Vallenato
This article appears courtesy of the Fundación Festival de la Leyenda Vallenata. Edited and translated by Angel Romero. Vallenato is the name of those born…
Qawwali, the devotional music of the SufisQawwali: A Vibrant and Passionate Form of Islamic Mystic Music
Qawwali, an Arabic word denoting “utterance,” is a form of devotional music practiced by Islamic mystics, or Sufis, as they are known in their respective…
Kawina
A type of Creole folk music from Surinam, related to winti. Kawina arose at the end of the 19th century after the abolition of slavery…
Kaseko
While kaseko music often used to be heard on the radio and at parties in the Netherlands, it seems to have been forgotten in recent…
The Transfixing Sounds of Gnawa Music
Gnawa is a term used to define both a Moroccan music style and a Muslim religious brotherhood that invokes God and many prophets. The patron…
Introduction to Ghazal, An Ancient and Expressive Form of Poetry and Music
The ghazal, a love poem or ode, traces its origins back to Arabic poetry in the 7th century. Initially, the ghazal dealt with themes of…
Welsh Music
A revival of traditional folk music and a renewed interest in the use of its native Welsh (Cymreag) language took place in Wales in the…
Classical Persian Music
Classical Persian music is an ancient art form and one of the earliest musical traditions known today. Because of the geographic location and sociopolitical role…
History of the Celts
Who Were the Celts? Ancient Greek historians, like Herodotus (400 BC) and Hecataeus of Miletus (500 BC), wrote about the Keltoi, a group of Iron…
Merlefest 2003
Wilkesboro, USA – Wilkes Community College will present MerleFest 2003, the largest bluegrass music festival in the United States. This is the 16th annual festival…