World Music Traditions

Symphony in A Minor by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor | BBC Proms 2021 : Chineke! with Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Performed by the Chineke! Orchestra and conducted by Kalena Bovell, the P...

African Suite by Fela Sowande | BBC Proms 2021: Chineke! with Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Performed by the Chineke! Orchestra and conducted by Kalena Bovell, the Prom shines a light...

Akinla (Allegro non troppo) | BBC Proms 2021: Chineke! with Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Performed by the Chineke! Orchestra and conducted by Kalena Bovell, the Prom shines a light o...

Lullaby (Andante cantabile e sostenuto) | BBC Proms 2021: Chineke! with Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Performed by the Chineke! Orchestra and conducted by Kalena Bovell, the Prom shin...

Nostalgia (Andante) | BBC Proms 2021: Chineke! with Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Performed by the Chineke! Orchestra and conducted by Kalena Bovell, the Prom shines a light on rarely...

Onipe (Andante; con tenerezza) | BBC Proms 2021: Chineke! with Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Performed by the Chineke! Orchestra and conducted by Kalena Bovell, the Prom shines a ligh...

Overture to 'The Song of Hiawatha' by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor | BBC Proms 2021: Chineke! with Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Performed by the Chineke! Orchestra and conducted by Kalena...

Piano Concerto in One Movement by Florence Price | BBC Proms 2021: Chineke! with Jeneba Kanneh-Mason

Performed by the Chineke! Orchestra and conducted by Kalena Bovell, the ...

Mahler's Symphonies | Revolution and Romance: Musical Masters of the 19th Century

George Walker | Black Classical Music: The Forgotten History

95-year-old American composer George Walker had his first performance of any of his music when his piece ''Lyric...

John Blank | Black Classical Music: The Forgotten History

John Blank was one of the first documented Tudor Britons painted in a manuscript and was a trumpet-player for Henry...

Ignatius Sancho | Black Classical Music: The Forgotten History

Sancho was born on a slave ship, and lost both his parents. Despite racial adversity he carved his way to maki...

Chevalier de Saint-Georges | Black Classical Music: The Forgotten History

Chevalier de Saint-Georges (AKA Joseph Bologne) was a French violinist, and is credited with being ...

George Bridgetower | Black Classical Music: The Forgotten History

Bridgetower was a British musician whose fame drew attention from the likes of Beethoven who wrote a sonata...

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor | Black Classical Music: The Forgotten History

As slavery was being abolished, black musicians and composers didn't have to conform to western tropes...

Scott Joplin | Black Classical Music: The Forgotten History

Coleridge-Taylor inspired American composers to take Afro-centric ideas further, allowing pioneers like Scott Jop...

Florence Price | Black Classical Music: The Forgotten History

As hard as it was trying to break through in to the classical music scene as a black man, Florence Price had it...

Shirley Thompson | Black Classical Music: The Forgotten History

Shirley Thompson OBE wrote a symphony for the Queens golden jubilee in 2002; she speaks of combining her two ...

Why Did Sailors Sing Sea Shanties? | Shanties and Sea Songs with Gareth Malone

Sailors sang sea shanties to aid with the many physical taks faced on board a sailing ship.

I'm Bound Away | Shanties and Sea Songs with Gareth Malone

I'm Bound Away' sea shanty performed by The Keelers.

The Ballad of Grace Darling | Shanties and Sea Songs with Gareth Malone

Sea shanties celebrated stories of heroism and bravery, such as that shown by Grace Darling, daughter...

The Filey Fisherman's Choir | Shanties and Sea Songs with Gareth Malone

Some of the most powerful sea songs have come from the rich traditions of Britain's fishing communities.

The Preservation of Sea Shanties | Shanties and Sea Songs with Gareth Malone

Gareth Malone explains why it's so important to preserve english folk traditions, such as sea sh...

The Origins of Samba | Brasil Brasil

Samba was born on the northeastern coast of Brazil. Its famous rhythms were developed from percussion styles used in Candomble, an Afric...

