To be Treasured and Nurtured: Mystic Journey and "Delicate Rainbow Flower"

Santa Fe, New Mexico ensemble Mystic Journey performs today's random tune, called Delicate Rainbow Flower. Founded by flautist Suzanne Teng, Gilbert Levy on percussion and strings, Dann Torres on guitar, oud and electric sitar, and Jon Ossman on bass and dilruba, Mystic Journey creates an ethereal sound, described by Billboard as "sensual and serene" that has been heard at large music festivals, formal concert halls and intimate settings. The pharmaceutical company Genentech distributed a CD compilation of their pieces to over 50,000 patients to aid in their recovery. You can find Delicate Rainbow Flower on their 2017 album Kingdom of Mountains.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: https://mysticjourney.net

And It's Wonderful Too: Beirut and "Scenic World"

Our random tune for today is called Scenic World and is by Beirut. Beirut was initially formed as a solo project by Albuquerque-born and Santa Fe resident Zach Condon, which later expanded into a full band. Condon recorded the bulk of Beirut's debut album, Gulag Orkestar, in his bedroom and finished the album with the assistance of Neutral Milk Hotel's and A Hawk and a Hacksaw's Jeremy Barnes. The strength of the recordings brought Condon a contract with Ba Da Bing Records under the name of Beirut, and the album was released in 2006 in conjunction with some live shows in New York - Condon recruited some friends to play the concerts and they became the band Beirut. Beirut has released three albums, the latest in September 2015, and Condon has been involved in several side projects. Scenic World is from Beirut's 2006 debut CD, Gulag Orkestar.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beirut_(band)

Tune into the KUNM Global Music Show tonight, 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Time

I know today's a tough day. Music can help heal. Tonight on the Global Music Show I will start with some new Afro-beat and Afro-funk, then I will indulge my latest musical crush, Estonian Ethno-folk and folk rock, by highlighting some modern Estonian bands. After that, more new music mixed with some older stuff from all over the place. Join me from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Time at KUNM 89.9 Albuquerque/Santa Fe, or stream live at kunm.org.

It's a whole world of great music you never knew about. Here's a preview:

Untarnished: Jaka and "Golden Halo"

From Santa Fe, New Mexico comes our random tune for today. Jaka is an afro-pop funk dance band begun by Dan Pauli in the mid 1990s. They play ancient songs and modern compositions using a mix of contemporary and traditional instruments, such as mbira and marimba. The band has a fluid lineup around five core musicians, and also offers marimba and drumming classes at their Santa Fe studio. This song, Golden Halo, is from their 2014 album Glow.

Playlist (and links) for the 2/1/16 Global Music Show - Listen to the Two Week Archive!

Hey friends!  Check out the playlist for last night's Global Show and if you are curious, listen to the show on the KUNM two week archive. There was a lot of emphasis on songs about love, along with some brand new releases from January 2016 and a Carnival set. I've arranged the playlist here in order of artist, song and album with designations as to when they appear in the show.

10 pm to approx 11 pm

Sidestepper IColombia), Supernatural Soul, Supernatural Love

Manu Théron, Youssef Hbeisch & Grégory Dargent (France), Ar mi puesc Ieu lauzar d'Amor, Sirventés

Kočani Orkestar (Macedonia), Mangelma Stoposto (I Love You 100%), The Ravished Bride

Emrah (Turkey/Kurdish), Kusursuzsun (Acoustıc Versıon), Kusursuzsun

e2K (UK), The Water is Wide, Shift

Celtic Woman (Ireland), Siúil a Rún, Destiny

Polyrhythmics (US), Maruken, Octagon

Baaba Maal (Senegal), Fulani Rock, The Traveller

Buyepongo (US), Pegao, Todo Mundo

Karsh Kale (US), Butterfly Effect, Up

Gippy Grewal w/ DJ Flow (India), Chamkila, Desi Rockstar 2

Approx 11 pm - 12 am

Arturo O'Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra (US), Second Line Soca, Cuba: The Conversation Continues

Galactic w/ Casa Samba (US/Brazil), Magalenha, Carnivale Electricos

Galactic w/ Moyseis Marques (US/Brazil), O Côco da Galinha, Carnivale Electricos

Un Solo Pueblo (Venezuela), Macoklis Mango, Putumayo Presents Carnival!

