Asian Music

Asian music is a vague, loose term that encompasses numerous different musical styles originating from a large number of Asian cultures.

The modern Japanese music scene includes a wide array of performers in distinct styles of both traditional and modern styles, ranging from rock, salsa and tango to country music and hip hop.

Parallel with the rise of Cantopop was Chinese Rock, which drew on earlier, underground pioneers like Taiwanese star Teresa Teng. The widely-acknowledged forefather of Chinese rock is Cui Jian. Modern rock artists include Tang Dynasty, Dadawa, Cobra, Dou Wei, Zhang Chu, He Yong, Zhinanzhen, Lingdian and Heibao. Musically, these range from New Wave (Lingdian) to heavy metal (Heibao), alongside punk rock bands like Catcher in the Rye and Dixiayinger.

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In 1980 the Chinese Musicians’ Association was formally elected to the International Musicological Society. Chinese musical groups toured foreign countries, and foreign musical organizations performed in China. In the mid-1980s popular ballads and Western folk and classical music still drew the greatest audiences, but other kinds of music, including previously banned Western jazz and rock and roll, were being performed and were receiving increasing acceptance, especially among young people.

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