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The music of Tonga is the music, both indigenous and foreign-influenced, of the island kingdom of Tonga, comprising the Tongan archipelago and a few outlying islands. Contents 1 History 2 Surviving traditional music 3 Church music 4 Secular music 5 See also 6 References History Tonga was discovered by European explorers in 1616. Early visitors, such as Captain Cook in the 1770s, and the invaluable William Mariner in the 1800s, describe traditional dance performances featuring singing and drumming. James Cook, portrait by Nathaniel Dance, c. ... For the William Mariner who won the Victoria Cross in the First World War, see William Mariner (Victoria Cross winner) William Mariner was an Englishman who lived in the Tonga Islands from 1807 to 1811. ... The first successful missionaries, English Methodists, arrived in 1822. By 1830, most of the population were nominally Christian. Western church music and Western classical and popular music would then start to mingle with the pure Tongan music, resulting in the often hybrid music of contemporary Tonga. Methodism or the Methodist movement is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity. ... Surviving traditional music Traditional music is preserved (though how faithfully we can only guess) in the set pieces performed at royal and noble weddings and funerals, and in the song sung during the traditional ceremony of apology, the lou-ifi. Radio Tonga begins each day's broadcast with a recording from Veʻehala, a nobleman and celebrated virtuoso of the nose flute. The nose flute is otherwise rarely heard. Contemporary youth prefers the guitar. --4. ... individually-donated time and energy direct government payments or operation indirect government payments, such as radio and television licenses grants from foundations or business entities selling advertising or sponsorship public subscription or membership fees charged to all owners of TV sets or radios, regardless of whether they intend to receive... Honourable Veehala (died 1986) was a Tongan nobleman best known as a nose-flute player. ... Girl playing the nose flute (Thomas Williams, 1858) The nose flute is a musical instrument played in Polynesia and the Pacific rim countries. ... Some ancient dances are still performed, such as ula, ʻotuhaka and meʻetuʻupaki. The ula (dance) is an ancient Tongan dance, already reported by early European navigators like captain Cook. ... The Ê»otuhaka (Ê»otu-haka: row-of-dancemovements) is a traditional Tongan group dance where the performers are seated and make gestures with their arms only, with some accentuation from head and body. ... The meetuupaki (mee tuu paki: dance standing [with] paddles) is an ancient Tongan group dance, already reported by early European navigators like captain Cook. ... The lali or slit-gong, is still in use -- as a substitute for a church bell by congregations that cannot afford a bell. Slit gong is a primitive type of drum. ... Church music Methodists were known for their extensive use of hymns in their emotional services. True to their tradition, the early missionaries introduced hymn-singing to their congregations. These early hymns - still sung today in some of the Methodist sects, such as the Free Church of Tonga and the Church of Tonga - have Tongan tunes and simple, short Tongan lyrics. A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a god or other religiously significant figure. ... In the late 1800s, missionaries introduced hymns popular in England and Australia at the time, keeping the Western tunes and translating the lyrics into Tongan. These hymns are still sung in the largest Methodist church, the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga. Other Christian denominations have introduced their own musical traditions. The Roman Catholic church in Tonga, while a minority church, has been notable for its accepting attitude towards traditional Tongan culture. Their church music, however, follows Western Catholic models. The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... In the smaller churches and the minority Methodist sects, hymn singing is unaccompanied, hiva usa. A strong singer will sing the first notes alone (a practice called hua or opening) and the rest of the congregation will then join. Church choirs are popular, practice is frequent, and most congregations sing all hymns in harmony. Free Wesleyan Churches feature not only choirs, but brass bands. It is possible that this tradition comes from northern England, a strongly Methodist area, where participating in brass bands is a popular amusement. Visitors may regret that the blaring bands drown out the delicate harmonies of the hymns, but Tongans glory in the size and splendor of their bands as they do the size and splendor of their churches. Smaller churches have no bands, but aspire to them. The Lochgelly Band, a Scottish colliery band, circa 1890 A brass band is a musical group consisting mostly of brass instruments, often with a percussion section. ... All the Methodist churches have occasional choir exhibitions (po hiva), held in the larger churches, to which all the neighboring congregations are invited. Choirs practice assiduously to show off their prowess before their rivals. Handel's Hallelujah Chorus is frequently sung at these festivals, being esteemed as the epitome of choir display. HANDEL was the code-name for the UKs National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. ... Messiah (1741) is an oratorio by George Frideric Handel. ... Hymn-singing is greatly practiced at the wakes before funerals. Relatives sit with the body, while mourners come to make their last greetings to the departed and to bring gifts to the bereaved. The church choir (from the family's own congregation) sits in the background, singing hymns through the day and night. Secular music Secular music is composed in a gamut of styles, ranging from the semi-traditional