Max de Castro (Brazil), A História da Morena Que Abalou as Estruturas do Esplendor do Carnaval, Orchestra Klaxon

Chaba Fadela & Cheb Sahraoui (Algeria), Mani, Putumayo Presents: Arabic Groove

Bally Jagpal (UK), Pheli War, Dark & Direct

Kailash Kher & Sanjay Divecha (India), Naino Sey, Putumayo Presents: India

Kiran Ahluwalia (India/Canada), Teray Darsan, Wanderlust

Sanjay Chitale & Sandeep Chowta w/ John Scofield and Lincoln Goines (India/US), Thodi Thodi, American Pilgrimage

Approx 12 am - 1 am

Yungchen Lhamo (Tibet/US), Nyebe Nilam, Ama

Carla Bruni (France), Quelqu'Un M'A Dit, Quelqu'Un M'A Dit

Värttinä (Finland), Taivasranta, Viena

Värttinä (Finland), Raijan Joiku, Viena

Trio Da Kali (Mali), Yirimadjo, Trio Da Kali - EP

Sainkho Namtchylak (Russia/Tuva), Erge Chokka To, Like a Bird or Spirit, Not a Face

Lenka Lichtenberg (Canada), Hey Tsigelekh, Yiddish Journey: The Music of Lenka Lichtenberg

Zusha (US), Mashiach, Kavana

Idan Raichel (Israel), Lifney She'Yigamer (Before It Ends), At the Edge of the Beginning

Yorkston/Thorne/Khan (UK/India), Everything Sacred, Everything Sacred

Buena Vista Social Club (Cuba), Murmullo, Buena Vista Social Club

Day of the Dead: Listen to the Global Music Show on the KUNM Two-Week Archive!

Hi readers and visitors: Want to hear the Global Music show that spawns this blog? Go to the KUNM Two Week Archive!

Just key in Monday, November 2 at 10 pm and let the player go. The show is three hours of global music with some commentary!  If you wonder why songs about death are sprinkled in, we did the show the day after Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.

 Here's the playlist for the show:

All Souls Night - Loreena McKennitt (Canada)

Wheel Inside the Wheel - Mary Gauthier (United States)

A Todos Ellos - Mexican Institute of Sound (Mexico)

Dead Man - Nitin Sawhney (United Kingdom)

He No Dead Yet - King Fighter (Guyana)

Cumbia de los Muertos - Ozomatli (United States)

Aankharli Pharookai - Karam Abbas & Mai Dhas (Pakistan)

Piya Dekhan Ko - Nafees Ahmad Khan & Ustad Amid Ali Khan (Pakistan)

Jig O' Beer and Chai - Zakir Hussain (India)

Debho - Daby Toure (Mauritania)

Selfie - Koffi Olomide (Dem. Republic of Congo)

Tiè Faring - Kandia Kouyate (Mali)

Meshe Dehina Ederu - Ephrem Tamiru & Roha Band (Ethiopia)

La Llorona - Kočani Orkestar (Macedonia)

El Baile de la Lechuza - Daniel Santos (Puerto Rico)

An Cailleach - Salsa Celtica (Scotland)

Baba Yaga - Lily of the Valley (Germany)

Baba Yaga - Tuatha (United States)

Good Men - Buika (Spain)

Colibria - Nicola Cruz (France/Ecuador)

Avalanche - Boogarins (Brazil)

Oile Le La - Forro in the Dark (United States)

El Lado Mas Bestia de la Vida - Albert Pla (Spain)

Low Rider - Jake Shimabukuro (United States)

All Along the Watchtower - Eliades Ochoa (Cuba)

Harvest Moon - Bebel Gilberto (Brazil)

Somewhere Over the Rainbow - Israel Kamakawiwo'ole (United States)

Claire In Heaven - Capercaille (Scotland)

I Am Stretched On Your Grave - Kate Rusby (United Kingdom)

Ghost Lake - A Moving Sound (Taiwan)

But Don't Fall: Jaka and "Trip Away"

A New Mexico band provides us with our random tune today. Jaka is an afro-pop funk dance band begun by Dan Pauli in the mid 1990s. They play ancient songs and modern compositions using a mix of contemporary and traditional instruments, such as mbira and marimba. The band has a fluid lineup around five core musicians, and also offers marimba and drumming classes at their Santa Fe studio. This song, Trip Away, is from their 2014 album Glow.

Basking: Jaka and "Glow"

A New Mexico band provides us with our random tune today. Jaka is an afro-pop funk dance band begun by Dan Pauli in the mid 1990s. They play ancient songs and modern compositions using a mix of contemporary and traditional instruments, such as mbira and marimba. The band has a fluid lineup around five core musicians, and also offers marimba and drumming classes at their Santa Fe studio. Glow is from their 2014 album Glow.

