Shen's Best of the Web

CD: Rough Guide to the Music of Romanian Gypsies

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 13:44:00 +0000

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

The Rough Guide music series has a new title focuses on Gypsy music. The Rough Guide to the Music of Romanian Gypsies (RGNET1210) represents the music of Romania’s 2.5 million Roma (Gypsy) population. Romania has many of the world’s top Eastern European Gypsy musicians, including Taraf de Haidouks, Fanfare Ciocąrlia, Mahala Raï Banda, Toni Iordachi and Gabi Lunca. From energetic brass bands and mesmerizing cimbalom players to legendary haunting fiddlers, The Rough Guide to the Music of Romanian Gypsies presents the internationally acclaimed performers together with renowned local artists...

FULL ARTICLE HERE

CD: Introducing Hanggai (Mongolia)

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 06:07:00 +0000

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Hanggai

Introducing Hanggai (World Music Network, 2008)

I’m always elated to hear a group of musicians rediscovering a lost or faded musical tradition, and I’m also a little puzzled because the music produced is usually so entrancing or just downright enthralling that I just can’t imagine why the tradition ever fell out of fashion. No example could be truer than that of Introducing/World Music Network’s release of Introducing Hanggai.

FULL STORY....

CD: Baaba Maal - On the Road (acoustic)

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 10:41:00 +0000

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

London, UK - The clearest evidence of Baaba Maal's remarkable shows comes with 'Baaba Maal on the Road' a selection of live performances collated from concerts around the world over the past ten years.

Although Maal's music has embraced everything from electric bands to 70-piece orchestras, it is his intimate acoustic performances which, for many, properly encompass the very real contagious nature of Maal's work. It is this raw emotional edge that is showcased on the eight tracks featured on this album.

Included are live versions of a few of the finest songs in Maal's repertoire plus three collectors items a song called Iyango' which has never been recorded before, together with 'Farba', a tune that's appeared only on an Africa-...

FULL STORY HERE

Tibet2Timbuk2 are Q Song finalists!

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 14:15:00 +0000

Tibet2Timbuk2's song "White Crane" (aka "Crane Song") has been selected as a finalist in the World division of Q Song 2008!

2008 Q Song Finalists Announced: Queensland Songwriters Exposed: First Announcement

1 Jul 2008

Q Music is thrilled to announce the finalists for Q Song 2008.

Judges faced an enormously difficult task with almost 1400 songs entered in Q Song 2008.

Each song was judged anonymously (track title only) by a team of dedicated music industry representatives from The Courier-Mail, triple j, ABC, 989 fm, Musicadium, Australian Music Biz, overcranked, Ward 69 Records, dew-process, 4zzzfm, QUT and APRA.

Judges were once again overwhelmed by the enormous talent of Queensland songwriters and the high quality of entries.

Executive officer Denise Foley said “The quality of entries continues to increase from year to year, and in this, our third year, there were some world class songs entered. It is a huge job to coordinate everyone who participates in both the short listing and final judging process and we really appreciate the efforts of all involved.”

The winners will be announced at The Q Song Awards night to be held at The Tivoli, August 12, 2008.
Tickets for this event are now on sale! Purchase tickets online at www.qmusic.com.au/qsong .
A limited amount of tickets are available to the public for the event.

Without any further ado, the 2008 Q Song finalists are:

Song Title - Artist - Writers

Primary School

Love Chime - Woo Woos - Jazz D’Arcy
No Surprise - Stephanie Burns - Stephanie Burns
Banana Cake - Emma Hocking - Emma Hocking
Believe - Jenna Dearness-Dark - Jenna Dearness-Dark

Secondary School

Poor Boy - Courtney Young - Courtney Young
The Boat Song - Shaun Pryor - Shaun Pryor
Insomnia - Emma-Louise Lobb - Emma-Louise Lobb
Darkness - David Richards - David Richards

Gospel Spiritual

Ode To Peace - Mr Rascal - Christian Duell
For You - Dave Saxby - Dave Saxby
The Family Song - Tyrone Noonan - Tyrone Noonan
Regenerate Me - Emmanuel Worship - Pat Keady

