For Ableton, Adam Longman Parker (aka Afriqua) presented a five-part video and essay series on the Principles of Black Music including:
- Call & Response
- Blue Notes
- Polyrhythms
- Improvisation
Here’s an excerpt:
As far from its primordial African roots as Black Music continues to evolve, there are certain musical techniques which have persisted through each step along the way. This is where our study of the Principles of Black Music begins. With your attention drawn to musical devices that feature prominently throughout every branch of the Black musical tree – such as Call & Response, Blue Notes, Polyrhythms, and Improvisation – a broader understanding of modern music, and in turn the modern world, emerges. You’ll begin to realize the fact that Motown and Techno came from the same people in the same city wasn’t a coincidence, but a variation on a theme. Understanding the numerous genres of music which have been brought forth by Black people as Black music doesn’t preclude anyone from enjoying or creating it. In fact, it’s just the opposite. It’s a way to use the music one already enjoys as a jump off point into a thousands year old tradition whose evolution continues to define the musical landscape as much as it ever has.