#3801: Unusual Cross-Cultural Collaborations (Special Podcast)

This New Sounds is full of unexpected musical dream-teams, like New York-based Raya Brass Band, whose latest record, RAYA, is full of informed cross-cultural takes on Balkan brass music – here a loping Ethiogroove or New York salsa woven into the New Orleans street party meets Macedonian, Greek, and Turkish wedding music.  Listen to the seductive odd sevens of "Dren Gajda," which evokes the sound of the bagpipe, or gajda (which is also a bagpipe-accompanied Macedonian dance.)

Then, there’s tropical psychedelic cumbia from Lima, Peru-based band, Bareto, along with brass-driven Afro-pop from the Washington DC-based band Elikeh, who incorporate Togolese rhythms into their borderless music. (The group’s leader, Massama Dogo, was born in Togo.)  Hear Welsh harp, Indian tabla & harmonium, as Mumbai singer Tauseef Akhtar and Welsh singer-songwriter Gwyneth Glyn blend Indian Ghazals with Welsh folk traditional music as Ghazalaw.

Plus, hear music from Hiya wal Âalam, which is Tunisian composer and percussionist Houwaida Hedfi, in collaboration with musicians from Tunisia and Palestine, and Swede Olof Dreijer from The Knife. They use North African percussion instruments like bendir, djembe and chkachek, along with wordless vocals and electronic beats. And much more. 

PROGRAM #3801 Unusual Cross-Cultural Collaborations (First Aired 11-19-2015)

ARTIST: Xixa
WORK: Cumbia del Palatero, excerpt [1:00]
RECORDING: Shift and Shadow
SOURCE: Barbès Records
INFO: barbesrecords.com

ARTIST: Raya Brass Band
WORK: RAYA
RECORDING: Dren Gajda [4:12]
SOURCE: rayabrassband1.bandcamp.com

ARTIST: Bareto
WORK: Mama Motelo [3:53]
RECORDING: Impredecible
SOURCE: World Village 450030
INFO: worldvillagemusic.com

ARTIST: Elikeh
WORK: The Conversation [4:45]
RECORDING: Kondona
SOURCE: Ropeadope / Elikeh
INFO: elikeh.bandcamp.com

ARTIST: Xixa
WORK: Cumbia del Palatero [4:04]
RECORDING: Shift and Shadow
SOURCE: Barbès Records
INFO: barbesrecords.com

ARTIST: Tunto
WORK: Couscous Music [4:59]
RECORDING: Huvi
SOURCE: AANI Records 
INFO: aani.fi  OR cdbaby.com

ARTIST: Ghazalaw
WORK: Cosb Mor Dlos (Khoobsorat Koi Sazaa) [6:45]
RECORDING: Ghazalaw
SOURCE: Marvels of The Universe
INFO: ghazalaw.com

ARTIST: Hiya Wal Âalam
WORK: Houwaida Hedfi: Janna  feat. Chiheb [4:52]
RECORDING: Sawtuha : Nine women from Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, and a bonus song from Syria
INFO: The track appears under the name “Houwaida” on this compilation: jakartarecords-label.bandcamp.com

ARTIST: Alif
WORK: I tiraf (Confession) [4:56]
RECORDING: Aynama-Rtama
SOURCE: alifmusic.bandcamp.com

Hear unexpected musical dream-teams, with an informed cross-cultural take on Balkan brass music from Raya Brass Band, tropical psychedelic cumbia from Peru-based band Bareto, music from Ghazalaw, who blend Indian Ghazals with Welsh folk traditional music, brass-driven Afro-pop from the Washington DC-based band Elikeh, & more.