Music of Tonga

In all of Polynesia, only Tonga has maintained a traditional culture with little foreign influences aside from the influx of Christianity. Since the arrival of Christian missionaries, Christian music, such as hymns, became very important. This spiritual music has incorporated traditional influences, and church music has become an important part of Tongan life. The lali, a sort of drum, organizes village life on Sundays, when it summons churchgoers once, twice or even more times during the day. At church, unaccompanied singing called hiva usa is common. This old form of music is popular in the more conservative Free Church of Tonga and Church of Tonga, while the liberal Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga has a more controlled and less spontaneous form of hymn-singing, sometimes accompanied by brass bands.

Radio Tonga begins each day's broadcast with a recording from Honourable Ve'ehala, a nobleman and celebrated virtuoso of the nose-flute.

References

• Linkels, Ad. "The Real Music of Paradise". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.), World Music, Vol. 2: Latin & North America, Caribbean, India, Asia and Pacific, pp 218-229. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0