- Bach, Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in F. First Movement, Munich Bach Orchestra, Karl Richter, conductor. 4:40
- Zaire, Pygmy girls’ initiation song, recorded by Colin Turnbull. 0:56
- Australia, Aborigine songs, “Morning Star” and “Devil Bird,” recorded by Sandra LeBrun Holmes. 1:26
- Japan, shakuhachi, “Tsuru No Sugomori” (“Crane’s Nest,”) performed by Goro Yamaguchi. 4:51
- Azerbaijan S.S.R., bagpipes, recorded by Radio Moscow. 2:30
- “Melancholy Blues,” performed by Louis Armstrong and his Hot Seven. 3:05
- Bulgaria, “Izlel je Delyo Hagdutin,” sung by Valya Balkanska. 4:59
- Navajo Indians, Night Chant, recorded by Willard Rhodes. 0:57
- Peru, wedding song, recorded by John Cohen. 0:38
- India, raga, “Jaat Kahan Ho,” sung by Surshri Kesar Bai Kerkar. 3:30
Above are the 10 songs I would include on the golden record. I used a few criteria to narrow down the song choices. The first criteria was that there had to be at least one song from each of the continents on earth. There were multiple songs available to choose from for a number of continents. In those cases, I simply picked the song with the most impactful title and the one that sounded more unique or pleasant. I also decided to include one classical piece and one jazz piece on the record because they’re both important genres that shaped the music we listen to today and will probably continue to inspire new music for generations.