Rock

Ten Paces Away - The Gin Club - Ben Salter
Gun And Your Friends - Bowser - O. Mitter/B. Weyuton/ N. Williams/G. Wallis
Gifthorse - Little Vegas and the Fuzz Parade - S Lawrie/B. Dean/W. O’Brien/P.O’Brien.
Untied Laces - The Faze - The Faze

Pop

Honey - Chris Pickering - Chris Pickering
Strawberry Wine - The John Steel Singers - Scott Bromiley / Tim Morrissey
Shake - Tara Simmons - Tara Simmons
Gravity and Grace - The Brave - Mathew Griffith, Roger Van Raalte, Michael Mann & Caleb James

Alternative

Go - My Fiction - E.Robinson, M. Willmett, J.Laubscher, D.Murphy, S.Rigly
Suicide Tuesday - Andrew Kennedy - Andrew Kennedy
Take Time Take Time - Amy Cushway - Amy Cushway
Til You Come Home - James Grehan - James Grehan

Blues and Roots

Yellow Moon - 8 Ball Aitken - 8 Ball Aitken
Judgement Day - Gerry O'Brien - Gerry O'Brien
What Do I Tell the Newborn Child - Michael David - Michael David
Miss Mayhem - James Grehan - James Grehan

World

Mari - Yemanja - Edson Gazani & Anita Fernandes
Crane Song - Tibet2Timbuk2 - Tenzin Choegyal
Mira Que Bonita Eres - Andrew Veivers - Andrew Veivers
Trish's Wish - Dan Cosgrove - Dan Cosgrove

Punk/Metal

Veil of Dolour - bloodredskies - Hayden Mitten
Dearly Beloved - Torn Asunder - Torn Asunder
Home Now - New Rocky Cowboy - Cummins/ Kirkbride/ Tighe/ McPherson
Mower - Butcher Birds - S. Coleman/J. Walker/J. Nilson/S. Tronc

Country

Perfect - Katrina Burgoyne - Katrina Burgoyne
Broken Wing - Chris Pickering - Chris Pickering
Dusty Boots - Shari Williams - Shari Williams
Maybe We've Met Before - Steve Grady - Steve Grady

Folk Ballad

Old Ceylon Road - Asa Broomhall - Asa Broomhall
That's the Reason - Dan Parsons - Dan Parsons
You, Me and The Sea - The Gin Club - Ben Salter
Armistice Day - Noel Gardner Alex Bridge - Noel Gardner

Hip Hop

Orphan's Voices - Mantist - Mantist
Keep An Eye Out - Pure Product - J.Zonday/D.McEintosh
Common Ground - Common Ground - Contact Crew
Don't Bring Me Down - Surecut Kids - Sensai and Surecut Kids

Regional

Till You Come Home - James Grehan - (Carrara )
Mira Que Bonita Eres - Andrew Vievers - (Coolum Beach)
The McMenamins - The McMenamins - (Cairns)
Fear the Fury of a Patient Man - PJ Weston (Mt Tamborine)

Electronic New Music

Watching it Unfold - Lawrence English - Lawrence English
All She left - Christopher Robin - C. McGarry/B.McLauchlan
Little Beat - Dizzygotheca - H.Middleton/ A. Smith
Retro 80’s Video Game Theme - Oxford Parker - John Parker

The Courier- Mail People’s Choice Awards

Honey - Chris Pickering - Chris Pickering
Strawberry Wine - The John Steel Singers - Scott Bromiley / Tim Morrissey
Orange Red - Emma Dean - Emma Dean
Small Town - Dana Hassall - Dana Hassall
Til You Come Home - James Grehan - James Grehan
Ten Paces Away - The Gin Club - Ben Salter
Jaqueline - Brianna Carpenter - Brianna Carpenter
Too, Somebody - Jackie Marshall - Jackie Marshall

Please Note the nominees in the following Categories will be announced shortly:

