If I were to be in charge of a new Golden Record project as outlined here I would include a number of different sounds and pieces of music. Here are a few examples and the rationale behind them.

1)

A Night on the Town ,by The Dear Hunter

Description:

A Night on the Town begins with a vocalist backed by horns and a rhythm section, at the halfway point it transitions into a short orchestral section before returning to the R&B style of the opening. The piece ends with piano and voice followed by the return of the full orchestra.

Reasoning:

A Night on the Town would introduce any extraterrestrials who came across it to the wide variety of ways humans use sounds to create music. Should the finder be able to learn the meaning of the piece it would not come across as threatening but would still show them the volatile and emotional nature of humans.

2)

In Maidjan, by Heilung

Description

The chant In Maidjan utilises the driving beat of drums and other percussion to create a very unique and intimidating atmosphere for most of the piece. A wide range of techniques are then laid over this percussive backdrop.

Reasoning:

In Maidjan is relatively simple in terms of musicality, it relies on easy to construct instruments and does not feature an over abundance of separate moving parts. This ease of construction both physically and musically means that should any extraterrestrials want to recreate the piece it would be easy for them to do so. Additionally, since it is a live recording the interplay between the audience and performers would introduce the beings to the concept that we revere sound as something to be enjoyed.

3)

The first episode of the Critical Role podcast

Episode 1

Description:

Critical Role is a podcast in which a group of voice actors headed by Mathew Mercer play Dungeons and Dragons. The first episode marks the beginning of a new plot arc in their ongoing game.

Reasoning:

The Critical Role podcast provides an environment in which a story unfolds in a completely oral manner but, unlike an audio book, the personalities of the characters are all viewed in real time. Since all members of the Critical Role podcast are voice actors it makes it very easy to differentiate between the different characters of the story since each one not only has a distinct personality but a personalized accent and vocabulary as well.