I watched an interesting television show about genetics and DNA the other evening on American Public Broadcasting. The show, Faces of America, traced the journey of several prominent Americans of different ethnic and racial backgrounds as they had their DNA analyzed. Some of the relationships that emerged were quite interesting. For example, the world renown cellist of Chinese descent, Yo Yo Ma, turned out to be a distant cousin of the actress Eva Longoria, the daughter of Mexican Americans. And the distinguished physician of Muslim-Turkish background, Mehmet Oz, turned out to be a distant cousin of the Jewish-American director Mike Nichols, of European ancestry. These revelations and others like them might lead us to wonder who our own distant relatives are. Yet these revelations aren't earth-shattering. It has been known for some time that all of us, no matter our ethnic or racial background, are genetically 99.8% the same. The relationships that DNA revealed on this program left me also wondering about the relationships among cultures. Take language, for example. I suspect many of you, like me, has considered at the ancient origins of the everyday words we speak. And what of our even deeper language of music? Certainly, on a superficial level we can easily observe cultural cross-fertilization as Western “pop” music influences the diverse music of young people from all over the world. Other examples I introduce in my music history courses. For instance, I trace the origin of the Renaissance lute to its Middle Eastern roots (the ‘ud). I also trace elements of American Jazz back to it roots in African folk music (indeed, even the quintessential “American” folk instrument, the banjo, is of African origin). These, and many other examples like them can lead us to speculate that at one time or another in our deepest past, perhaps there was only one language and one kind of music. Then, through migration, various cultures with their own musics were formed. But now, thanks to advances in communication (especially the internet) and transportation, our varied cultures may be becoming more unified again. Is there a deep “DNA” within music? Is there a commonality between the music of Cairo, Egypt and that of Cairo, New York (yes there is a Cairo, New York). Having taught world music, I can tell you that all the music we studied, no matter the culture, had some sense of tonality, some inner logic that made one note more important than the other notes. Further, our studies suggested that many cultures seem to emphasize some of the same musical intervals, most notably the Perfect Fifth. This musical sound is easily derived from natural acoustics and, just like gravity or the air we breath, is available to all people. With regard to rhythm, most people's musics suggests a steady beat or pulsation. While, there are instances where the rhythm is free (I've noticed this in music from Japan, India, and Eastern Europe and others), more often than not, a steady pattern returns. It is both interesting and by no coincidence that the word “pulse” is used for a musical beat and also is associated with one's heartbeat. Similarly, there is a common tendency in music for a melody to ascend and then descend., creating a sense of tension and release, or inhalation and exhalation (consider this especially in singing or the playing of a wind instrument, such as the ney). There has certainly been speculation on the relationship between music and the body for centuries. But if we consider these observations within the context of a “cultural DNA,” we begin to gain an appreciation for how similar, musically, we really are. So, the next time you or I sing a song, we should understand that our neighbor across the street or across the ocean may be singing a song related to our own. Genetically, we are 99.8% similar, and while we may display outward differences, whether it is the color of our skin or the arrangement of our musical notes, we are essentially similar in what sing, what we believe, what we enjoy, and why we live our lives.
