Music of Jamaica
The music of Jamaica includes Jamaican folk music and many popular genres, such as mento, ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub music, dancehall, reggae fusion and related styles. Mento[edit] Meanto is often confused with calypso, a musical form from Trinidad and Tobago. Calypso[edit] As in many Anglo-Caribbean Caribbean islands, the calypso music of Trinidad & Tobago has become part of the culture of Jamaica. The Trinidadian calypso and soca music are popular in Jamaica. Jazz[edit] From early in the 20th century, Jamaica produced many notable jazz musicians. Harriott, Goode, Hutchinson and Thompson built their careers in London, along with many other instrumentalists, such as pianist Yorke de Souza and the outstanding saxophonist Bertie King, who later returned to Jamaica and formed a mento-style band. Ska[edit] Ska is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. DJs and toasting[edit] Rocksteady[edit] Reggae[edit] Dub[edit]
Music Genre: Salsa - Music of Puerto Rico
Introduction The most widely heard and influential form of music from Puerto Rico today is called salsa. The term translates to English as "sauce" to denote music that spices and enlivens things. But not just any music. It could be said that "salsa" is primarily a commercial tag for contemporary Latin pop music that connotes a feeling that sums up the variety of redefined and reinterpreted styles at its roots. At some time during the end of the 60's, Afro-Caribbean music had developed into was being called salsa. Neither has there been agreement precisely on how the term was invented, or by who. The term "salsa" began to circulate in the late 1960's to describe this unique genre, born of these many distinct musical influences from many parts of the world but with its locus in New York City. Roots and History of salsa By the 30's, the popularity of son and mambo had spread to Puerto Rico where musicians incorporated the style with their own. The basic rhythm of the salsa is the clave.
The Music Of Jamaica: From Roots to Ragga – World Music Network
Despite the tiny size of the island, Jamaican music has long been a powerful force on a global scale. Even ignoring the deity that is Bob Marley and his reggae legacy, the island boasts a wealth of extraordinarily popular genres such as dancehall and dub, as well as having a long history of folk music, and lesser known, yet highly influential genres such as mento. Maroons & The Bongo Nation Following the arrival of first Columbus, followed by the Spanish, and then Oliver Cromwell’s navy, the island’s indigenous population of Arawaks were soon wiped out. Small numbers of African slaves who had been armed by the Spaniards and instructed to defend the island against the British fled to the hills – where to this day, their descendants, the Maroons live in secluded communities. Colonisation bought plantations to Jamaica – which were then thrown into turmoil by 1838’s abolition of slavery. Rastafari Listen to grounation music by Count Ossie and his Mystic Revelation of Rastafari here: Mento Ska
The Roots of Tejano and Conjunto Music
Arhoolie RecordsMusic Excerpts, Liner Notes, and Photos All music excerpts, liner notes, and photos on this page are the property of: Arhoolie Records, 10341 San Pablo Av., El Cerrito, CA 94530 The roots of Tejano and Conjunto music are as widespread and diverse, and run as deep, as the traditions, cultures and people which gave them life. The main root is the music of Mexico with all its regional and class variations, its extraordinary range of songs and dances, and its social and religious musics ranging from the solo voice to the powerful sound of the bandas from Sinaloa to the highly stylized format of today's mariachis. The musical traditions of the Tejanos of South Texas and Norteños of Northern Mexico have been influenced not only by the mother country, Mexico, but also by their Anglo-American, African-American and immigrant neighbors like the Czechs, Bohemians, and Moravians as well as the Germans and Italians. The songs were contributed by both Mexican and Tejano composers.
History of Bluegrass Music
If football symbolizes the all-American sport then in music, nothing can boast of a greater American heritage than bluegrass music. From its earliest roots in the rural areas during the 1940’s to the eclectic range of sub-genres it boasts of today, bluegrass music is ultimately about self-expression, which is constantly displayed by its trademark instrumental solos. The Bluegrass Instruments One of the things that greatly distinguishes bluegrass music from all other genres and even its closest cousins, country and mountain music, bluegrass is mostly played with the use of acoustic and stringed musical instruments. A typical bluegrass band would have members playing the fiddle (most varieties are considered acceptable), the acoustic guitar and upright bass, the mandolin, and the five-string banjo. The choice of instruments for creating bluegrass music was gradually derived from the original instrumental selection used by country music and dance bands. Vocal Harmony Other Developments
Native American music - The beating of Native Drums and flutes
The Native American people were extremely spiritual and many of their tribal spiritual customs and traditions involved music. Native American music varies among the thousands of tribes that once inhabited America but one thing that they all had in common were the drums crafted from wood and animal skins. Many tribal stories of creation and the spirit world were passed on through Native American music from generation to generation. A lot of tribes believed that the songs they sang came from the spirits, and a lot of Native American music is honoring the spirits that the Native Americans believed lived within everything in nature. The Native American Indians worshipped the spirits of the animals, the sun, the moon and the stars and everything else that they could not explain. As with anything among the thousands of Native tribes that were spread throughout the land the Native American music had different meaning and varied among tribes. Other Resources: Looking for something different?
