World Music - Examples

Examples

Examples of popular forms of world music include the various forms of non-European classical music (e.g. Japanese koto music, Indian raga music, Tibetan chants), Eastern European folk music (e.g. the village music of the Balkans), Nordic folk music and the many forms of folk and tribal music of the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Oceania and Central and South America. The Breton musician Alan Stivell pioneered the connection between traditional folk music, modern rock music and world music with his 1970's album Renaissance of the Celtic Harp.

The broad category of world music includes isolated forms of ethnic music from diverse geographical regions. These dissimilar strains of ethnic music are commonly categorized together by virtue of their indigenous roots. Over the 20th century, the invention of sound recording, low-cost international air travel and common access to global communication among artists and the general public has given rise to a related phenomenon called "crossover" music. Musicians from diverse cultures and locations could readily access recorded music from around the world, see and hear visiting musicians from other cultures and visit other countries to play their own music, creating a melting pot of stylistic influences.

While communication technology allows greater access to obscure forms of music, the pressures of commercialization also present the risk of increasing musical homogeneity, the blurring of regional identities, and the gradual extinction of traditional local music-making practices.