KABARAK UNIVERSITY

School of Music and Performing Arts

Bachelors in Music Theory and Composition

Y3S2

Unit Name: Contemporary Church Music

BMCM 320

Task: To do a research on different genres and types of contemporary music

using the guidelines provided as a guide

Patrick Kangoga Rono - BMTC/MG/1699/09/20

Lecturer: Mr. Ernest Kisali

Date of Submission: 14-02-2023
INTRODUCTION

The following task requires one to conduct a research about the different types of contemporary
music, using the origin, characteristics and instrumentals as guidelines in order to do a sufficient
research. There are different types of contemporary music and they all differ in their arrangement
and structure and it is important to be able to understand each individual genre in order to
understand the workings of the genres as each genre is different in its application, being
influenced by the history behind the genre.

TASK

The Blues

History

The Blues originated in the Southern part of America among the African-Americans who were
predominantly based there.

It was influenced by

● Work songs
● Field hollers
● Minstrel show music
● Ragtime
● Church music
● Folk and popular music

The Memphis Blues were the beginning of jazz, in terms of the music developing

It was created around the 20th Century

They developed in 3 main places which were Goergia, Texas and Mississippi.

Characteristics

● Instrumental music is perceived as almost universal when it comes to Blues, although it is

a vocal form essentially.
 ● They are usually focused more on the lyricism rather than the narration of the music
because the expression of feelings is the most important thing.
● It is mainly a simple but very expressive form of music which was a major influence to
some other genres of music namely: jazz, rhythm and blues, rock and even country
music.
● Emotions expressed in the music are generally melancholic and full of sadness, mainly
due to problems of love, oppression and a hard time.
● They bring about the emotions by using techniques such as melismas in vocal music,
syncopations when it comes to the rhythm and choking or bending guitar strings to create
a whining sound.
● It is expressed by excessive use of microtonal pitch inflections.
● It is also expressed by a 12 measure form with a typical AAB structure.
● It is also characterized by call and response patterns, falsetto breaks for a vocal style and
imitation by the instruments on the vocal idioms.

Country Music

History

Country music mainly began in the 1920’s in the area of Tennessee, in the mountain towns. The
music first became popular on the local radio stations before being widely received nationally.

Country music was a blend of Appalachian folk and blues consisting mainly of soulful ballads
and up-tempo tunes. It had been derived as “hillbilly” music before going main stream around
1940, with the genre evolving to singing cowboys too.

Country music was influenced by a lot of genres, with every genre contributing to the eventual
sound. They included:

● Blending English ballads with Irish and Celtic fiddle songs, together with different
influences by the immigrants living nearby.
● The influence of the African Americans with jazz and blues

Country music did however stay on local radio stations mainly till the 1980’s
Country music evolved a whole lot throughout the years and centuries, having genres such as:

● Hillbilly style
● Cowboy western style
● Bluegrass
● Honky Tonk

Characteristics

Country music was generally a broad genre, as different musicians would include other musical
genres in their music, leading to a presence of different sounding country music in different
regions of the country.

The artists also crossed boundaries regularly and the audiences ended up having a loose meaning
for country music.

The country music believed in string instruments, which provided accompaniment to simple
harmonies with rhythmic precision.

The first country musicians did not believe in drums as they thought they were too loud but this
perception changed throughout the years and had completely changed by the 1950’s with drums
being incorporated into most of the characters.

Bring out their music in a ballad style, therefore telling the listeners a story through the music,
which is a characteristic that has lasted throughout the years

Experimental Music

History

This was a genre of music that began in the mid 20th century and was mainly in North America,
that referred to music whose outcome is inconceivable and unforseeable

It is used with genres in order to explain music that pushes the boundaries of the genre or
inculcates new styles of music into the present genres, therefore creating a blend of music that is
unlike the normal ones.
Folk Music

This is a broad musical genre including traditional music from an array of populations and ethnic
groups

It became mainstream in the 1930s and was popularized by the 60s, remaining popular till now

The genres include:

● Cowboy songs
● Sea shanties
● Jug music
● Railroad songs
● Bluegrass
● Etc.

Funk Music

History

Funk originated in the African-American communities in mid 1960s, and it is mainly

accompanied by a drummer and an electric bassist.

It has a danceable feel to it and it's known for its groove and stimulating vibe.

Funk and it's artists reached mainstream level in the 80s, with them being known throughout the
world, including Stevie wonder

Hip-hop

History

It was born in between Harlem and South Bronx in New York City due to rampant economic and
political inequality after the civil rights era and the Black Arts movement of the 60s and 70’s.

The performers used the platform as a chance to speak out on subjects such as race, gender, class
and the political crisis.
It was a combination of disco and funk music.

The music burst into the main stream in the 1990’s.

Hip Hop was based on 4 main pillars during its beginning:

● Deejaying
● Rapping
● Graffiti Art
● Break dancing

Jazz

History

Jazz was developed partially from ragtime and blues in the beginnings of the 20th century

Characteristics

Jazz music was mainly improvisational, influenced by the European harmonies and African
rhythms, mainly syncopations.

It is also full of ensemble polyphonic playing, varying improvisation degrees, deliberate pitch
deviations and use of original timbres.

Apart from that, swing was an essential part of the jazz as it was believed they went hand in hand
with syncopation

Heavy Metal

History

A darker, heavier tone of rock was created in the 70s which led to the genre hard rock or heavy
metal

Heavy metal came from the original rock, as it was a morphing of a different style

It became a mainstream genre of music in the 80s and some of the main groups were
 ● Black Sabbath
● Led Zeppelin
● Deep Purple

Pop

History

Pop music came about from a culmination of different musical genres in the society, mainly
known as a softer alternative to rock and roll.

It's origins are based on:

● Ragtime
● Jazz
● Big band
● Country
● Blues
● Rock and roll
● African American Music

The pioneers were Elvis Presley in US and The Beatles in UK.

Pop has a habit of absorbing other genres to create new music e.g. Disco and Dance.

Characteristics

It is every eclectic and adaptive as it borrows elements from different styles in order to evolve.

It's known for its smooth sound, short duration and mainly commercial orientation.

It is usually simple in it's subject, revolving around love and daily life.

Rock

History
Rock music first appeared in the late 1940s, constantly redefining and reinventing itself
throughout the years and generations.

It was a morphing of blues, country and popular styles together with electric guitars and a steady
drumbeat.

It had an aggressive attack that was different from the music of the time.

A darker, heavier tone of rock was created in the 70s which led to the genre hard rock or heavy
metal

Punk was born from loud guitars, a rude attitude and enraged singing in the late 70s

Characteristics

Can be described as hard edged music, with electric guitars, bass and drums.

It is also usually accompanied by lyrics sung by a vocalist.

Reggae/Roots

History

It originated in the 1960's in Jamaica and became an international genre by the 70's, being the
most dominant music of the country.

It was looked at as the voice of the oppressed.

Characteristics

It is based on ska, an earlier Jamaican popular music form, employing a heavy four-beat rhythm
which is driven by:

● Drums
● Bass guitar
● Electric guitar
● Scraper
Chunking sound of the rhythm guitar at the end acts as accompaniment to emotional songs often
looking at rejecting the "white man culture"

It's lyrics are typically politically and socially correct, informing the listeners about controversial
issues.

Conclusion

All these different genres of music are important as they all show different shades of music and
the evolution of music throughout the years and how different genres inculcate each other,
leading to new genres or even growth or evolution of the music as it grows