High Desert Mbira: Jaka and "Walking"

I will admit something. I have complicated feelings toward Santa Fe, New Mexico. Why? I live in Albuquerque, the largest city in New Mexico but which also has an inferiority complex toward the state's capitol, Santa Fe. When tourists come to New Mexico, they usually land at the airport in Albuquerque, rent a car, and drive straight to Santa Fe. When events are held in Albuquerque, such as our amazing Globalquerque world music festival or our fantastic Tricklock Revolutions avant-garde theater festival, it seems to be the rare Santa Fe resident that drives down for it while Albuquerqueans will often make the hour-long trek to Santa Fe for their festivals and happenings. In fact, once at Globalquerque I overheard two young men who attended because they won tickets on a Santa Fe radio station. "Wow," I overheard them say. "This is great! I never knew Albuquerque could have anything like this!" It's that type of stuff that drives me wild, because I live in Albuquerque but I like to go to Santa Fe on occasions, such as when I attend their wonderful folk art market, or see a music act that has toured there, or go to a museum such as the Georgia O'Keefe Museum, or hike in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. I know Albuquerque is an arts town, even though it may not seem like it, with over 40 theater groups and many great artists. I know that we have good food in Albuquerque, including James Beard award winning restaurants and chefs. Santa Fe is a really interesting town with some wonderful things to see or do, but I wish that Albuquerque would get its due as a destination in its own right, rather than being the stuff on the freeway that you have to drive through to get to Santa Fe. I suppose rivalry breeds innovation through competition, but I wish that since we live in a poor state that could use exposure to the outside, Albuquerque and Santa Fe could be partners, not unequal but both perceived as being unique and interesting in their differences.

Certainly, what contributes to my complicated feelings is that many great artists, musicians and writers live in Santa Fe. Jaka is one example. Their tune Walking is our random tune for today. Jaka is an Afro-Pop Funk dance band that was begun by Dan Pauli in the mid 1990s. They play ancient songs, and modern compositions using a mix of contemporary and traditional instruments, such as mbira and marimba. The band has a fluid lineup around five core musicians, and also offers marimba and drumming classes at their Santa Fe studio. Walking is from their third album, 2014's Glow.

Suffused Beauty: Ottmar Liebert and "Morning Light"

I am not a morning person and I should be. I should be up and at them in the morning because there really is nothing like morning light. It has been a constant wherever I have lived - as the hint of the sun slowly appears on the horizon, or behind the mountains, or at the edge of the plains, the light in the sky moves from dark blue to pink to blazing orange, and then as the sun appears, long shadows suddenly appear only to shorten. The earth is diffused with a glow, and in a place like New Mexico where I live, it changes the very color of the landscape, contrasting the natural colors of rock and sand against each other and against sky and and river.

Today's random tune is by a somewhat controversial artist who lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Ottmar Liebert, originally from Germany, began studying classical guitar at eleven years old and flamenco guitar at fourteen. He played rock music in Germany before moving to the United States and eventually settling in Santa Fe in 1986. He released his first album in 1989, and initial sales were so good a remastered version was released in 1990 under the title of Nouveau Flamenco. This angered flamenco artists, who felt that Liebert's work was a poor imitation of not only traditional flamenco but also the Flamenco Nuevo movement to reinvent flamenco music. This left Liebert to explain that while his music has elements of flamenco, he was required by his record company to come up with a label for it and felt that flamenco was the closest description that people would know. Liebert cites influences such as Carlos Santana, Paco de Lucia, John McLaughlin, Robert Fripp, Jeff Beck and Miles Davis. He has released 28 albums, of which 11 are certified gold or platinum. This song, Morning Light, can be found on his 2008 album Scent of Light.

Cosmopolitan and Sophisticated: Italy's Mau Mau and Venus Nabalera

When I first heard Venus Nabalera, by the Italian group Mau Mau, I wasn't really very versed in world music. I believe that I started listening to what is commonly labeled as world music or global music as the result of a happy accident. I was living in New Orleans in the early 2000s, and my journalist wife was tasked to write some entries on a series exploring the places where New Orleans musicians had lived. I forget which musician, a trumpeter who lived in the early 1900s, she was writing about when we headed to the Bywater neighborhood to look at an address, but we made the acquaintance of the woman who lived in the house that he had lived in for a little while. The woman turned out to be the wife of Dan Storper, the man who founded Putumayo World Music. They had bought the house and were in the process of restoring it. She gave us three or four Putumayo CDs, and I believe one of them had Venus Nabalero on it.

