Music of Bermuda
| Music of The Anglophone Caribbean | |
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| Regional music | |
| Local forms | |
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The music of Bermuda is often treated as part of the Caribbean music area. Its musical output includes pop singer Heather Nova, and her brother Mishka. Collie Buddz has also gained international success with reggae hits in the US and the UK.
The island's musical traditions also include steelpan, calypso, choral music, as well as an array of bagpipe music played by descendants of Irish and Scottish settlers; the biggest bagpipe band on modern Bermuda is the Bermuda Islands Pipe Band. Bermuda is also the home of one of the most popular Caribbean music groups in the United States, the Bermuda Strollers.
The islands are also home to gombey dancers, reggae, gospel music, drum majorette bands, jazz and other styles.
Bermuda is home to several folk traditions, including pipe bands, the gombey dance and a ballad song.
The Gombey dance is an iconic symbol of Bermudan culture. It mixes elements of British, West African and indigenous New World cultures. Traditionally in Gombey, dancers are black and male (though in modern times, female groups have emerged) and their father has to have been a Gombey dancer. They perform in groups of 10-30 in wild masquerade costumes with brilliant colors and odd angles, meant to evoke the plumage of tropical birds; they are sometimes based on Bible verses. Gombey dances are taught orally, through family members. The dances are energetic, and grow swifter gradually, while the spectators become more wild and energetic. The gombey tradition is at its liveliest during the Christmas season, and is also performed during Boxing Day, Easter, New Year's Day, football and cricket matches and other festivals and celebrations.
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