"Brainstorm"
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Pop, Rock, World Music At the time when young people all over the world expressed itself through rock music, when girls were fainting listening to Elvis, we were behind The Curtain. The little we heard through it formed our understanding of the kind of music that is democratic, accessible and militant at the same time. Around 1960, the first professional popular songs – all in the vein of the German “schlager” tradition -- were played publicly. Composer Raimonds Pauls was one of the pioneers. Having a knack for the creation of melodious and catchy tunes, he also had the courage and talent to open the door to jazz..
Though the Soviets favored but the light “schlagers”, rock was slowly seeping into our hearts and minds. The first songs were heavily influenced by the British and the Americans. It was in Riga in 1962 that the first rock band, The Revengers, was founded in the entire USSR. By the end of the 1960s, the first rock bands playing their own original music appeared.
Rock musicians used to have to face repressions from the ruling elite as their repertoire was never in line with the Communist ideology, but they persisted. We have had hard-driving rock concerts by Pērkons and electronic disco music by Zodiaks that sold 20 million copies. The band Menuets,which mostly performed songs by Imants Kalniņš, was famous for its alternative anthem of protest – Dziesma, ar ko tu sācies. On the first Sunday of July ever since, an open air concert is held on the pretext of celebrating the name day of Imants but really helping thousands upon thousands of people to come together and sing along, listening to their favourite songs. A special place in the promotion of pop music in Latvia belongs to the radio show Mikrofons – The Song of the Year, in which almost all inhabitants of Latvia participated, voting for their favourites.
In our rock music one can hear almost all the styles current on the world scene – from acid jazz to post punk. Have you heard our most famous rock band Brainstorm? If not, you should indeed! The band Iļģi has a unique sound, combining Latvian folklore with elements of world music, bearing witness to the truism that world culture is really one. |