to the aggressively "pop" influenced by overseas styles. The usual instruments are voice, guitar, and sometimes the players from the church brass band. Hiva kakala (fragrant songs, meaning love poems) are an important part of the semi-traditional group. Many of the ones still popular nowadays were made by queen Sālote in the 1950's and are the favourite tunes for the tauʻolunga dances. Another important part in this group are the more formal songs, slanted towards odes to the chiefs and the royal family. They are the ideal choice for dances like the māʻuluʻulu or the lakalaka, Tonga's national dance form. Sālote Tupou III (1900-16 December 1965) was Queen of Tonga from 1918 to 1965. ... The tauolunga is a traditional Tongan dance and one of the most striking symbols of true Tongan heritage. ... The māuluulu is a traditional Tongan dance, performed by a group of seated man and women, and a direct successor of the ancient otuhaka. ... The lakalaka (walking briskly) is a Tongan groupdance where the performers are standing and make gestures with their arms only. ... Mixed dancing, or hulohula as practiced at parties and clubs in the Western world, is still comparatively rare. It is not a feature of village life, and can be found only in the cities, such as Nukuʻalofa. Most village musicians display their talents only in church, or at the koniseti. The koniseti or concert is a display of dance and song, usually done as a fundraiser for some worthy cause, such as a sports team or a local congregation. The musicians consist usually of singers, guitar players, and possibly a church brass band. The music is melodic and minor key; it serves as background to the dancers. Sometimes villagers will rehearse a koniseti for months and then tour neighboring villages or even islands. The size of the receipts is commensurate with the quality of the show, and there is great incentive to excel. At other times the koniseti may be performed only once, for a special occasion. Music is often heard in Tongan towns and villages, but it is usually music from Radio Tonga. Radio Tonga is a state-run radio station; it starts broadcasting early in the morning and ends late at night. It can be heard even in the smallest villages on the remotest islands, blasting from the omnipresent tepis or combination radio/tape cassette players (usually battery powered). One weary Western visitor was heard to complain, in 1980, "You can't get away from Radio Tonga". --4. ... Radio Tonga plays music from local Tongan musical groups, Fijian and Samoan bands, Hawaiʻian music, etc. It also broadcasts church services and choir competitions, so it disseminates church music as well as popular music. The Tongan groups usually feature strong vocals, solo or choral, haunting minor key harmonies, and guitar backup. To the unsophisticated Western ear, it savors of American country music. The music of Hawaii includes an array of traditional and popular styles, ranging from native Hawaiian folk music to modern rock and hip hop. ... Western pop is also popular among a younger audience, though disapproved by elders and churches. It can bought as CD or tape, seen on DVD or videotape, picked up on short-wave radio, viewed in movie theatres, or even watched on the one TV station, broadcasting from the capital city of Nukuʻalofa. However, government censors significantly limit what can be imported, or played. Busy Talamahu market in Nukualofa Nukualofa, population 22400 (1996), is the capital of Tonga. ... Local custom also plays a part. It is forbidden to mention sexual topics in front of men and women who have a brother-sister relationship. This applies not only to brothers and sisters by Western reckoning, but also to cousins. Hence sexual references are taboo in most public situations where both men and women are present. In all pre-contact Polynesian societies, brothers and sisters were considered to have a special relationship. ... Contemporary Tongan pop music has reached outside Tonga, but only to the Tongan diaspora in the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. No Tongan artists have achieved a cross-over hit. However, the Jets, an R&B/pop octet of the mid-1980s, had a string of hits on the American charts. The Minneapolis-based act consists of eight brothers and sisters whose mother and father had emigrated to the U.S. from Tonga. The Jets are a family group from Minneapolis, Minnesota who specialize in pop, R&B and dance music. ... This article is about the city in Minnesota. ... Polynesian music Easter Island - Fiji - Hawaii - Samoa - Tonga - Tuvalu - Wallis and Futuna French Polynesia: Austral - Marquesas and Tahiti - Tuamotus New Zealand: Chatham Islands - Cook Islands - Maori - Niue - Tokelau Polynesia is a group of island chains spread across much of the Pacific Ocean, and includes many countries and territories. ... Easter Island is located in the Pacific Ocean. ... The music of Hawaii includes an array of traditional and popular styles, ranging from native Hawaiian folk music to modern rock and hip hop. ... The Austral Islands are part of the territory of French Polynesia. ... Prior to the arrival of Europeans, the music of Tahiti was dominated by festivals called heiva. ... The Maori are the native peoples of New Zealand. ... See also Tongan music notation The Tuungafasi or Tongan music notation is a subset of the standard Music notation, originally developed by the missionary Moulton in the 19th century for singing church hymns in Tonga the notation The Tongan music notation has been developed by Moulton, as an alternative to the very complex and difficult... References Linkels, Ad. "The Real Music of Paradise". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.), World Music, Vol. 2: Latin & North America, Caribbean, India, Asia and Pacific, pp 218-229. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0 Categories: Tongan music

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