House

House
Stylistic origins	Disco, Hi-NRG, Synth-Pop, Electro, Funk, Dub
Cultural origins	Early-to-mid-1980s Chicago (US) Tokyo (Japan) Bombay (India)
Typical instruments	Drum Machine (typically TR-808 or TR-909), Synthesizer, DAW
Level of recognition	Primary Genre
Derivatives
Footwork, Techno, Trance, UK Garage
Subgenres
Acid House, Ballroom, Diva House, Deep House, Electro House, Garage House, Hard House, Jackin' House, Melodic House, Microhouse, Organic House, Outsider House, Piano House, Progressive House, Rally House, Stutter House, Tribal House, Tropical House
Fusion genres
Ambient House, Bass House, Bassline House, Chill House, Disco House, Electro Swing, Freestyle House, Funky House, Future House, Gangsta House, Ghetto House, Hip House, House-Pop, Jazz House, Leftfield House, Phonk House, Tech House, Trouse
Regional scenes
Africa, Europe, France, Italy, India, Japan, Latin America, Spain, UK, US, Vietnam
Local scenes
Chicago, Bombay, Detroit, Ibiza, London, New York City, Tokyo

House music is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) characterized by repetitive 4/4 beats from a drum machine (typically a Roland TR-808 or TR-909) or a digital DAW derivative at a tempo usually between 115–130 beats per minute, accompanied by basslines from a synthesizer (such as a Roland TB-303 or Juno-60). House is an evolution of disco, but with a more minimalist production, higher tempo, and drum machine beats. In particular, sounds from Japanese company Roland's TR-808 and TR-909 drum machines, such as the deep, booming bass drums, have become key characteristics of house music.

While the sound of house music was anticipated by several Indian disco producers in the early 1980s, the genre was largely defined by American Chicago House producers, an underground movement originating from Chicago, Illinois, in the mid-1980s. It was popularized in Chicago discothèques catering to African-American, Latino-American, and gay communities circa 1984. To a lesser extent, New York's garage house scene would also be a very early pioneer of the genre. In other locations, such as London (the first European city to bring house music from Chicago) and many other major cities in America, the genre would propagate further. It then reached the rest of Europe in the mid to late 90s. Since the 1990s, house has been a major influence on mainstream pop, electronic, and dance music worldwide.

Characteristics

Early house music was generally dance-based music characterized by repetitive 4/4 beats and rhythms centered around drum machines, off-beat cymbals, and synthesized basslines. Whilst house displayed several characteristics similar to disco music, it was more electronic, minimalistic, and less structured around a traditional song structure, rather than a repetitive rhythm. House music today, whilst keeping several of these core elements, notably the prominent kick drum on every beat, and a tempo of 130 beats per minute, varies a lot in style and influence, ranging from the soulful and atmospheric deep house to the more minimalistic microhouse. House music has also fused with several other genres, creating fusion subgenres, such as euro house and tech house.

It has its roots in disco, primarily consistent with electronic instrumentation and elements of funk, disco, and boogie. Daft Punk (highly acclaimed house artists), popularized French house which is in large part a continuation and modernization of disco and early house music. House music blends itself with disco, soul, jazz, pop, hip hop, experimental music, latin music, funk, synth-pop, minimalism, techno, gospel, chill-out, bassline, breakbeat, hardcore, tribal and many more. The defining characteristic that stays is always the beat.

History

Tokyo Ambient House

Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO) was a Japanese electronic music group consisting of Ryuichi Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi. Active in Tokyo from 1978 to 1992, YMO are frequently cited as pioneers of Ambient House. The YMO trio were the first to use the Roland TR-808 and TR-909 drum machines along with heavy use of ambient samples and reverb effects in the early 1980s, laying the foundations for ambient house.

