- “Johnny B. Goode,” written and performed by Chuck Berry.
- Georgian S.S.R., chorus, “Tchakrulo,” collected by Radio Moscow.
- Mozart, The Magic Flute, Queen of the Night aria, no. 14. Edda Moser, soprano. Bavarian State Opera, Munich, Wolfgang Sawallisch, conductor.
- Stravinsky, Rite of Spring, Sacrificial Dance, Columbia Symphony Orchestra, Igor Stravinsky, conductor.
- Beethoven, Fifth Symphony, First Movement, the Philharmonia Orchestra, Otto Klemperer, conductor.
- Japan, shakuhachi, “Tsuru No Sugomori” (“Crane’s Nest,”) performed by Goro Yamaguchi.
- “Melancholy Blues,” performed by Louis Armstrong and his Hot Seven.
- India, raga, “Jaat Kahan Ho,” sung by Surshri Kesar Bai Kerkar.
- Bulgaria, “Izlel je Delyo Hagdutin,” sung by Valya Balkanska.
- China, ch’in, “Flowing Streams,” performed by Kuan P’ing-hu.
I chose my arrangement of songs primarily based on a couple of key concepts. The first concept was that I wanted to have music that showed a broad range of emotion that can be generated by music. The second concept that was important to me was showing how our music can range from extremely complex arrangements of an orchestra of instruments to something as simple as the human voice. I particularly liked throwing in “Johnny B. Goode” because I feel it is a better representation of the modern human and their taste in music. While classical and cultural music is fascinating and beautiful and should be showcased, I do feel that a modern representation of popular music is also important.
I would be interested to see what the modern version of the Golden Record would be. Would we include Taylor Swift? Will the classical and traditional music selections stay the same or have we created more modern masterpieces worthy of being sent to the stars? Would we open the vote to Twitter pole and have meme music sent to the stars featuring songs from Smashmouth and Spongebob?