Listening Rituals: How People Around the World Experience Music
Part 2: East to West - Listening Rituals Across Continents
Music functions as a cultural reflection while our listening approaches reveal additional cultural aspects. This piece examines different musical engagement practices throughout various continents. Through rituals like silent vinyl bars in Tokyo and street parties in Bogotá the act of listening becomes a lifestyle.
🇯🇵 Japan: The Sacred Silence of Vinyl Bars
Music functions as the central attraction in Tokyo's environment.
In Tokyo's jazz kissa (jazz cafés) and vinyl bars guests can enjoy whiskey while listening to complete albums through high-quality sound systems in peaceful settings. Talking is discouraged. The focus is total immersion.
Hiroshi visits Bar Martha in Ebisu regularly to describe the experience as "similar to a temple visit." “You don’t talk. You just listen.”
The music sanctuaries maintain album artistry by enforcing complete focused listening through album-to-album sequences.
Explore this blog for a deep dive into Tokyo's Vinyl Bars.
🇬🇭 Ghana: Drums, Dance, and Community
The connection between music and community forms a complete unity in Ghanaian culture. Traditional drumming circles operate beyond mere performances because participants actively join in the rituals. The group structure divides into four sections which include drummers and dancers as well as singers and clappers.
( A group of drummers in Accra Ghana by Emilio Labrador, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons )
The three cities of Accra, Bogotá and Ghana use highlife and hiplife music to create sonic waves at their social gatherings and death ceremonies and street bars. Music functions as an essential living element which sustains everyday existence.
Ama from Accra asserts that dancers move their bodies during music listening experiences while stating the rhythm exists within our physical structure.
🇩🇪 The spiritual experience of techno music defines Germany's dance culture.
The nightlife of Berlin brings forth legendary clubs yet numerous clubgoers turn this activity into their religious ritual. The prolonged sets at Berghain and similar clubs allow dancers to experience extended musical immersion which can extend from multiple hours up to complete days.
The music dominates the environment because it exists in dimly lit spaces while people remain phone-free and their attention stays on the music. The group experiences collective meditation through the combination of bass and beat.
Lukas from Berlin explains that the experience surpasses mere partying activities. “It’s about surrendering to the sound.”
🇧🇷 Samba music fills the streets as Brazil celebrates its national musical heritage.
Brazilian streets are filled with the sound of music that resonates through every neighbourhood. Rodas de samba represent impromptu gatherings where musicians and dancers unite to create vibrant joyful communal celebrations.
The music fills every corner of Brazil from its favelas in Rio to its carnival celebrations in Salvador as people use it to express their identity and life celebrations and resistances.
Samba singer Mariana from Rio explains how music serves as the key to survival through singing and dancing and laughing.
A World of Sound
These few examples demonstrate how different communities experience music throughout the world. Music rituals express the heart of cultural identity regardless of the setting from solitary silence to public festivities.
Listen Along
The following playlist was specifically developed to accompany the musical discoveries from today:
Part 2 – East to West
- Japan: Ryuichi Sakamoto – Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
- Ghana: Ebo Taylor – Love and Death
- Germany: Ben Klock – Subzero
- Brazil: Cartola – As Rosas Não Falam
Your Personal Musical Tradition
Is there a special method through which you consume music?
We want to hear your story at this address (link placeholder) or post it with the hashtag #ListeningRituals
Next Up:
Part 3 - Generations of Sound: How Age Shapes Listening Habits