Examples of Tokyo proto-house in the late 1970s:

• Ryuichi Sakamoto productions
  • Taeko Ohnuki's "Sargasso Sea" from Sunshower (1977)
  • Ryuichi Sakamoto's "Plastic Bamboo" from Thousand Knives (1978)
  • Kazumi Watanabe's "Tokyo Joe" (1979)
• Yukihiro Takahashi's "Mood Indigo" from Saravah! (1978)
• Haruomi Hosono productions
  • Haruomi Hosono's "Madam Consul General of Madras" (1978)
  • Rajie's "Moonlight" (1979)
• Yellow Magic Orchestra
  • "Firecracker" and "Mad Pierrot" from Yellow Magic Orchestra (1978)
  • "Technopolis" from Solid State Survivor (1979)
• Hiroshi Sato's "Son Goku", "Donkama", "Jo-Do", "Flying Carpet" and "Picnic" (1979)
• P-Model's "Kameari Pop" from In a Model Room (1979) produced by Susumu Hirasawa

Examples of Tokyo house or ambient house in the early 1980s:

• Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO)
  • "1000 Knives" from World Tour 1980 and "Tighten Up" (1980)
  • "Riot in Lagos" and "The End of Asia" from Live at Budokan 1980
  • "1000 Knives" and "Camouflage" from BGM (1981)
  • "Pure Jam", "Seoul Music", "Prologue" and "Epilogue" from Technodelic (1981)
  • "Pure Jam", "Technopolis" and "Rydeen" from Winter Live 1981
• Akira Sakata's "Yarin'Age", "Meuniere" and "Panco" (1980)
• Yukihiro Takahashi productions
  • Susan's "Screamer" (1980) and "I Only Come Out At Night" (1981)
  • "Ark Diamant" (1981) by The Beatniks (Yukihiro Takahashi and Keiichi Suzuki)
• Ryuichi Sakamoto
  • "Riot in Lagos" and "E-3A" (1980)
  • "Front Line" (1981), "Happy End" (1981) and "Bamboo Houses" (1982)
• Haruomi Hosono productions
  • Sandii's "Zoot Kook" (1980)
  • Haruomi Hosono's "Sangokushi Main Theme" (1982)
  • Testpattern's "Ring Dance" (1982)
  • Interior's "Technobose" (1982)
  • Chiemi Manabe's "Untotōku" (1982) co-produced by Nobuyuki Shimizu and Kenji Ohmura
• Colored Music's "Heartbeat" and "Ei Sei Raku" (1981) produced by Atsuo Fujimoto and Ichiko Hashimoto
• Noriko Miyamoto's "After You've Gone" and "Arrows & Eyes" (1981) produced by Kazuhiko Katō
• Magical Power Mako's "Fresh Vegetable" and "Little Darling" (1981)
• Yuji Ohno's "Living Satelite Of "IO" Of Jupiter" and "Landing On The Surface Of Venus" (1981)
• Logic System (Hideki Matsutake)
  • "Intro", "XY", "Prophet" and "Automatic Collect, Automatic Correct" (1981)
  • "Orient Express" (1982)
• Ippu-Do tracks produced by Masami Tsuchiya (1981–1983)
  • "Radio Cosmos", "Yomotolo-Waiya", "Dubling Radio" and "Listen To Me" from Radio Fantasy (1981)
  • "Sorrow", "Lonely Sealion", "Dream of the Gypsies" and "Sail On" from Night Mirage (1983)
• Ryo Kawasaki's "Marilyn" and "Hawaiian Caravan" (1982)
• Sakata Sextet's "Tra" and "Uma" (1982)
• Tomoko Aran's "The Married Man" (1982)
• Naomi Akimoto (1982)
  • "Bye Bye Blackbird", "Singin' In The Rain" and "Chicago" produced by Yasuaki Shimizu
  • "Tennessee Waltz" produced by Masanori Sasaji and Daikō Nagato
• Mariah's "Shinzo No Tobira" (1983)

Examples of Tokyo house or ambient house in the mid-1980s:

