Hunya
This song displays the dance music of the powwow, a traditional ceremony and cultural celebration held within many different First Nations communities. Heard in the song are drums and distinct, unique vocal techniques. Powwow music features lively tempos, and is used as a platform for sharing stories, lessons, traditions, and pieces of the culture’s history, and for honouring the culture.
Haere mai
This track displays the complex drum patterns of Tahitian drumming. The story in this song is told by rhythm. The rhythm of the drums and accompanying dancers tell the song’s story and express emotion without the use of vocals or melodies. Drumming and dancing, part of the Heiva, are crucial parts of Polynesian cultural celebrations (https://www.entiretravel.com.au/articles/your-complete-guide-to-heiva-i-tahiti). This genre is evidence of the importance of music and dancing in culture and community.
Water No Get Enemy
Regarded as the pioneer of Afrobeat, Fela Kuti’s work combines jazz and funk with West African music. In this song we hear Western Instruments, such as the saxophone, mixed with West African rhythms and lyrics of Yoruba language and Nigerian pidgin English. Music was an extremely important bridge between continents and the mixing of genres led to growth of cultures. Kuti inspired generations of music and musicians through his Pan-Africanist music. (https://www.okayafrica.com/fela-kuti-afrobeat-legend-interviews/)
The Message
‘The Message’ was a turning point in rap music, one of the first songs of its kind to speak out against wrongs in society, creating a tool to encourage awareness in society. ‘The Message’ was a turning point in rap music, one of the first songs of its kind to speak out against wrongs in society, creating a tool to encourage awareness in society. The song and genre is unique for its creation of rhythm through speech and its synthetic sounds. Many artists use rap to protest racial prejudice, giving the genre an important place in music history and African American culture.
Song of Happiness
Thousands of years ago, music was deemed an important pillar of society in Chinese culture and played a key role in the ceremonies that governed society. It was less intended for entertainment and more for societal and political goals. The music features windblown instruments and plucked instruments playing tranquil melodies. It features a pentatonic scale particular to traditional Chinese music, evoking simplicity and harmony through its intervals.
Lloraras
Salsa is one of the most prominent styles of music and dance across Latin America, connecting many different Latin countries and cultures together. Dance and dance music play a huge role in a society’s culture. Dance is used to express a culture’s history, traditions, and beliefs, and is a natural form of human expression.
The Dance of Shiva
This song displays a modernization of Indian classical music through the genre of folktronica. It features a range of percussive instruments, like the rain stick and the tabla. We hear complex rhythms and fusion of modern and traditional sounds. This fusion is reflective of how society can change while still maintaining influence from tradition.
Peace In The Valley
Gospel music was a beacon of hope and light for slaves in America, and is an example of the importance music has in community, religion, and culture. Gospel later mixed with blues and rock and melded into soul and R&B, which later overtook the music scene in America. Gospel help to meld African American music into American culture.
Nassam Alayna El Hawa
Arabic music features a range of percussion, string instruments, and wind instruments. Often there is an emphasized rhythm on cymbals. The percussive rhythms, the sound of the Arabic scale, the intricate ornamentation of the instruments and vocals, and the timbre of the instruments and vocals make the music distinctive.
Requiem in D Minor, K.626: 1.Introitus: Requiem
Western classical music is a rigid institution greatly influenced by the church and by monarchs and is deeply connected with the class system. Historically, Western classical music has lacked diversity in its ensembles, a flaw worth noting in European culture. Each musician is expected to play to perfection and there is less room for freedom and improvisation. The song does show power in evoking a images or emotions through sound.