Song of the Year
Published Song of the Year
The Grant McLennan Lifetime Achievement Award

To see the full list of finalists and listen to their songs, head to www.qmusic.com.au/qsong

ALL MEDIA INQUIRIES TO: jim@qmusic.com.au Phone : ( 07) 3257 0013

Ishkur's Guide to Electronic Music

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:00:00 +0000

Wow, I just found an amazing map of all electronic music styles: Ishkur's Guide to Electronic Music.
And there I was thinking it was all techno...
For each of 7 broad divisions (House, Trance, Techno, Breakbeat, Jungle, Hardcore, Downtempo), there is a map of the evolution of various sub-genres, with description, history and samples of each.
Everything from Musique Concrete in the 50s (ancestor of Ambient, Glitch and Nu Jazz) to Oldskool Rave Hardcore, Buttrock Goa and J-Pop.

CD: Rough Guide to the Music of Japan

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 12:32:00 +0000

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

San Francisco (California), UK - Japan is no longer perceived as home to the worst excesses of idol pop or inaccessible traditional music. In truth, Japanese musicians have for years been skilful at blending the traditional with the pop and coming up with some of the world's craziest concoctions. The Rough Guide to the Music of Japan (RGNET1211CD)encompasses sounds from ancient gagaku to today’s hottest roots acts, mixed with quintessential enka and post-war boogie-woogie – a compilation to blow away any lingering preconceptions.

Contemporary Japanese musicians excel in creating new combinations by mixing traditional sounds and instruments ...

FULL ARTICLE HERE

CD: Mali Rough Guide

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 13:10:00 +0000

Malian Musical Brilliance

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Various Artists

The Rough Guide to the Music of Mali (World Music Network, 2008)

Lately Malian musicians have cut a powerful swath through the music scene. With artists like Bassekou Kouyate, with his recent BBC World Music Award win, or Amadou and Mariam's hit album Dimanche à Bamako or the following the late Ali Farka Toure built on his sh...

FULL STORY HERE

Cultures at the far edge of the world

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Fri, 30 May 2008 06:35:00 +0000

I really recommend the talk by Wade Davis mentioned in this post from TED.

Unbelievable photo of one of the world's last uncontacted tribes

from TED | TEDBlog

If you've seen Wade Davis's unforgettable 2004 TED Talk -- where he evokes the magic of the world's cultural diversity, and speaks so eloquently about the alarming rate with which cultures and languages are dying -- then you might find this photo as heart-stopping as I did.

It's so surreal, I thought at first it must be a hoax. But Reuters just picked the story up, and I'm going to assume they did my fact-checking for me. The photo shows members of one of the world’s last uncontacted tribes, who were spotted and photographed from the air in a remote corner of the Amazon rainforest near the Brazil-Peru border.

Survival International, an advocacy group for tribal people, released the photos on their website and quotes Jose Carlos dos Reis Meirelles Junior, who works for the Brazilian government’s Indian affairs department: "We did the overflight to show their houses, to show they are there, to show they exist ...This is very important because there are some who doubt their existence."

"What is happening in this region is a monumental crime against the natural world, the tribes, the fauna and is further testimony to the complete irrationality with which we, the 'civilized' ones, treat the world," Meirelles said.

Apparently, more than 100 uncontacted tribes remain worldwide, with half living in Brazil or Peru. Extraordinary.

Tribute to Pt Kishan Maharaj

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Thu, 29 May 2008 02:13:00 +0000

Pandit Kishan Maharaj -
The end of an Era

Kavita Chhibber shares Part I of her tribute to Tabla Maestro Pandit Kishan Maharaj on her webcast

‘When legends like these leave, their presence, their fragrance leaves with them”
- Ustad Amjad Ali Khan on the passing away of Pandit Kishan Maharaj

Majestic, royal, incomparable, romantic, a hard task master, brilliant, innovative - words tumble out like a flow of his resonant bols, from the lips of all those who have known him or played with him. Pandit Kishan Maharaj, who passed away this month truly was the last the of tabla legends of an era that is slowly coming to an end with the passing away of the golden greats of Hindustani classical music. And no matter what the current music maestros of the modern era may say, the royal elegance, the integrity and dedication with which these stalwarts of India’s rich cultural heritage took to the stage, cannot be replicated....

