There's two ideas I still want to share with you here: Implied clave and how it's all just guidelines!

1) Implied clave

Like we discussed, musicians will always know where the clave "is". This is due to what's called implied clave. It's the same process we have discussed so far, but in reverse! Because you know how some instruments should or might be in connection to the clave with their tumbaos and rhythms, you then know where the clave is in their playing. Often times, no one is actually playing the clave in salsa music, but everyone knows where the clave is because all the rhythms from other musicians are implying it.

Two example songs!

Maykel Blanco - Recoge y vete
You can hear the conga drums in the beginning doing the same tumbao we discussed above. The lower tones are implying where the bombo is, so you know that's the 3-side of the clave!



German Villareal - Ran Kan Kan (Tito Puente cover)
Most of the coros in this song, meaning the short lyrics the choir repeats, play around with the on/off-beat rhythmic motif. One of the coros is "Ran Kan Kan, Kan Kan" (0:59-1:17). And in that one, the first part is on-beat and the second part is off-beat, implying a 2-3 clave.

This is an example of something besides the piano playing around with the on/off-beat rhythmic motif we discussed in the video! If you notice a strong on/off-beat relation going on anywhere in salsa music, that is quite likely implying the clave direction right there!



2) These are just some guidelines, and actual music isn't supposed to follow rules!

For any "here's how to play with clave", there's at least ten exceptions or different possible choices. Clave alignment is a living thing that is constantly being played around with, as the people playing this kind of music are very talented musicians who are hungry to find new and interesting ways of connecting to the clave, while still sounding familiar. This cannot be achieved with strict rules or ideas about notes that are "right" or "wrong". Of course, when you are just learning to play or understand salsa music, it helps to have clear guidelines! But remember that life is a lot more complicated than that. Luckily, I might add! :)