Mexican-American music journalist Betto Arcos has released his first book, “Music Stories from the Cosmic Barrio,” scheduled for release the second week of December 2020.
“Music Stories from the Cosmic Barrio” is a collection of more than 140 stories about music written for National Public Radio (NPR), The World (WGBH-Boston/PRI/BBC), the BBC, and KPCC in Los Angeles. The foreword was written by Betto’s editor, Tom Cole.
The book includes 12 chapters; each chapter follows a specific narrative: music and identity; education, community building, immigration, women; music and adversity, social unrest and violence; music in Cuba and the diaspora; Brazilian music; instruments, producers; place and nation.
All the stories contained in the book were broadcast from 2008 to 2020: 40 stories aired on NPR, more than 50 on PRI/BBC’s ‘The World’, and the rest on KPCC and BBC Radio 3. Each story is accompanied by a photo of the artist or group. While the book’s main focus is Latin American music from across the continent – with an emphasis on music of Latins and other diverse ethnic groups in Los Angeles – there are also stories about musicians from Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.
The book also tells a personal story. “My own constant, tireless search for stories that help explain how complex and diverse we humans are, and how we share something so special that brings us together: music,” says Betto.
“Music Stories from the Cosmic Barrio” is 380 pages and is published by a small independent press in Mexico City.
Betto Arcos is also a panelist member of the Transglobal World Music Chart.
Buy Music Stories from the Cosmic Barrio
Author: World Music Central News Room
World music news from the editors at World Music Central
Where is the book available for purchase?
At the time we published the story, the purchase information was not available. We have now added a purchase link.