Title: Bali Ha'i from the musical South Pacific (not the actual version, but the same singer)
Performers: Loretta Ables Sayre
Origin: Western musical... the culture is supposed to imitate that of French Polynesia
Orchestration: female vocalist and pit orchestra
Every time I see the words South Pacific on a page, I immediately think the musical. Even if I know it's going to be a discussion of the place, this song pops into the page. I was fortunate enough to be able to see the show during its run in Lincoln Center, and it was absolutely amazing. At the beginning, and after intermission, the stage pulled back so that you could see the pit, and the music was absolutely spectacular. But this is all besides the point. One of the major underlying themes of the show is racism, and learning how to accept different cultures. Some of the main characters are men and women in the army in World War II and the whole show take place in French Polynesia during that time. One of the issues that was touched upon was that of encounters and identities. In the show, people are trying to adapt to different cultures in order to be with the ones they love. It's very similar with world music. In order for people to learn from it, and learn to love it, they must first learn to accept it. The more we do to immerse our students in world music, the tolerant they will become.
And that is why I thought of this song.
This musical would provide a nice segway between American music and indigenous music of the South Pacific or as a discussion of how Western composers tried to incorporate sounds of other lands. You might consider this orchestral music as a launching point for an ensemble lesson, Anna.
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