Music of the Republic of the Congo

The Republic of the Congo is a country in Africa that shares close musical ties with its neighbor, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Many popular music styles from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, such as soukous, are enjoyed by people living in the Republic of the Congo. Musicians from both countries often travel freely between the two nations, sharing and performing similar music styles. Famous musicians like Nino Malapet and Jean Serge Essous are examples of this rich musical connection.

Brazzaville, the capital city of the Republic of the Congo, had a very active music scene until problems began in the late 1990s. During this time, popular bands such as Extra Musica and Bantous de la Capitale helped shape the development of soukous and other types of Congolese popular music. In addition to these bands, the hip-hop group "Bisso na Bisso" also comes from Congo-Brazzaville, showing the variety of music enjoyed in the country.

National music

The national anthem of the Republic of the Congo is La Congolaise. It became the anthem when the country gained independence in 1959. Later, in 1969, it was replaced by Les Trois Glorieuses, but it returned as the national anthem in 1991. The words were written by Jacques Tondra and Georges Kibanghi, and the music was created by Jean Royer and Joseph Spadilière.

Traditional music

Folk instruments in the Republic of the Congo include the xylophone and mvet. The mvet is a kind of zither-harp, similar to styles found in both Africa and Asia. The mvet is made of a long tube with one or two gourds acting as resonators.

Soukous

Though soukous is now linked to the popular music of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, it began with important help from both local scenes in Kinshasa and Brazzaville. In these cities, bands played rumba, a kind of Cuban music, mixed with traditional sounds and jazz. This mix created soukous, which became a favorite dance music in the 1950s and 60s.