With the proliferation of a rapidly expanding global culture, music from around the world has taken on a new sophistication. Since the eighties when Sting, Paul Simon, Peter Gabriel and David Byrne showcased indigent styles in their recordings, roots music has come along way. Adding depth to Western popular tunes, appreciation for this genre has grown.
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.
International groups now regularly tour Britain and North America. Once playing small venues, they are now playing larger concert halls with sold-out shows. A billing trend to have indigenous groups open for major pop stars has added to their stature and record sales.
If you are interested in hearing some Tibetan chants, Japanese koto or Indian raga, all are increasingly booked to play for Western audiences. Offered up, tribal music from the Middle East, Asia, Central America and Africa are proliferating. Reggae as been assimilated so deeply into the mainstream it almost seems like an American roots style instead of Jamaican.
No longer strictly ethnic, it has a broader approach. This hybridization now requires new categorical labels. We have World Fusion, Ethnic Fusion, World Beat, Lounge, Global Fusion and Club Fusion. It now crosses over into new-age, jazz, country, soul and disco. It has grown its eclectic styling and it is only just beginning.
In Paris, always a cultural trend-setter, a large West and North African population has bestowed upon the city a diverse musical scene. Add in the Algerian and Moroccan influences and you have a lively mix. With strong support for the arts, Paris may be the world music capital as it was once the art capital. In the United States, Middle Eastern sounds are growing in popularity. South American rhythms are warmly welcomed. Sufi whirling dervishes tour regularly.
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.
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.
International groups now regularly tour Britain and North America. Once playing small venues, they are now playing larger concert halls with sold-out shows. A billing trend to have indigenous groups open for major pop stars has added to their stature and record sales.
If you are interested in hearing some Tibetan chants, Japanese koto or Indian raga, all are increasingly booked to play for Western audiences. Offered up, tribal music from the Middle East, Asia, Central America and Africa are proliferating. Reggae as been assimilated so deeply into the mainstream it almost seems like an American roots style instead of Jamaican.
No longer strictly ethnic, it has a broader approach. This hybridization now requires new categorical labels. We have World Fusion, Ethnic Fusion, World Beat, Lounge, Global Fusion and Club Fusion. It now crosses over into new-age, jazz, country, soul and disco. It has grown its eclectic styling and it is only just beginning.
In Paris, always a cultural trend-setter, a large West and North African population has bestowed upon the city a diverse musical scene. Add in the Algerian and Moroccan influences and you have a lively mix. With strong support for the arts, Paris may be the world music capital as it was once the art capital. In the United States, Middle Eastern sounds are growing in popularity. South American rhythms are warmly welcomed. Sufi whirling dervishes tour regularly.
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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