• Ryo Kawasaki's "Lucky Lady" (1983), "Long Time Before You Were Born" and "Caravan" (1983)
• Yellow Magic Orchestra's "The Madmen" and "Shadows on the Ground" (1983)
• Mariah's "Shinzo No Tobira" (1983)
• Naomi Akimoto's 4 Seasons (1983) produced by Masaki Iwamoto
  • "Capricorn Woman", "He's So Trendy", "Bad Imagination", "Honey Bee" and "Jinx"
• Masao Hiruma productions
  • Testpattern's "Ryugu" (1983) and "Watashi no Shōnen wa Nihonjin" (1984)
  • Apogee & Perigee's "Hope" (1984)
• Hiroshi Sato's "Funky Multi" (1984)
• Asami Kobayashi's "Koi Nante Kantan" (1984) produced by Yuji Toriyama
• Ryuichi Sakamoto's "Yoru no Gaspar" (1984)
• Naomi Akimoto's "Lion In My Pocket" and "Auto Changer (Shut Off)" from Poison 21 (1984)
• Haruomi Hosono's "Non-Standard Mixture" (1984) and "Sayokoskatti" (1985)
• Jun Fukamachi's "Treasure Hunter" (1985)
• Hajime Tachibana's "XP-41" (1985)

Examples of Tokyo ambient house in the late 1980s:

• Chika Asamoto's "Self Control" (1988)
• Haruomi Hosono's "Pleocine" and "Orgone Box" (1989)
• Seigen Ono's "Something to Hold on To" (1989)

Indian Proto-House

Early forms of house music emerged from several Indian disco producers in the early 1980s. At a time when disco's popularity had declined in much of the West, disco was only just starting to become popular in South Asia, sparked by the success of Pakistani pop singer Nazia Hassan and Indian producer Biddu following their breakout hit "Aap Jaisa Koi" (1979) being used in the Bollywood film Qurbani (1980). At the same time, Japanese company Roland released the TR-808 drum machine and TB-303 bass synthesizer in 1980 and 1981, respectively. Several Indian producers soon combined disco music with the TR-808 and/or TB-303, anticipating the sound of house music several years before Chicago producers would do the same.

Babla's Disco Sensation (1980) by Babla was the first record to combine disco music with the TR-808, resulting in an early proto-house sound. The album was a hit in India, where it popularized the TR-808 in disco music. He followed up with Babla's Non-Stop Disco Dancing (1981), which also features the TR-808 and was also a hit album in India. Examples of proto-house could subsequently be heard in several Bollywood film songs prominently featuring 4/4 disco beats from the TR-808.

Examples of Indian electronic disco or proto-house during the late 1970s to mid-1980s:

• Charanjit Singh
  • "Ham Tum" (1977)
  • "Non Stop Calypso Instrumental Hits" (1987)
• Babla's Disco Sensation (1980) by Babla
  • "Babla Orchestra Title Music" and "Aye Mere Dil Kahin Aur Chal"
  • "Man Dole Mera Tan Dole", "Ghar Aya Mera Pardesi" and "Hamko Tumpe Pyar Aaya"
• R.D. Burman's "Dil Lena Khel Hai Dildar Ka" (feat. Majrooh Sultanpuri) in Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai (1981)
• "Achcha Hai Tera" by Babla & Kanchan (1981)
• Bappi Lahiri productions
  • Bappi Lahiri's "Aafat" in Maut Ka Saya and "Ramba Ho" in Armaan (1981)
  • Asha Bhosle's "Raat Baaqi" in Namak Halaal (1982)
  • Bappi Lahiri's "Yaad Aa Raha Hai" in Disco Dancer (1982)
• Asha Bhosle
  • Asha Bhosle's "Dil Dil Kabhi Dil De Bhi To Do" (1981) in Yeh Nazdeekiyan composed by Raghunath Seth
  • Asha Bhosle's "Pyar Ka Imtihan" in Vidhaata (1982) composed by Kalyanji–Anandji
• Biddu Orchestra's "Dance of Shiva" (1985) produced by Biddu

The Bengali song "Aaj Shanibar" was sung by Rupa Biswas and produced by Aashish Khan in 1981, and released on Rupa's album Disco Jazz in 1982. It is considered an early form of Balearic beat, a style of Deep House and precursor to Tropical House. A similar style of dance music could subsequently be heard in several Indian disco songs.