FULL ARTICLE HERE

News from Indo-Japanese Music Exchange Association

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Mon, 19 May 2008 05:07:00 +0000

from T M Hoffman / Indo-Japanese Music Exchange Association

Dear Friends of India and Japan

Please visit our newly constructed website www.ijmea.com for reports and photos etc of recent projects undertaken in both India and Japan with the support of Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Agency for Cultural Affairs, Japan Foundation, Japan Airlines, Indian Council for Cultural Relations, India Center, Air India, American Institute of Indian Studies and others, and with the kind cooperation of Embassies and Consulates of both nations.

We are pleased to report successful completion of our India-Japan Friendship Year tour of South India with four artists from Japan in four co-operative concerts with four exemplary artists of Carnatic music in the four cities of Bangalore, Chennai, Kochi and Thrissur.
Sample media reports:

Tampura meets shakuhachi! New India Press full-page story17 Mar 08

Best of both the worlds - Deccan Herald report 11 Mar 08 Bangalore

and from a recent two-month all-India tour --
charity concert w/eight Carnatic musicians in Visakhapatnam 31 Jan 08
(flyer & news) (review/photo)

Grateful to God, Guru & Gharwalli, I continue to be on the move musically with neither fanfare nor apology, including my Asian music course again this semester at Keio University, also Nada Yoga sessions.

Please note that I will giving programs - performance, lecture-demonstration, lecture, workshop - throughout India again in summer, in USA and Europe in autumn, in Philippines and again India next winter. Please contact me if you are interested.

None of this is off-the-wall haphazard fusion experimentation. Our efforts are recognized by commentary such as 'very significant contribution to tradition in the contemporary world' (pls see the National Network of Education, India interview, in our website).

Best wishes!

Sincerely,
Tim Hoffman
Sangeet Acharya (awarded 12 Feb 08)

T. M. Hoffman, performing artist and ethnomusicologist
BA (USA & Japan), MA (USA), Visharad & Sangeet Acharya (India)
Senior Performing and Creative Artist Fellow - 2006-2008
American Institute of Indian Studies AIIS (USA & India)
Lecturer in Musicology and Linguistics
Keio University & Musashino Academia Musicae (Japan)
Director, Indo-Japanese Music Exchange Association (estab. 1989)
e-mail: tmhoffmus21@yahoo.com
ijmusath@po.wind.ne.jp
www.ijmea.com/ (new complete website, in Japanese & English)

---------(Japanese version)---------

演奏家・教育家・日印音楽交流会代表T M Hoffmanです。アメリカとアジア各国の先生方に深く感謝をしながらアジア音楽の演奏・教育・国際交流活動に努めて忙しくしております。 http://www.ijmea.com/

「日印音楽交流会」（1989年創立）の本客的なwebsite http://www.ijmea.com/ 開設のお知らせです。最近の活動については、そのなかで、インドにての「筝によるインド音楽奏法開発企画」（2006年7月－2008年1月、米国インド学会との協同長期企画）の第三期（200７年12月－2008年2月）および日本より4人の演奏家による3月08日－22日間の「日印交流年」南インド公演旅行（日本外務省と AOTS海外技術者研修協会の後援企画）の写真などもご覧になれます。南インドの神父さんhttp://www.thesingingpriest.com/ との共演などありました。

＜「日印交流年」南インド公演旅行からの新聞記事の例＞
＊“Tampura meets shakuhachi!”
New India Press full-page story on 17 Mar 08 Cochin concert 　
＊“Best of both the worlds” - Deccan Herald 11 Mar 08 Bangalore

＜他の２００８年上旬インドでの新聞記事の例＞
（米国インド学会支援「箏＋ラーガ演奏芸術開発協同企画」第三期の期間中）
日本ケアフィット協会インド支部共催公演
インド最大の知的障害者施設Lebenshilfe Indiaの支援日印協同公演
＊charity concert Visakhapatnam, AP (India) 31 Jan 08
(flyer & news) (review/photo)

