【题目】Musicians Find a Whole World to Explore

1 It has often been said that music is a global language. But the idea that music can Bring cultures closer together by transporting listeners to a common realm seems somewhat unusual. That is of course, unless you are familiar with the new genre of music called “world music.”

2 From clubs to concert halls，on CDs and at festivals，artists from many nations are gaining new followings with fresh sounds，experimentation across cultures, and the blending of diverse traditions.

 

What is world music

3 Given the great diversity in category and style，it is not surprising there is little agreement on exactly what constitutes this genre. It could be traditional music such as Afro-Caribbean rhythms, Celtic fiddles，and reggae. It includes Gregorian chants，Aborigine didgeridoo，or Tajikistani pop, Salsa，samba, or Johnny Clegg and Savuka.

4 Some musicologists argue that all music is world music. After all，rock-and-roll traces back to Africa. Record store employees，on the other hand, will direct you to a specific section. And the Billboard charts seem to define world music by artists who have put a pop spin on traditional music.

5 Robert Browning, artistic director of the World Music Institute in New York，describes world-music on a spectrum of music genres. At one end of the spectrum you have classical or traditional“roots” music. On the other end，you have music that is a mix of sounds and instruments，more often composed by Western artists.

 

From `Day-O’ to today

6 International influence on modern music is not exactly new. Harry Belafonte  introduced a calypso craze in the late 1950s singing “Day-O.”” The Beatles incorporated Indian elements into some of their music. And in recent years, Paul Simon set pop melodies to South African rhythms with “Graceland”(1986) and then bowed to Brazil with “Rhythm of the Saints”

7 Victor Mendoza, a well-known Latin jazz composer, explains that from an artistic standpoint, music from different cultures opens up doors to creativity and inspiration. “You look at your own music in a whole different way, and you’re never bored.”His fantasy, he says, is .to compose an orchestral piece based an each of the Central American countries’ traditional music.

8 Many musicians feel that their efforts to make others’ music known are part of a  Larger picture, perhaps a large mission to educate and bring people closer together. As a result，they say, music fans become more Open-minded and more likely to explore music from different parts of t he World. Tom Wegen, a long time buyer  For world music at Tower Records, Boston, is sure of this. The size of his department has tripled in seven years. Unlike a decade ago, people can find just about every country represented, says Wegen. And people are getting more curious, he acknowledges.

9 “We know there’s a lot of great music out there, and very little of it is played on radio,” says Wegen. With a mission of bringing melodic, upbeat songs that appeals to the sophisticated listener as well as t he” beginner,” Wegen hopes to give listeners a feeling of the power of music to bring people together.

 

Educators go beyond Bach

10 “there is also a growing interest in world music in the classroom. These days, Berklee College of Music in Boston offers 27 world music courses，from “African Pop Ensemble” to “Brazilian Musical Styles,” compared with six courses in 1991. ‘This year，for the first time， the college is offering a major in hand percussion, and it recently organized the Berklee College of Music’s World Percussion Festival，drawing musicians from Sweden to South America.

Preservation，evolution

11 Mr. Browning，of World Music Institute, has had a finger on the pulse of world music for almost 20 years, and has watched interest increase “dramatically’，—particularly in New York

12 Growing immigrant populations tend to have an interest in Their “national” music, whether it was classical or popular, Browning explains. So it follows that you could hold a Persian music concert at Lincoln Center and get a crowd of 2 ，000, ” Many wouldn’t have gone in India，but in New York they gather for national identity.”Now, the general public seems to not only be open to but also willing to hook into world music.

13 While trendiness of world music can be good, Browning says, he cautions that some of the fusing going on can have a negative effect:”If musicians were to ignore the importance of traditional sounds and mix these sounds together we might someday lose the rich heritage of Traditional sounds. Experimentation is great, and the blending of sounds and traditional instruments is important，but musicians need to keep in mind the roots of traditional music,” says Browning. World music should be a blend of sounds, while at the same time, it should retain the traditional sounds of individual cultures.

14 Andrew Sidenfeld, founder of the world-music promotion company “No Problem Productions,” suggests yet another impulse for the current growth in pop-world-music popularity, It is partly due, h e says, t o people’s reaction against the main stream music industry control. People are bored with musicians and record companies who are satisfied with producing music t that will appeal to the mass population. Record

Companies are often only interested in what will make a hit，and what  will sell. The rise of world music is a reaction against that kind of music. When you give people fewer and fewer choices，they want to explore a whole new world.”

 

Who support music from different cultures can make creativity and inspiration?

 

 

 

Victor Mendoza 

 Wegen 

 Harry Belafonte