Examples of Indian deep house or proto-deep house in the 1980s:

• Rupa's "Aaj Shanibar" from Disco Jazz (1982) produced by Aashish Khan
• Charanjit Singh's Synthesizing: Ten Ragas to a Disco Beat (1982)
  • "Raga Bhupali" and "Raga Meghmalhar"
  • "Raga Yaman" and "Raga Kalavati"
• Babla (1982)
  • "Yeh Mera Dil" from Non-Stop Disco Dandia 2
  • "Jaiye Aap Kahan Jayenge" from Yesterday Once More
• "Mere Liye Tu Bani" by Bappi Lahiri and Asha Bhosle in the film Do Gulaab (1983)
• Biddu Orchestra's "Sunburn" (1986), "Humanity" and "Foundation of Love" (1989)
• "Hey Jamalo (Def Mix)" by Bally Sagoo and Malkit Singh (1989)
• "Hey Jamalo (Dubb)" by Bally Sagoo (1989)

Bombay Acid House

Charanjit Singh's album Synthesizing: Ten Ragas to a Disco Beat, featuring Indian ragas fused with disco, was released in 1982. It prominently features a Roland TB-303, with Singh being one of the earliest musicians to use it on a commercial release, along with a TR-808 drum machine. It is thus considered to be the first Acid House record.

Singh influenced Bollywood composer Bappi Lahiri to combine the TB-303 with the TR-808 in several film songs during the early 1980s. "Koi Lutera" (1983), composed by Lahiri and sung by Asha Bhosle for the film Wanted: Dead or Alive, features a squelching TB-303 bassline and 4/4 beats on a TR‑808, making it an early example of acid house. Other examples feature repetitive acid/trance-like basslines with 4/4 drum machine beats like acid house and/or trance music.

Examples of Bombay acid house in the 1980s:

• Charanjit Singh's Synthesizing: Ten Ragas to a Disco Beat (1982)
  • "Raga Bhairavi" and "Raga Lalit"
  • "Raga Todi" and "Raga Madhuvanti"
  • "Raga Malkauns" and "Raga Bairagi"
• Bappi Lahiri productions
  • Asha Bhosle's "Koi Lutera" (1983) in Wanted: Dead or Alive
  • Usha Utthup's "Main Gul Badan" (1984) in Locket
  • Bappi Lahiri's "Habiba" (1988)
• "Pee Pee Pee Pyare Dil Laga Ke" (1984) by Babla & Kanchan in Meetha Zehar
• Sapna's "Pyar Do Pyar Lo" (1986) composed by Kalyanji–Anandji
• Electra's "Love Technology" produced by Biddu in Goonj (1989)
• "Hey Jamalo (Def Mix)" by Bally Sagoo and Malkit Singh (1989)
• "Hey Jamalo (Dubb)" by Bally Sagoo (1989)

Chicago House

House music began to form in Chicago during the early to mid-1980s, after disco had declined in popularity. House music was a form of continuation of disco. It was a sheltering genre of music for the downtrodden, such as the black, Latino, and gay communities during the '80s, and flourished as an underground club scene. The warehouse, which was in business from 1977 to 1982, was the first house club and likely even gave the genre its name. In 1983, a new club opened in Chicago, The Muzic Box, and it effectively replaced the warehouse. In 1982, a radio station launched a so-called 'House Mix' show called HOT MIX 5. The show had never benn done before and was the first mix to be performed on the radio. As the show progressed, they started to do really creative things like cutting tape and not just using two turntables and a mixer.

Chicago house DJs launched Trax Records. House music was about produce its very first track (Jamie Principle- Your Love). This was the original rawer version of the well-known, much-loved Classic 1987 Frankie Knuckles Version. No longer recycling old Disco, House music was something new, something fresh but it just wasn't on vinyl until the second House track (Jesse Saunders- On+On). However, it wasn't much and didn't do as good as Your Love but it was what triggered the Chicago house boom out of the clubs and into the city. By 1985, every kid in Chicago with their drum machine and keyboard was making House. From early releases from Adonis, Farm Boy, Chip E and Raze. However, despite the record company having a string of classics, bitterness was bubbling at Trax Records. The same year the first style of House music came out, House Music was also spreading and gaining popularity in New York, created their version of (Deep house), (NY Garage), the second House music sound to come out.

By late 1985, a new style of House was born, Acid House. In 1986, another style of House music was made. Its name, (Hip-House), House music with a blend of hip hop and rap in it. M/A/R/R/S/-Pump Up The Volume (1986) was the first (Hip house) track, so it seems. In the late 80s, 3 new House sounds shot out and made really big success, (Rave house),(Techno house, also known as House Techno or Tech house), (Break house), and (Leftfield house).

