Superb Chick Corea with The Spanish Heart Band
Chick Corea with The Spanish Heart Band – Antidote (Concord Jazz, 2019) Every once in a while you come across a recording that completely stuns…
Artist Profiles: Doudou N’Diaye Rose
Mamadou Ndiaye, etter known as Doudou Ndiaye Rose, was born July 28, 1930 in Senegal. A true cultural ambassador for his country, Doudou N’Diaye Rose…
Artist Profiles: Djimo Kouyate
Djimo Kouyate (kora, voice) was from the Malinke ethnic group, a sub-group of the Manding people. Born in Tamba Counda, Senegal, he was part of…
Central Asian and Avant-Garde Explorations
Alim Qasimov & Michel Godard – Awakening (Buda Musique, 2019) Awakening is a genre-defying recording from Azerbaijani mugham singer Alim Qasimov and French musician Michel…
Hail The White Zulu
Contrary to popular opinion, Paul Simon was not the first musician to recognize the rich potential of fusing Western pop with Zulu tribal rhythms. An…
Ghanaian Reggae Star Rocky Dawuni Releases “Elevation” Music Video
Rocky Dawuni, Ghana’s reggae maverick, has released the “Elevation” video. The song appears on his most recent album “Beats of Zion.” With its message of…
Glamorous recital from Canadian Singer and Harper Loreena McKennitt in San Sebastian
The “Lost Souls Tour”, an extensive tour of Europe, also ended up in Spain (Valencia, Murcia, Granada, Madrid, Barcelona, Zaragoza, and finally in San Sebastian).…
Artist Profiles: Sylvestre Randafison
Valiha maestro Benjamin Sylvestre Randafison was born in Madafascar in 1928. In addition to playing and promoting the usea of the valiha, Sylvestre Randafison also…
Artist Profiles: Rakotozafy
Rakotozafy was born in 1933. He was one of the best valiha players in Madagasca. His version of the valiha featured a total of 24…
SIU2, Hong Kong’s Creative East-West Musical Fusion
SIU2 – Sonic Traveler (Flower Music, 2008) One of the thrills of my CD review stack is that I often don’t know what musical adventure…