Word to Your Ukrainian Mother: DakhaBrakha and "Carpathian Rap"

ДахаБраха, or DakhaBrakha, brings us our random tune for today, called Карпатський реп, or Karpatskyi rep, or Carpathian Rap. A band from Ukraine, they present avant-garde music in the styles of several different areas of the world, including the Ukraine, India, Arabia, Africa, Russia and Australia, complete with instrumentation from those areas. DakhaBrakha's name is a combination of two Ukrainian words meaning "give" and "take." All the groups members are graduates of the Kiev National University of Culture and Arts, and DakhaBrakha was originally a project of the avant-garde theater project called Dakh. This theatricality is embodied in their shows, including their on-stage costuming. Karpatskyi rep can be found on their 2014 album Light.

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://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DakhaBrakha

Rapping Ukraine: DakhaBrakha and "Karpatskyi rep"

ДахаБраха, or DakhaBrakha, brings us our random tune for today, called Карпатський реп, or Karpatskyi rep, or Carpathian Rap. A band from Ukraine, they present avant-garde music in the styles of several different areas of the world, including the Ukraine, India, Arabia, Africa, Russia and Australia, complete with instrumentation from those areas. DakhaBrakha's name is a combination of two Ukrainian words meaning "give" and "take." All the groups members are graduates of the Kiev National University of Culture and Arts, and DakhaBrakha was originally a project of the avant-garde theater project called Dakh. This theatricality is embodied in their shows, including their on-stage costuming. Karpatskyi rep can be found on their 2014 album Light.

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.

Limpid Pools: DeVotchKa and "Dark Eyes"

DeVotchKa, a Denver-based band, performs our random tune for today. A four piece ensemble, their name is derived from the Russian word for "girl." Their instrumentation, besides guitar, drums and bass can include theremin, bouzouki, accordion and sousaphone. DeVotchKa started as a backing band for burlesque shows, and in particular traveled with and backed noted burlesque performer Dita von Teese. During this time they were also self-releasing records and touring in support of them which earned them an underground following. The band was eventually picked by the directors of Little Miss Sunshine to score the film which earned them a Grammy nomination for best soundtrack. The band, while essentially a rock ensemble, incorporates a gypsy punk feel into many of its songs. This song, Dark Eyes (Ochi Chernye), is on their 2008 CD SuperMelodrama. The song is a famous Ukrainian love song, written in the mid-1800s, referencing the burning desire for a lover.

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.

Appeasing the Spirits: Mariana Sadovska with Kitka and "Lamentation"

Our random tune for today is a beautiful lament by Mariana Sadovska and Kitka. Mariana Sadovska is a Germany-based Ukrainian actress, singer, musician, composer and recording artist. Emerging from the theater world in Lviv, Ukraine, Sadovska worked in theater and theater production and led ethnomusicology trips and arranged cultural exchanges with numerous countries. She moved to New York in 2001 to be a music director with theater company La Mama. During this time she also began working on her own solo performances. She released her first solo CD in 2001. Kitka is a California-based group of all female singers that focuses on Eastern European women's vocal traditions. Their name means "bouquet" in Bulgarian and Macedonian. Begun in 1979, they have contributed to major motion pictures such as Braveheart, Jacob's Ladder and Queen of the Damned and have appeared on many national radio shows around the world. This song, Lamentation, can be found on the 2007 album The Rusalka Cycle: Songs Between the Worlds, a vocal theater project and collaboration between Kitka and Sadovska that addressed the horror of the Chernobyl accident. The Rusalki are spirits of women who have died untimely or unjust deaths that reside uneasily in the earth. The project's theme is a summoning of these spirits to appease them and ask for their mediation between living humans and their environment.

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.

Hush and Sleep: Mariana Sadovska and "Three Lullabies"

The song for today is by Germany-based Ukrainian actress, singer, musician, composer and recording artist Mariana Sadovska. Emerging from the theater world in Lviv, Ukraine, Sadovska worked in theater and theater production and led ethnomusicology trips and arranged cultural exchanges with numerous countries. She moved to New York in 2001 to be a music director with theater company La Mama. During this time she also began working on her own solo performances. She released her first solo CD in 2001. This song, Three Lullabies, is from her 2001 debut CD Songs I Learned in Ukraine.