UK House

In 1986, House music was ready to cross the Atlantic. In 1987, Steve Silk Hurley's Jack Your Body was the House track that reached No.1 in Britain. In Manchester, DJs weren't just playing House music, but they were making it. In 1987, the first UK House track was released, T-Coy-Carino. In 1987, a new style of House music was made, (Pop house). (Pop house), a House sound that was Pop with house beats really made progress. This was when House music really started to cross boundaries. Krush-House Arrest (1987), was probably the first (Pop house) track to go Top Of The Pops back in 1987. It wasn't long before a series of (Pop house) tracks spread across the nation.

This culminated in the Second Summer of Love, which took places in the UK during 1988-1989 and was responsible for popularizing house music across the world. In 1988, (Coldcut.- Doctorin The House) took House to Great Britain's Top Of The Pops as well. But it was Black Box's (Ride On Time) that really had House at Top Of The Pops and at No.1 for 6 weeks back In 1989. In that year in Italy, another Style Of House music was produced (Italo house, also known as Italian house), with DJs & Artists such as 49ers, F.P.I. Project, The Mixmasters, and RFTR.

Spread

House music was soon being made in Ibiza. By 1989, House music had spread around the world. The same year, in the Netherlands, three new House sounds were born, (Hard house), (Gabber house), and (Mellow house).

By the early 1990s, artists in the House music genre included Forgemasters, Rhythm Is Rhythm, Sweet Exorcist, Lost Entity, Tricky Disco, LFO, Rhythm On The Loose, Space Opera, Bizzare Inc., Rhythmatic, 808 State, The Hynophisist, Baby Ford, Fast Eddie, Basstonik, Leftfield, Man With No Name, Brian Pern (although he was a progressive rock singer/songwriter), Liquid Oxygen, Altern 8, Cubik, Lil Louis, Cyclone, Cola Boy and many more. By 1990, House music dominated Pop music. Even Pop Legend Madonna created her first and only House tune (Vogue, 1990) that was a massive (Pop house) classic. In the same year, another House music sound was made, Soulful house. A House beat with lots of soul in it, and by 1990& 1992) Disco house was invented. With artists such as N-Joi, Ce Ce Peniston, Crystal Waters, Lisa The Cult Jam etc. This was when big clubs opened, such as Ministry Of Sound who were one of the biggest clubs to be making House music.

Euro House

In 1990, Euro house was created by mixing Eurodance with house. In 1993, A House sound in Germany called Microhouse was created. This House sound was very futuristic and very minimal techno style, as that's where Microhouse's roots came from. From 1992, [Hard House|hard house]] started to go in the charts with [Felix's Don't You Want Me, 1992], [Human Resource's- Dominator and Got My Fire Burning, both 1991]. When House Music arrived in France, two styles of house music were created with [Big House], House Music mixed with big beat such as [Code Secret- Fantom House, 1989] [Downtempo House], House Music with downtempo such as [Bomb The Bass- Say A Little Prayer, 1989] and [Synth Pop House] with [New Order's- Round And Round 1989], which became a massive House track in France. Also, blissful acid house tracks were being made there with the French House track [The Garden Of Eden's- Garden Of Eden, 1988]. Also, the same year back in Britain, acid house tracks started to go in the pop charts with acts like S-Express with their two No.1 House tracks, [Theme From S-Express] being the most popular, followed by [Super Guyfly] and [Hey Music Lover], all three from 1988. [Samantha Fox's- Love House, 1989], [D-Mob's- We Call It Acieed, 1988], and [A Guy Called Gerald's- Voodoo Ray, 1988]. Back in Chicago, house music artists and DJs were flying over to Britain to play at clubs such as the Hacienda, Ministry of Sound, Cream, and the Manchester Warehouse. In 1988, Joe Smooth came to Britain and played live on stage his international House track [Promised Land]. In 1995 a new style of House Music was being developed with a funky and jazzy groove and sound, funky house which really started to sweep the dancefloors with artists and DJs such as The Original, Basement Jaxx, Martin Solveig, Uniting Nations, X-Press2 and many more.