The Argentine folk songs have a musical form characteristic that usually has to do with the dance. Ie, their phrase or melodic motifs bear a relationship to each other and with the group. For example, in the chacarera there is two forms: one is 44 dance bars and 6 bars of introduction, the other has 48 dance bars and 8 bars of introduction. The best model are the recorded versions, such as the Hermanos Abalos, who are very traditional.
In general argentine folk songs (zambas, chacareras, cuecas, cats, etc..), usually have a musical form that conform to the lyric, when are songs with lyrics, and although lacking of it the usual form is the same.
The lyric are composed of two parts, formed in turn by two opening stanzas, with a melodic motif that is repeated for each, and a chorus with a different melody. In other words, from the musical point of view the structure is A, A, B, A, A, B, where A is the melody of the first and second pair of stanzas and B is the melody of the chorus. This seems a bit confusing, but is easier to understand by listening carefully a song while reading the lyric.
The most of argentine folk songs have form AABAAB, ie a first melodic theme A that is repeated twice, then a second theme B, again the first item A twice, and ends with B theme. In the lyric this matches the first two stanzas (AA), then the chorus (B), again the two stanzas, and ends with the chorus.
There are certain similarities between the melody and the poetry of a song. In a melody are musical phrases that tend to correspond to each verse or line from a song, and just as a phrase consists of words, a phrase consists of bars, which in turn are divided into beats, which would be the "syllables" of the music.
This is for those who have no musical knowledge and are too lazy to study, but not to experiment a little bit, even only singing or whistling. You can check this with a song you know well, looking at the lyric written with the chords below the corresponding syllables.
Try the following: singing only one verse or line of the song, or better sílbela or tararéela, saying the lyric. You will notice that the notes have a certain sense as a sentence, and that some notes are louder than others, as if they were marked (and indeed they are, are called "strong beats"). Certainly in some of these "strong beats" is marked the chord.
With all this talk we conclude that lyrics and melodies are closely linked, that is what is proposed on or authors. For the performer who has no musical knowledge, but is provided with a fine ear for music, the lyrics of a song is almost like a musical score. Once you have performed several times the song, you will begin to localize "of ear" the moment they must change of chord, and also to memorize the one corresponding to each part of the lyrics.