そして、2008年2月12日に、インド現地にて全国芸術連盟より敬称Sangeet Acharya「音楽聖人」を豪華な儀式のなかにて授かりました。より忠実に「音道」Nada Yogaに努められる意志になる気掛けともなりました。

何よりも、お元気でのご活躍を願っております。

Sincerely,

T. M. Hoffman　　演奏家（北インド古典声楽、天竺尺八、筝）
http://www.ijmea.com/（企画情報・写真・動画・音楽）

CD: Shastriya Syndicate (Purbayan Chatterjee)

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Mon, 05 May 2008 07:59:00 +0000

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Shastriya Syndicate

Syndicated (Sense World Music, 2008)

Shastriya Syndicate is Purbayan Chatterjee's project. On the outstanding CD Syndicated (Sense World Music) he has brought together a group of young Indian masters, who are bringing new blood to Indian classical music. The virtuoso musicians fuse the music of North India (HIndistani) and South Inda (Carnatic).

While many Indian artists follow the traditional format of ...

FULL ARTICLE HERE

CD: The Teak Project (Indo-Jazz)

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Fri, 02 May 2008 10:21:00 +0000

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

The Teak Project (First Hand, 2008)

Second generation Indo-Jazz sitar player Jonathan Mayer is the son of Indo-Jazz pioneer John Maye, which maintains the tradition nicely. The devilish complexity of the music does nothing to detract from its sweetness and serenity.

Justin Quinn is a fleet-fingered guitarist worthy to fill John McLaughlin's sandals.

Tabla-player Neil Craig provides the impetus, and transforms the gentle acoustic music with the serpentine-like beats of the raga.

In short, The Teak Project offers a near-perfect realization of Indo-Jazz, yet hints at further expansion: the floating impressionism of Outnumbered By One recalls the work of Belgian guitarist Philip Catherine. Lovely stuff.

Full story here...

Namgyal Lhamo's Free Tibet tattoo

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 12:01:00 +0000

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

As the struggle for a Free Tibet continues, Netherlands based Tibetan singer Namgyal Lhamo has pushed the cause to the forefront of the artistic community with a music video from her upcoming album 'Highland Supernova' which be released in less than a month from now. A week after Namgyal Lhamo hit the headlines with a cover photo that screamed Free Tibet in the Bangkok Post's magazine "Guru,” the team that was filming the title song "Aalayeah-Highland Supernova" for the new album came up with a concept that has already raised eyebrows across Asia.

The use of a tattoo to convey a global message engraved on Lhamo's back is the cause of the stir. The tattoo, designed by award-winning Tibetan/Bu...

FULL STORY HERE

Mbira

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 04:47:00 +0000

from MetaFilter by flapjax at midnite

Ever since I first heard mbira from Zimbabwe almost 30 years ago (via this record), I've been a lover of that enchanting, delicate and intricate music. It's only recently, however, that many of us who aren't actually players of the mbira could see just how the instrument is played: Holding the mbira, and scales - Lesson One - Two - Three - Four, and more and more. And here are some recommended mbira players and groups with MySpace Music pages worth checking out: Spirit Talk Mbira - Mbira Oracle - Kunzawa Mbira Group - Joel Laviolette.
Special honors to Thomas Mapfumo, who, many years back, took the mbira style and spirit and adapted it to electric guitars, in an inspired and joyous fusion of the ancient and the modern.

This page from All About Jazz reviews the Nonesuch label's releases of Shona mbira music.

This YouTube clip features a tune from another of the Nonesuch releases, The Soul of Mbira, a collection of recordings made by ethnomusicologist and author Paul Berliner. Recommended.

There'll no doubt be plenty of mbira music to be heard at Zimfest 2008, this coming July in Tacoma, Washington.

Finally, here's Dangurangu. For your ears only.

