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Sunday, July 3, 2011

Music From Around The World Sounds Sweet

By Stacie Allison


From its indigent roots, music from around the world has come into its own. In an increasingly globalized multi-culture, we have access to musical styles that in former decades would have required extensive travel to appreciate. During the eighties, pop stars like Sting and Paul Simon corroborated with musicians from around the globe adding depth to their individual sounds. With intriguing embellishments from third-world musicians, Western genres expanded.

With a varied geography and instrumentation, the indigenous roots are defying categorization as cultures assimilate. What may have once been a pure traditional form, is taking on nuance and variety as musicians access other styles from other regions. Musicians are going eclectic.

Appearing first in small venues, these international artists now fill large venues playing to increasingly sophisticated audiences. From there, CDs make their way into the record collections of an avid Western population intent of cultural enrichment. What was once an ethnic sound has become familiar with exposure.

Whether your taste is for Tibetan chants, Japanese koto, Indian raga, Jamaican reggae or the Celtic harp, it can all be found in record stores. Festivals abound in Europe, Canada and the United States. They showcase musical styles and rhythms that perhaps ten years ago no one had an understanding of. South America exports stylish bands that take America by storm.

With this hybridization, the genre has had to expand its classification and there are now labels such as World Fusion, Global Fusion, Ethnic Fusion and Club Beat. These terms may be considered sub-genres of pop, rock and jazz. It has gone beyond its pure roots to embrace a more diverse, broader approach with more depth.

The one place that is thoroughly behind this amalgamation is Paris. With large West and North African populations, as well as Algerian and Moroccan, an intense appreciation for differing musical styles proliferates. Add a culture with strong institutional support for the arts and you have a lively scene. Middle Eastern sounds, especially Persian, are on the rise in the United States. Jamaican Reggae has been thoroughly assimilated.

Visit the Internet to learn about the latest and most exciting groups all over the globe. A great source of information, you can listen to and purchase CDs and MP3s. There is a list of radio stations to tune into. There is a schedule of festivals taking place this summer. There are great sites to begin your appreciation of the many and varied musical styles on tap.

If your sixties, seventies and eighties classic rock records are beginning to sound like, well broken records, leave your comfort zone and check out the exhilarating offerings from around the world. If you could use a new groove, find out what is happening in Peru, Ghana, North Africa, Bolivia, Brazil. Access to the global culture is definitely one of the perks of our ever expanding world.




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