Overview of Caribbean music

Abstract

To frame the 2001 meeting of the ASA within the soundscape of the region, this paper offers an overview of the diversity of musical sounds and sound-makers, i.e., instruments, of the Caribbean and Circum-Caribbean region. Many are in fact present in the Miami–Dade/Fort Lauderdale–Broward area because of the growing presence of immigrant populations, as well as the influence of some of their traditions on ‘‘world beat’’ music (the subset of ‘‘world music’’ with African influence). The survey of sounds of the Caribbean, illustrated audiovisually, will include both the commercially disseminated genres (‘‘popular music’’), and others which are not marketed or marketable, although in some cases the roots of popular music. The ‘‘unknown’’ genres include social dances, as well as work songs, sacred drumming, ritual songs, and more. The paper proposes African culture influence as the common denominator which musically unifies the region and explains why.