1) the jamblock: CH's timbaleros frequently played the clave note for note on his jamblock and if you listen carefully you can learn to pick it out. This, of course, is the one absolutely unambiguous way to identify the direction of the clave!

2) the campana bell: The campana bell, played by the bongocero, has two tones - open and closed. The open tone is extremely loud and will cut through any mix. The closed tone can get buried in the mix and be inaudible to inexperienced listeners. CH's bongoceros use two bassic patterns. The first is the basic campana bell pattern that's common to all Salsa music.

0=open bell
c=closed bell
x=rest

0xcx|0xcc|0xcc|0xcc 2:3 campana bell (standard, or "third gear") [audio example 5]

The only difference between the 2 side and the 3 side is the rest that occurs on the 4^th subdivision of the first beat. The accented 2 side (underlined) iis very easy to hear when the bell is loud in the mix, but in many mixes it's extremely difficult to pick out the closed bell sound and the listener hears only:

0xxx|0xxx|0xxx|0xxx -- which provides no help in determining the clave.

CH’s bongoceros also frequently use a different pattern, which can have variations on the closed tone but always contains the two key open bell tones shown below:

cxxx|xxxc|0xx0|xxxc 2:3 campana ("second gear" variation) [audio example 6]

In this pattern the first two notes of the "3" side (underlined) are extremely obvious because they're played strongly on the open bell. To the new listener, it can be a little tricky to pick the jamblock out of the texture, but it's impossible to miss the open cowbell, so when this pattern is being played, it's the easiest way to instantly identify the clave. Just listen for the deep, loud open campana bell and you’ve found the 3 side.

3) The congas: When the standard salsa conga pattern is used, the 3 side is denoted by the lower open tones played on the largest conga:

x=left hand muffs
S=slap
o=higher open tone
0=lower open tone

xxSx|xxoo|xxS0|0xoo 2:3 clave standard conga marcha [audio example 7]

Using this to identify the clave works more often than not in the music of Charanga Habanera, but one must be very careful because in Timba, the conga often plays a melodic tumbao that's unique to the song and which may very well place the lower open tone on the 2 side. Especially in later Timba, the above conga pattern has become less and less common. The conga and piano, while vastly more creative and enjoyable in Timba, can be very frustrating for the student when they're used to try to determine the clave.

4) The piano: for the sake of completeness, we'll include the old-fashioned piano piano tumbao pattern. Although it's almost never used in Timba, some of NG's and CH's piano tumbaos are occasionally fairly close to it on the 3 side. Ultimately, the feeling of the clave is present in all parts: piano, bass, horns, coros, and even in the improvised vocal guías, but these should be tackled last by the student who is interested in maintaining some semblance of sanity.

0x00|x0x0|x0x0|x0x0 2:3 piano piano tumbao (pre-timba) [audio example 8]

cxxxxxxxxxxxxx|xxx0
x0x0|x0x0|0x00|x0x0 3:2 piano piano tumbao (pre-timba) [audio example 9]

We also include two examples of actual Charanga Habanera piano tumbaos:

x000|0x00|0xx0|x0xx Nube Pasajera 2:3 clave [audio example 10]

cxxxxxxxxxxxxx|xxx0
x0x0|x0x0|x0x0|00x0
x0x0|x0x0|0000|x0x0
x0x0|x0x0|0000|x0x0
x0x0|000x|0x00|x000 Hey You Loca 3:2 clave [audio example 11]

As you can see, the Timba piano tumbaos are far less predictable, but sound considerably better. Examples 8 & 9 very similar to the piano tumbaos for literally hundreds of tradional Salsa and Charanga songs. On the other hand, you could play examples 10 and 11 to a roomful of Cubans and they would instantly know the names of the songs. Each Timba piano tumbao is a unique riff and that makes it difficult for the student to use the piano as a clave indicator. Of course, the implication of the clave is still there. Note the strong accent that example 10 places on four of the five notes of 2:3 clave. Example 11 lasts four claves and each variation is different, but note that all four start out rhythmically like the stock 3:2 piano tumbaos in example 9. "Hey You Loca" is also an excellent example one of Juan Carlos González’ biggest innovations — changing the harmonies at unexpected points in order to create a whole new world of creative possibilities.

For more examples of piano tumbaos, we have a large number of examples of the amazing Tirso Duarte, a later CH pianist. Check out the review of the album "Charanguero Mayor" as well as "Anatomy of a Timba Arrangement". We also have an interview with Duarte, and another with another giant of Cuban piano, Iván "Melón" González.

5) cáscara and contracampana: These rhythms, played by the timbalero, are sometimes hard to hear in the mix and frequently played with many variations in Timba, so it's not nearly as easy to use them to pick out the clave as it is in normal salsa.

0x0x|00x0|0x00|x0x0 2:3 cáscara [audio example 12]

0x0x|0000|x000|0x00 2:3 contracampana [audio example 13]

x00x|x000|x000|x000 2:3 "Changuíto" contracampana - this pattern, or a subset of it, is frequently used by drummers such as Samuel Formell (Van Van) and Roicel Riverón (Manolito y su Trabuco) who play two bell patterns at once because they play in bands which don't have a bongocero or timbalero to cover the campana part. [audio example 14]

6) Kick and Snare: These didn't become an important clave consideration until later in the history of Timba. In the early Charanga records these guidelines seldom apply, but we'll include them here for later reference.

xxxx|0x0x|xxxx|0x0x [audio example 16]