Tamborito and Mejorana

Tamborito is the national dance of Panama and it is built on a circle: three drums, hand clapping, a woman singing lead with the circle answering, and one couple at a time dancing inside it, the woman managing a full pollera and the man circling her. The form is African in its structure and Spanish in its melody, and it is danced across the country but belongs above all to the Azuero. Alongside it sits the mejorana, a small five-string guitar that accompanies sung décimas, improvised verses in a fixed form. The Festival de la Mejorana at Guararé each September is the country's main gathering of folk music and dance.

What you actually see

• The tamborito circle - drums, clapping, a lead singer and one couple dancing.
• The mejorana guitar - the small five-string that carries the Azuero repertoire.
• Décimas - improvised sung verses in a fixed ten-line form.
• The Guararé festival - the country's main folk gathering, each September.

When to go

The Festival de la Mejorana at Guararé is in late September and is the single best opportunity. Carnival and the Azuero patron festivals through the year also bring it out. There is no permanent venue.

Honest expectations

There is no venue where you can simply buy a ticket; this is festival and community music. Hotel folklore shows are short and thin. Guararé during the festival is crowded and accommodation is limited, so many people stay in Las Tablas or Chitré. Everything runs late.

Nearby

Guararé is between Las Tablas and Chitré on the Azuero.