Interesting essay by James Bau Graves, director of the Old Town School of Folk Music (Chicago) on the slippery distinction between cultural exchange and cultural tourism. Cultural Exchange vs. Cultural Tourism “Cultural exchange” is often cited as one of the few tools for dismantling tensions with other countries that doesn’t involve force or coercion. The [...]
Youssou N’Dour : From Dakar To Kingston – United Reggae
Reposted from UNITED REGGAE Senegalese artist releases a new album celebrating the relationship between Reggae and the Motherland. Youssou N’Dour is one of the most famous and great African musicians. He’s a renowned singer, songwriter, and composer who began his career at only 12 ! The king of M’balax is now coming with a new [...]
Intimate Dialogue (@ East Bay Express)
Indo-Pak Coalition melds Indian music and jazz for a stylistically ambiguous sound. By Jeffrey Callen Like most musicians who suddenly burst onto the scene, Rudresh Mahanthappa has been working on his craft for a long time. His reputation as an innovative jazz musician and composer took a major leap from the realms of the cognoscenti [...]
Tinariwen in San Francisco (@Afropop.org)
Desert rockers Tinariwen of Mali have been on tour in the US this winter. Jeffrey Callen caught the show—on an off night, it seems—in San Francisco, February 22, 2010. Here’s his review. The photos by Banning Eyre are from Tinariwen’s performance at New York’s Highline Ballroom about a week earlier. It’s easy to review a [...]
Miles Davis’ “Kind of Blue” — a turning point in 20th century music
Kind of Blue (1959) changed the course of jazz, bringing new sonorities and modalities to the forefront. It also helped open up and retrain the ear of music listeners and influenced creators of various genres from classical to rock. As rapper Q-Tip said in a 2008 interview, “ It’s like the Bible, you just have [...]
CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS DROP NEW ALBUM: “GENUINE NEGRO JIG”
Northern Roots singer Tim Eriksen turned me on to this trio of North Carolina musicians who are rediscovering (continuing?) the African American string band tradition. Part of what Eriksen labels the revival of Hardcore Americana. Check out the recent stories on NPR: Carolina Chocolate Drops A Brand-New Album
