version of the instrument is a three octave marimba de arco and the music is always instrumental. The heyday of marimba in El Salvador was from the 1920s to 1930s when musicians played internationally, but because the instrument could be adapted to other styles, it remained popular until rock came on the scene in the late 1950s and early 1960s. In 1990, a revival of the indigenous music began.
Popular music
Salvadoran rock and hip hop/rap
Rock and hip hop are very well established music genres in Salvadoran culture. Salvadoran rock has a longer history dating back before the civil war while Salvadoran hip hop arrived after the civil war and it is seen as a legacy of the Salvadoran exodus, diaspora, immigration and deportation from the United States, especially from cities such as Los Angeles and Washington D.C. Joaquin Santos, Crooked Stilo and Code Blue are just some of the most well known Salvadoran hip hop groups. Foreign rock bands from the U.S and other parts of the world are also very welcomed and listened in El Salvador. Many foreign rock groups dedicated songs to El Salvador and the Salvadoran people during the civil war, songs such as "Bullet the Blue Sky" by U2, "El Salvador" by White Lion, and "Weapons for El Salvador" by The Ex were all inspired by the U.S. involvement in the El Salvador War.
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What El Salvador is listening to in 2026
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Live radio
Radio from El Salvador
Music only, no news or talk. Stations that play the local tradition come first, then the most listened. They play in the corner of the page.
Station directory by Radio Browser Streams come from each station's own server.