Golden Record Curation: Selecting 10 Pieces of Music for Preservation in 2025
In 2025, our understanding of literacy extends beyond traditional reading and writing. It now encompasses digital fluency, cultural competency, and an awareness of the biases embedded in our information networks. Literacy is not just about consuming information but about critically engaging with the records that shape human knowledge. In curating a reduced selection of 10 musical pieces from the Golden Record, I focused on three key parameters: (1) representing diverse cultural traditions, (2) preserving underrepresented musical expressions, and (3) showcasing music’s role in shaping human identity.
My selections:
(Note – Making these selections was difficult! All of the pieces are valuable. For the sake of the assignment, I have highlighted the following 10 pieces.)
- Bach, “Brandenburg Concerto No. 2” (Germany)
Classical literacy remains a foundation for understanding Western music theory, structure, and notation. In a digital age dominated by artificial intelligence-generated music, preserving historically significant compositions ensures that we maintain an understanding of human-crafted harmonic complexity.
- Beethoven, The Philharmonia Orchestra, Otto Klemperer, conductor, “Symphony No. 5” (Germany)
This piece is arguably one of the most recognized in Western music, symbolizing both personal and collective struggle. As digital algorithms increasingly shape musical consumption, pieces like this provide historical context for how music has been used to communicate resilience and revolution.
- Stravinsky, “Rite of Spring, Sacrificial Dance” (Russia)
This composition redefined how audiences experienced rhythm, harmony, and orchestration. In an era of digital music manipulation, it serves as a reminder of how artistic risk-taking has historically led to cultural shifts.
- Chuck Berry, “Johnny B. Goode” (USA)
Rock & Roll is foundational to modern popular music, influencing global genres. Its inclusion highlights how technological advancements (e.g., the electric guitar and early recording techniques) transformed musical literacy, making sound a form of historical record.
- Lorenzo Barcelata and the Mariachi México, “El Cascabel” (Mexico)
In light of digital marginalization, indigenous musical traditions are at risk of being lost. This selection counters the erasure of non-Western soundscapes in dominant digital repositories and highlights the importance of oral traditions in global literacy.
- Senegalese West African Drumming, “Percussion Ensemble” (Senegal)
Rhythm is one of the most fundamental elements of human communication, predating written language. In a world where digital sampling often strips cultural origins from sounds, preserving this piece reinforces the historical and cultural literacy of African musical traditions that have shaped global genres.
- Goro Yamaguchi, Shakuhachi, “Tsuru No Sugomori” (Crane’s in their Nest) (Japan)
This piece represents one of the oldest known musical traditions, showing how music has been used ceremonially and politically for centuries. In 2025, when soundscapes are often shaped by algorithmic recommendations, preserving this tradition ensures that digital literacy includes an awareness of historical continuity in music.
- Azerbaijan S.S.R., Ugam, bagpipes (Azerbaijan)
Ugam is an intricate form of improvisation that challenges the Western-dominant understanding of structured composition. As we navigate AI-generated creativity, this selection reminds us of the deeply human and spontaneous nature of artistic expression.
- Surshri Kesar Bai Kerkar, raga, “Jaat Kahan Ho” (India)
Indian classical music is rooted in mathematical precision and emotional depth, contributing to both artistic and cognitive literacy. As Western musical structures dominate global education systems, preserving this ensures a more holistic understanding of musical cognition.
- Valya Balkanska, “Izlel je Delyo Haydutin” (Bulgaria)
This haunting vocal piece highlights the importance of folk traditions in storytelling and collective memory. In an age where digital tools increasingly prioritize widely consumed over locally significant content, this selection preserves the depth of regional traditions.
Why These Selections Matter in 2025
Dr. Smith Rumsey’s argument about digital preservation mirrors the challenge we face in curating music. In 2025, literacy is not just about reading text—it is about navigating digital ecosystems, recognizing algorithmic bias, and ensuring cultural diversity within global knowledge systems. The pieces I selected are not just sounds; they are records of human expression, technological evolution, and historical struggle.
Without intentional curation, our digital archives risk reinforcing the same inequalities seen in traditional literacy. Just as Dr. Leetaru’s map showed gaps in digital text preservation, musical literacy is similarly constrained by what is archived and made accessible. By preserving a mix of classical, folk, and non-Western traditions, this selection resists a homogenized digital memory and challenges dominant narratives about what constitutes valuable human expression.
Ultimately, the question is not just what we can afford to keep, but what we cannot afford to lose.
References
Smith Rumsey, A. (1999, February). Why digitize?Links to an external site. Council on Library and Information Resources. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
Leetaru, K. (2017, July 31). In the digital era if it hasn’t been digitized does it even exist?Links to an external site. Forbes. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
Leetaru, K. (2017, September 29). In a digital world, are we losing sight of our undigitized past?Links to an external site. Forbes. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
Music from Earth.Links to an external site. (n.d.). NASA.
Taylor, D. (Host). (2019, April). Voyager golden recordLinks to an external site. [Audio podcast episode]. In Twenty thousand hertz. Defacto Sound.