The European Influence on Samba | Brasil Brasil

In the mid 20th century, Rio de Janeiro was a rapidly expanding city with a large white population, boosted by immigrants fro...

Early Samba Songs | Brasil Brasil

The songs of the early samba singers dealt with the realities of everyday life for black workers and migrants in Rio.

Samba de Roda | Huey Morgan's Latin Music Adventure

Samba de roda is the oldest form of samba in Brazil.

Carmen Miranda - Samba's First International Superstar | Brasil Brasil

Links between Brazil and America grew stronger just at the right time for the emergence of Brazil's m...

Luiz Gonzaga and Forró | Brasil Brasil

Son of a farmworker, Luiz Gonzaga was the exponent of a new style of samba music that swept across Brazil in the 1940s.

Dorival Caymmi and Samba-canção | Brasil Brasil

Unlike other forms of samba, samba-canção could be sung by individuals, as well as massed bands. Dorival Caymmi became samb...

The Pioneers of Bossa Nova | Brasil Brasil

Singer Joao Gilberto, Composer Antonio Carlos Jobim and the poet Vinicius de Moraes are considered to be the founders of bossa nov...

Bossa Nova and the Brazilian middle class | Brasil Brasil

Bossa Nova, meaning 'New Wave', reflected the new-found optimism inside Brazil during the 1950s and appealed to Bra...

Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66- Mas Que Nada | Easy Listening Hits at the BBC

Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66 performing Mas Que Nada.

Garota de Ipanema | Brasil Brasil

Written by Jobim and Vinicius in 1962, Girl from Ipanema became bossa nova's best known hit.

Gilberto Gil and Tropicália | Huey Morgan's Latin Music Adventure

Along with Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil was one of the musicians behind the Tropicália movement, which to...

Carnival and Samba Schools | Huey Morgan's Latin Music Adventure

Samba schools, each representing a different neighborhood, compete in formal parades during Carnival. Mangue...

Barrio de Tango by Anibal Troilo | BBC Proms 2018: Tango

Grammy Award-winning pianist Pablo Ziegler and a hand-picked group of world-class soloists join the Britten Sinfonia...

El Motivo by Juan Carlos Cobain | BBC Proms 2018: Tango

Grammy Award-winning pianist Pablo Ziegler and a hand-picked group of world-class soloists join the Britten Sinfonia ...

La Cumparsita by Gerado Matos Rodríguez | BBC Proms 2018: Tango

Grammy Award-winning pianist Pablo Ziegler and a hand-picked group of world-class soloists join the Britten ...

La Mufa by Astor Piazzolla | BBC Proms 2018: Tango

Grammy Award-winning pianist Pablo Ziegler and a hand-picked group of world-class soloists join the Britten Sinfonia and c...

La Rayuela by Pablo Ziegler | BBC Proms 2018: Tango

Grammy Award-winning pianist Pablo Ziegler and a hand-picked group of world-class soloists join the Britten Sinfonia and ...

Libertango by Astor Piazzolla | BBC Proms 2018: Tango

Grammy Award-winning pianist Pablo Ziegler and a hand-picked group of world-class soloists join the Britten Sinfonia an...

Mano a Mano by Carlos Gardel | BBC Proms 2018: Tango

Grammy Award-winning pianist Pablo Ziegler and a hand-picked group of world-class soloists join the Britten Sinfonia and...

Sur by Anibal Troilo | BBC Proms 2018: Tango

Grammy Award-winning pianist Pablo Ziegler and a hand-picked group of world-class soloists join the Britten Sinfonia and conduct...

Un Momento by Hector Stamponi | BBC Proms 2018: Tango

Grammy Award-winning pianist Pablo Ziegler and a hand-picked group of world-class soloists join the Britten Sinfonia an...

South African Music Genres | The African Rock 'n' Roll Years

An introduction to smusical genres distinct to South Africa.