I remember being surprised that 1) this was an Italian band and 2) that I liked it, along with the rest of the music she had given us. I shouldn't have been surprised. In the 1990s I had become turned on to Celtic music at Milwaukee's Irish Fest when I sat in the audience as a new group named Capercaille played and blew me away with their modern take on traditional Scottish/Celtic music. My naive idea of Italian music involved accordions and violins and probably some mixture of Dean Martin and Louis Prima ("When the Moon Hits Your Eye Like a Big Pizza Pie..." or "Buona Sera Senorita Buona Sera...") song by a guy in a checkered apron. So hearing a group like Mau Mau do a song that was vaguely reminiscent of Brazilian music I had heard by chance, but sounding so modern, made me rethink my stereotypes and preconceptions. I listened to that Putumayo album, and the others, over and over. For the first time in my life, I felt sophisticated - like I shouldn't be privy to this type of music but I was. I also felt cosmopolitan, and vaguely like I had discovered a secret nobody else knew about.  I still feel that way sometimes.

In the years since, whenever I hear a new group that really captures my fancy, I have that same feeling that Venus Nabalera and other new world songs give me for a fleeting moment.  There is nothing more satisfying when you feel  like you've discovered something.  And there is nothing more wonderful, after you've savored it, to share it with others in the hopes that they will find it just as amazing as you have.

So, here is Venus Nabalera by Mau Mau, one of the songs that started me on this world music adventure so many years ago.  Just a few words about Mau Mau.  They are a group that formed in Turin in 1991, and they have released six albums to date.  Their name, in the Piedmont region dialect, can mean "one who comes from afar."   The name also references the Mau Mau Uprising in Kenya that challenged the British colonial rule.  Venus Nabalera is from their 2000 release Safari Beach.

Welcome to Your World Music Show

This blog has come about because of the inadequacies of Facebook. My name is Michael Hess. I'm a staff person at a university, an adjunct professor of political science, and a music lover. My wife, Megan Kamerick, is a journalist. A few years ago, she was asked to serve as a backup DJ for a weekly world music show on our local public radio station. While both of us loved music, world music was not a genre that we were very familiar with. However, my wife is always game to try something new and she enlisted my help to find music. We were very quickly surprised by the breadth of world music. Today my wife is one of four regular rotating DJs on the show and I serve as her program assistant, music procurator and occasional replacement if she is unavailable. One of the things that has become apparent is that we LOVE discovering this music. We have become familiar with many of the greatest names in music that Americans have never heard from, as well as exciting new bands and solo artists that emerge every day from places outside of the United States. America may be the entertainment center of the world, but there are many amazing things happening with music in both other places in the first and third worlds. There are fusions and collaborations, reinterpretations of traditional folk musics and new musics being invented all the time. We have been privileged to expand our musical horizons and open our minds and ears to sounds that would not come to us over the airwaves in our home country.

For a couple of years, I have been maintaining a Facebook page called KUNM Global Music First Monday. On the page, I post a daily song about a world musician or band and a piece of work that he or she has done. Despite our exhortations for people to "like" us and get exposed, we only have 81 followers and, according to the statistics, it's the rare day that anyone actually tries out the music. So, I'm casting the net to the wider world in the hopes that there are more people that will find us on this platform and who may be willing to also open up their ears and their minds.

I once had an argument with a person about world music. She maintained that it wasn't interesting because she couldn't understand the lyrics. Here's a little secret that I've learned - you don't need to understand the lyrics to be moved by the music, by the longing or happiness or sadness in the singer's voice, the same emotions in the the way the kora player, the fiddle player, the guitar player, the Uilleann pipe player, or any of the other musicians at play.

By the way, you might be interested in the radio station that hosts us and our show. We air on KUNM, which is one of Albuquerque's public radio stations serving North and North Central New Mexico at 89.9 FM and at some other frequencies through translators. We air mostly on the first Monday of each month from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time (USA). My hope is that with this page, I'll be able to expand on the Facebook page by doing a little more exploration into the music and also provide some commentary on how the music and the artist makes me feel. We purchase at least 10 to 15 new songs for each show, plus we play music from the station's collection. My wife and I have built up quite a collection of our own, and I will draw on all of these for this page.

So, let's start this and see if we can build a small community around the joy of music from around the world. As KUNM's motto "News and music that connect" suggests, we can come together in our enjoyment of music. I hope you find this site interesting, and please let me know if you come by by leaving a comment, even if it a suggestion or a correction! Michael Hess