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Chechnya bans music that is too slow or too fast

Music Tempo - Level 0

Chechnya has banned songs that are too fast or too slow. It said all music must have a tempo of between 80 to 116 beats per minute. However, Russia's national anthem is 76 beats per minute. People do not know if they can play it. It seems likely the national anthem will not follow the new rule.

The music ban is to protect Chechnya's culture and heritage. The Moscow Times said it was to remove Westernization. Chechnya's leader said "Borrowing musical culture from other people's is [not allowed]." Local artists must rewrite their songs to follow the new rule. People will no longer be able to listen to techno music.

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Music Tempo - Level 1

Chechnya has made a rule about music speed. It has banned songs that are too fast or too slow. It said all music and songs should have a tempo of between 80 to 116 beats per minute. Eighty beats per minute is much slower than most modern pop music. However, Russia's national anthem is 76 beats per minute. There has been no word about whether it can be played. It seems likely it will not have to follow the new rule.

The ban on up-tempo and down-tempo music is to protect Chechnya's culture. The Moscow Times said it was, "to root out any hint of Westernization". Chechnya's leader said "Borrowing musical culture from other people's is [not allowed]." The culture minister said the ban will give children their cultural heritage. Local artists must rewrite their songs to follow the new rule. People will no longer be able to listen to techno music or many pop songs.

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Music Tempo - Level 2

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The Russian republic of Chechnya has made a rule about music speed. Chechnya has banned songs that are too fast or too slow. It said: "From now on, all musical, vocal and [dance] works should correspond to a tempo of between 80 to 116 beats per minute." Eighty beats per minute is much slower than a lot of modern-day pop music. However, the Russian national anthem is played at 76 beats per minute. There has been no word about whether the anthem can be played. It seems likely it will be an exception to the new rule.

The ban on up-tempo and down-tempo music is to protect Chechnya's culture. The Moscow Times said it was, "to root out any hint of Westernization". Chechnya's leader said the ban was to make music "conform to the Chechen mentality". He said: "Borrowing musical culture from other people's is [not allowed]." Chechnya's culture minister said: "We must bring to…the future of our children the cultural heritage of the Chechen people." Local artists have to rewrite their songs to follow the new tempo. People will no longer be able to listen to techno music or many pop songs.

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Music Tempo - Level 3

The culture ministry of the Russian republic of Chechnya has made a rule about what speed of music people can listen to. The ministry has banned songs that are too fast or too slow. It made an announcement about the tempo of songs allowed. It said: "From now on, all musical, vocal and choreographic works should correspond to a tempo of between 80 to 116 beats per minute." The new standard, which starts at 80 beats per minute, is much slower than a lot of modern-day pop music. However, the Russian national anthem is usually played at 76 beats per minute. There has been no word from the culture ministry about whether the anthem can be played. It seems likely the anthem will be an exception to the new rule.

The ban on music that is too up-tempo or too down-tempo is to protect Chechnya's culture and traditions. The Moscow Times said it was, "to root out any hint of Westernization". Chechnya's leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, said the ban was to make music, "conform to the Chechen mentality". He added: "Borrowing musical culture from other people's is inadmissible." Musa Dadaev, Chechnya's culture minister, said: "We must bring to the people and to the future of our children the cultural heritage of the Chechen people." Local artists have until June the 1st to rewrite their songs to follow the new tempo. People in Chechnya will no longer be able to listen to techno music, or many songs by Beyonce, Drake and Taylor Swift.

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