Mbaqanga | The African Rock 'n' Roll Years

Mahlathini became the 'King of Mbaqanga', a type of South African music developed from jazz.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Gracelands | The African Rock 'n' Roll Years

Joseph Shabalala and his group sang iscathamiya, a Zulu unaccompanied harmony style. When Paul Simon...

Brinca de Vivre | Hugh Masekela: Welcome to South Africa

A performance from South-african musician Hugh Masekela's 70th birthday concert at the Barbican in London in Decembe...

Grazing in the Grass | Hugh Masekela: Welcome to South Africa

A performance from South-african musician Hugh Masekela's 70th birthday concert at the Barbican in London in De...

Ikhaya Lami | Hugh Masekela: Welcome to South Africa

A performance from South-african musician Hugh Masekela's 70th birthday concert at the Barbican in London in December 20...

Lizzy | Hugh Masekela: Welcome to South Africa

A performance from South-african musician Hugh Masekela's 70th birthday concert at the Barbican in London in December 2009, wh...

Morija - Maseru | Hugh Masekela: Welcome to South Africa

A performance from South-african musician Hugh Masekela's 70th birthday concert at the Barbican in London in Decemb...

Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika | Hugh Masekela: Welcome to South Africa

A performance from South-african musician Hugh Masekela's 70th birthday concert at the Barbican in London in ...

Stimela | Hugh Masekela: Welcome to South Africa

A performance from South-african musician Hugh Masekela's 70th birthday concert at the Barbican in London in December 2009, ...

Thula - Thula | Hugh Masekela: Welcome to South Africa

A performance from South-african musician Hugh Masekela's 70th birthday concert at the Barbican in London in December ...

The Invention of the Steel Pan Drum | The World About Us: King Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago

The steel pan drum is geniously contrived from an industrial oil drum.

The Origins of Steel Pan- Tamboo Bamboo | The World About Us: King Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago

Tamboo bamboo is a percussion instrument from Trinidad, which is precursor...

The First Ska Hit in Britain | Reggae Britannia

Millie Small's cover of Barbie Gaye's song 'My Boy Lollipop' was the first UK ska hit, reaching number 2 in the UK singles ch...

Ska, Rocksteady and Reggae | Roots, Reggae, Rebellion

Akala visits reggae artist and basist Robbie Shakespeare to find out the musical differences between ska, rocksteady an...

Radio's Disregard of Reggae | Reggae Britannia

Jamican artists settled in Britain were met with a snobbish atitude towards their music from radio DJs.

Reggae's Influence on Punk | Reggae Britannia

A new musical aligment was taking place that would radically change reggae's impact and acceptance in Britrain, almost overnight.

The First UK Reggae Number One | Reggae Britannia

Israelites' by Desmond Dekker & The Aces, was the first reggae song to reach number 1 in the UK charts.

The Arrival of Bob Marley on the UK Reggae Scene | Reggae Britannia

Very little was known about Jamican music in Britain before the launch of The Wailers album Catch a Fire,...

Gamelan at the Paris Exhibition in 1889 | Revolution and Romance: Musical Masters of the 19th Century

The Paris Exhibition of 1899 was, for many of the attendees, the first ...

Gamelan's Influence on Claude Debussy | Revolution and Romance: Musical Masters of the 19th Century

Gamelan inspired Claude Debussy to move away from the maximal style of Ri...

The Birth of Bhangra in Britain | Pump Up The Bhangra: The Sound of Asian Britain

Bhangra named after a harvest dance, is claimed to have been forged in the foundries of the...

Panjabi MC: Bhangra Goes Mainstream | Pump Up The Bhangra: The Sound of Asian Britain

Mundian to Bach Ke is the most recognisible bhangra song. It went straight in to number...

Apna Sangeet and Soho Road | Pump Up The Bhangra: The Sound of Asian Britain

Soho Road is at the heart of the Punjabi community in Birmingham and the title of one of bhangra...