Samoan Music

Samoan music is the music of Samoa and its diaspora, rooted in pese lotu, the hymnody introduced by missionaries, and in older rhythmic traditions beaten out on pate slit drums for siva dance. Its popular recording era is defined by *The Five Stars*, the Saleapaga schoolboy band of 1950 whose gentle guitar harmonies became the international sound of Samoa across albums of Samoan, German and American songs. The umbrella spans church choirs, string bands such as the *RSA Band*, songwriters such as *Jerome Gray*, and the Pacific reggae and R&B of the New Zealand and American diaspora.