Music was and is a constant influence and point of inspiration in culture. This holds true for Black communities. 

Of course the landscape has influenced many musicians i.e Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons” and Handel’s “Water Music”, which “celebrate[d] the River Thames (originally performed on a barge with the Royal Family)”(Diamond, 2017). But, what of those hands that influenced the land? 

People taken and enslaved from Africa had music of their own. As the Smithsonian writes, “African American music cannot be separated from the Transatlantic Slave Trade and the forced transportation of millions of African people across the Atlantic who were then enslaved. The cultures from which they were torn and the conditions into which they were forced...contributed to the sounds of African American music” (music.si.edu). A case study of Nitobe Memorial Garden highlights the importance of rocks as the basis for design. 

Therefore, as designers, we should incorporate music into the landscape. This could be done in a variety of ways through plantings (panic grass waving in the wind to incorporate “instruments” to be played in the design, etc.). Rhythm can be shown in other ways too -- through patterns of materials and plants. 

Landscapes were shaped  by laborers, and as such labor is an important design consideration. 

What is imperative to recognize within cultural landscapes is that the people that make up these cultures were laborers in some way or another -- whether it be teacher, mother, father, groundskeeper etc. When one begins to look at the landscape as a landscape of laborers, one begins to see how the land was shaped and why it was shaped the way it was. 

A cemetery is no different, it was shaped by labor of many people over the course of time. The place itself is a form of production. As Dolores Hayden writes in her book The Power of Place: Urban Landscapes as Public History, "production of space begins as soon as indigenous residents locate themselves in a particular landscape and begin the search for subsistence"(Hayden, 20). 

Therefore, as designers, we should incorporate the work that has been performed within and around these cultural landscapes. 

Native grasses can play a central role in a memorial garden to commemorate those that are either cremated or have been “lost” to time and history. 

The Skogskyrkogarden (The Woodland Cemetery) is a cemetery in Stockholm designed by Asplund and Lewerentz and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  One of the features of the site is an area where trees, shrubs, and wildflowers grow in a free association to honor the ashes of more than 70,000 citizens of Stockholm. As Higgins writes, “Asplund and Lewerentz successfully created a space where all are equal in death” (Higgins, 81). 

Native grasses of West Africa, such as Hyparrheaia spp., Andropogoneae spp., and Napier Grasses (Pennisetum pupureum), could be included in African American cemeteries to pay homage to some of the cemetery's cultural roots. 

Therefore, as designers, we should create a space for remembering those who have not been found – who have been lost for a variety of reasons, but should still be memorialized. A space with plantings that can commemorate those that we have not found should be a design practice that is utilized in the cemetery setting. 

Writings on the wall have been used in many memorial sites to pay homage to the lives lost in wars, pandemics and various struggles of life. A great example is the wall of names at the Vietnam veteran memorial designed by Maya Lin in 1982. 

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial stands as a symbol of America’s honor and recognition of the men and women who served and sacrificed their lives in the Vietnam War. Inscribed on the black granite walls are the names of more than 58,000 men and women who gave their lives or remain missing. The Memorial is dedicated to honor the courage, sacrifice and devotion to duty and country of all who answered the call to serve during one of the most divisive wars in U.S. history (https://www.vvmf.org/About-The-Wall/). 

It is very imported that we make sure the untold stories of the enslaved people who built this country are heard. American would not be what it is today without them. The writings about the lives of the deceased inscribed in ceramic tiles might be placed anywhere on the site ranging from the tombstones to a large wall. These stories would be visible and the names associated with those stories  would be known.

 Water bodies are not only very beautiful in landscapes, they are also known to be therapeutic as they calm the human nerves and set a mood for restorative experiences and reflection. The benefits people derive from having a stronger physical and mental connection to water and its sources are innumerable. 

 The use of water falls, lakes, springs, and fountains is a common feature in healing and therapeutic gardens because of its psychological benefits but not as much in cemeteries. 

Memorials aim to be an active human landscape for remembrance, taking responsibility in interpreting history. A memorial cemetery is expected to be a space where people come to reflect on their history and connect with their ancestors. For this reason we believe that the presence of water bodies on the site would be impactful. Flowing water calms the mind and revives the spirit. 

Sculptures give a bold representation of the lives and occupations of the deceased. 

Sculptures and cemeteries have gone hand-in-hand for centuries now and can be used to distinguish unique cemeteries. The aesthetic and the humbling feeling of these huge structures set the tone as they welcome you to the graveyard. They can be used to tell stories of the dead or even used as guardians of the spirits of the dead when designed as angels. 

Angel of Grief or the Weeping Angel is an 1894 sculpture by William Wetmore Story for the grave of his wife Emelyn Story at the Protestant Cemetery in Rome. Unlike the typical angelic grave art, "this dramatic life-size winged figure speaks more of the pain of those left behind" by appearing "collapsed, weeping and draped over the tomb" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angel_of_Grief). Ever since its creation several prominent replicas have been made. 

A sculptural design element can give the cemetery a unique look while telling the story of its people.