CD: Toumani Diabate - Mande Variations

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 01:55:00 +0000

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Toumani Diabate

The Mande Variations (Nonesuch, 2008)

Son of Sidiki Diabate, one the most celebrated kora players , Toumani Diabate has blazed a career worthy of the Diabate name and legacy of this family of Mande griot musicians from Mali. After twenty years since his first solo and debut recording Kaira and countless collaborations with stellar artists ...

[Full article click here]

Petition: Indigenous Studies For All Australian Students

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 01:50:00 +0000

Indigenous Studies For All Students

Greetings All!!

How the journey between birth and death is experienced is largely dictated by ones perception, with conditioning beginning at a very young age. For too long this conditioning has employed a biased view that has seen the creation of cultural stereotypes and views that achieve nothing more than erode the awareness of our natural interconnectedness.

If you believe it is time to address the imbalance that exists in our perceptions within this world then please take 2 minutes to make a difference.

1. Take 1 minute to sign the following petition to the Australian House of Representatives to legislate to make Indigenous Studies compulsory for all students. http://www.gopetition.com/online/17774.html

2. Take another minute to forward this message to all your friends in your email list.

In Peace!!!

NB. Please note that a hardcopy petition is also being generated so as to be inline with the acceptable standards to be acceptable and presentable to the House as determined by the Standing Committee on Petitions.

Youtube: Queens of Carnatic singing

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 11:13:00 +0000

The intoxicatingly beautiful vocal music of south India

from MetaFilter by flapjax at midnite

Queens of Carnatic singing: Nithyasree Mahadevan: 1, 2 and 3. Sudha Ragunathan: 1, 2, 3 and 4. And the legend of the legends, M.S. Subbulakshmi, in her film appearances from decades past: 1, 2 and 3, and as an elder stateswoman of Carnatic vocal artistry: 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Online music promo article

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 00:29:00 +0000

Here's a very interesting article from the NY Times about online promotion of music:

Sex, Drugs and Updating Your Blog

By CLIVE THOMPSON

Published: May 13, 2007

Jonathan Coulton sat in Gorilla Coffee in Brooklyn, his Apple PowerBook open before him, and began slogging through the day’s e-mail. Coulton is 36 and shaggily handsome. In September 2005, he quit his job as a computer programmer and, with his wife’s guarded blessing, became a full-time singer and songwriter. He set a quixotic goal for himself: for the next year, he would write and record a song each week, posting each one to his blog. “It was a sort of forced-march approach to creativity,” he admitted to me over the sound of the cafe’s cappuccino frothers. He’d always wanted to be a full-time musician, and he figured the only way to prove to himself he could do it was with a drastic challenge. “I learned that it is possible to squeeze a song out of just about anything,” he said. “But it’s not always an easy or pleasant process.” Given the self-imposed time constraints, the “Thing a Week” songs are remarkably good. Coulton tends toward geeky, witty pop tunes: one song, “Tom Cruise Crazy,” is a sympathetic ode to the fame-addled star, while “Code Monkey” is a rocking anthem about dead-end programming jobs. By the middle of last year, his project had attracted a sizable audience. More than 3,000 people, on average, were visiting his site every day, and his most popular songs were being downloaded as many as 500,000 times; he was making what he described as “a reasonable middle-class living” — between $3,000 and $5,000 a month — by selling CDs and digital downloads of his work on iTunes and on his own site.

Read the full article here...

CD: Cheb i Sabbah - Devotion

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 06:41:00 +0000

Devotional Global Electronica

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Cheb i Sabbah

Devotion (Six Degrees, 2008)

One of the masters of global electronica, Cheb i Sabbah, returns to the Indian subcontinent for inspiration with yet another extraordinary CD, his 7th, titled Devotion. Like a good wine, Cheb i Sabbah gets better with time. With the help of Indian and Pakistani musicians he delivers a rich tapestry of South Asian beats and melodies, including Bhajans, Kirtans, Bhangra, Qawwali, Hindu devotional. The seamless integration of electronics with ancient songs and instruments is not as easy as it seems, but ...

