To condense the Golden Record down to 10 songs I tried to get a blend of sung and instrumental songs, from various times and cultures. I think music is highly cultural and personal making it very difficult to curate an album like this (so maybe the extra-terrestrials wouldn’t even appreciate the golden record). I felt like classical European music was over represented so cut it down to two songs (one instrumental and one opera). I tried to pick at least one song from each inhabited continent as well. I feel like recorded poems or oral stories from around the world would have fit well on the record as a sample of what earth has to offer in addition to the music.
10 songs
- Beethoven, Fifth Symphony, First Movement, the Philharmonia Orchestra, Otto Klemperer, conductor.
- Mozart, The Magic Flute, Queen of the Night aria, no. 14. Edda Moser, soprano. Bavarian State Opera, Munich, Wolfgang Sawallisch, conductor.
- “Johnny B. Goode,” written and performed by Chuck Berry.
- “Melancholy Blues,” performed by Louis Armstrong and his Hot Seven.
- Senegal, percussion, recorded by Charles Duvelle.
- Peru, wedding song, recorded by John Cohen.
- Navajo Indians, Night Chant, recorded by Willard Rhodes.
- Azerbaijan S.S.R., bagpipes, recorded by Radio Moscow.
- Australia, Aborigine songs, “Morning Star” and “Devil Bird,” recorded by Sandra LeBrun Holmes.
- Java, court gamelan, “Kinds of Flowers,” recorded by Robert Brown.