CD: Mamak Khadem (Persian)

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 12:45:00 +0000

Forever Seeking Persian Excellence

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Mamak Khadem

Jostojoo Forever Seeking (Banyan Tree Production, 2008)

Most world music fans would easily recognize Mamak Khadem’s voice by her work with the popular Persian ensemble Axiom of Choice, but that would just be a sliver of this songstress’ career. Lending her exquisite voice to movie and television soundtracks like The Peacemaker, Traffic, The Profiler and ...

Bjork in China protests Tibet

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 11:40:00 +0000

Raise your flag!

from MetaFilter by finite

Björk, in Shanghai, on Tibet: Declare Independence! [YouTube]
Bjork's Shanghai surprise: a cry of 'Tibet!' - Bjork's protest a sign of things to come for China - Björk Exposes China's Greatest Weakness - Bjork Shouts Out To Tibet During Shanghai Show - Chinese furious at 'Tibet-independence' Bjork

Shanghai Daily says "Let's hope that Bjork's controversial parting comments do not lessen the likelihood of local music fans enjoying more of these acts in the future" without offering readers any hint as to what the comments were about.

Declare Independence on mefi previously: 1, 2

CD: Songs from a Persian Garden

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 12:57:00 +0000

Delectable Songs From A Persian Garden

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Mahsa and Marjan Vahdat

Songs From A Persian Garden (KKV/Valley Entertainment, 2007)

Songs From A Persian Garden features a delectable collection of contemporary Persian world music pieces performed live. Singers Mahsa and Marjan Vahdat join forces with Iranian and European musicians to create a seductive and fresh sound that will be app...

Mongolian Overtones

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 02:27:00 +0000

from MetaFilter by flapjax at midnite

In Mongolia, overtone singing (or hoomei, as it's known locally) is mainly a guy thing, but there are exceptions to the rule, for example, the Hoomei Women's Group. More commonly though, women who want to sing do so in an exquisite, soaring style like this and this. Sometimes the men do the hoomei thing while the women do that soaring thing. Then there are those lovely choral arrangements. And then there are those rare moments when the YouTube poster's description of a clip just hits the nail square on the head, as with this one: amazing.
These guys are getting throaty just outside the Centre Pompidou in Paris.

This fellow's really working those upper partials, presented in a clip that also features some glimpses of Mongolian life. Lots of horses.

N. Sengedorj of Mongolia demonstrates khöömei throat-singing.

Here's a cool little combo, with some hoomei going on.

Click here to see Metafilter discussion on the post

Yo-Yo Ma, and the Silk Road Ensemble Return to Japan

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 05:30:00 +0000

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Providence (Rhode Island), USA - The Silk Road Project, a not-for-profit arts and educational organization that connects musicians, composers, artists, and audiences around the world, will send the Silk Road Ensemble and Artistic Director
Yo-Yo Ma on tour to Japan from April 19 through April 27, 2008. The concert tour, presented by the Music Plant Co., Ltd., will include performances and educational activities in Matsumoto City, Nagoya, Tokyo, Osaka and Okayama. American Express is
the lead sponsor of the Silk Road Project in Japan.

Commenting on the upcoming tour, Yo-Yo Ma, acclaimed cellist and founder of the Silk Road Project, stated, "I am delighted to return to Japan with ...

CD: Deepak Ram (jazz bansuri)

noreply@blogger.com (Shen) — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 09:05:00 +0000

Stepping Away From Tradition

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Deepak Ram

Steps (Golden Horn Records GHP 031-2, 2008)

India's bamboo bansuri flute is hardly a jazz instrument, but that doesn't stop South African-born Indian musician from using it to
lead the way on the set of jazz covers and originals that comprise Steps. Ram embraced jazz before Indian music and retained his love for the former even after studying with bansuri master Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia.

Armed with the understanding that a certain degree of improvisation is integral to both types of music, he sought to combine
them. There were no doubt some tricky nuances and specifics involved in the task, but Ram pulled it off. The result is this sweetly engaging CD, on which Ram is joined by Vic ...