Let the Light Shine: DakhaBrakha and "Kolyskova"

DakhaBrakha, a band from Ukraine that presents the styles of several different ethnic groups, including Indian, Arabic, African, Russian and Australian instrumentation, brings us a tune called Kolyskova. DakhaBrakha's name is a combination of two Ukrainian words meaning "give" and "take." All the groups members are graduates of the Kiev National University of Culture and Arts, and DakhaBrakha was originally a project of the avant-garde theater project called Dakh. This theatricality is embodied in their shows, including their on-stage costuming. Kolyskova can be found on their 2014 album Light.

Word to Ukraine: DakhaBrakha and "Karpatsky Rep"

DakhaBrakha, a band from Ukraine that presents the styles of several different ethnic groups, including Indian, Arabic, African, Russian and Australian instrumentation, brings us a tune called Karpatskyi Rep (Carpathian Rap). DakhaBrakha's name is a combination of two Ukrainian words meaning "give" and "take." All the groups members are graduates of the Kiev National University of Culture and Arts, and DakhaBrakha was originally a project of the avant-garde theater project called Dakh. This theatricality is embodied in their shows, including their on-stage costuming. Karpetsky Rep can be found on their 2014 album Light. If you ever get a chance to see this band...just do it. You won't be disappointed.

Now More Than Ever: Mariana Sadovska and Kitka with "To the Lake"

The haunting random tune for today is by Mariana Sadovska and Kitka. Mariana Sadovska is a Germany-based Ukrainian actress, singer, musician, composer and recording artist. Emerging from the theater world in Lviv, Ukraine, Sadovska worked in theater and theater production and led ethnomusicology trips and arranged cultural exchanges with numerous countries. She moved to New York in 2001 to be a music director with theater company La Mama. During this time she also began working on her own solo performances. She released her first solo CD in 2001. Kitka is a California-based group of all female singers that focuses on Eastern European women's vocal traditions. Their name means "bouquet" in Bulgarian and Macedonian. Begun in 1979, they have contributed to major motion pictures such as Braveheart, Jacob's Ladder and Queen of the Damned and have appeared on many national radio shows around the world. This song, To the Lake, can be found on the 2007 album The Rusalka Cycle: Songs Between the Worlds, a vocal theater project and collaboration between Kitka and Sadovska that addressed the horror of the Chernobyl accident. The Rusalki are spirits of women who have died untimely or unjust deaths that reside uneasily in the earth. The project's theme is a summoning of these spirits to appease them and ask for their mediation between living humans and their environment.

Old World Sleepy-time: Mariana Sadovska and "Three Lullabies"

The song for today is by Germany-based Ukrainian actress, singer, musician, composer and recording artist Mariana Sadovska. Emerging from the theater world in Lviv, Ukraine, Sadovska worked in theater and theater production and led ethnomusicology trips and arranged cultural exchanges with numerous countries. She moved to New York in 2001 to be a music director with theater company La Mama. During this time she also began working on her own solo performances. She released her first solo CD in 2001. This song, Three Lullabies, is from her 2001 debut CD Songs I Learned in Ukraine.

Give and Take: DakhaBrakha and "Buvayte Zdorovi"

Today's random song is by DakhaBrakha, a band from Ukraine that presents the styles of several different ethnic groups, including Indian, Arabic, African, Russian and Australian instrumentation. Their name is a combination of two Ukrainian words meaning "give" and "take." All the groups members are graduates of the Kiev National University of Culture and Arts, and DakhaBrakha was originally a project of the avant-garde theater project called Dakh. This theatricality is embodied in their shows, including their on-stage costuming. This song, Buvayte Zdorovi, can be found on their 2014 album Light.

There's No Crying in World Music: DakhaBrakha and "Please Don't Cry"

I remember the first time I saw DakhaBrakha. It was Globalquerque 2012, I think. It doesn't really matter. I didn't know what to expect - the picture showed 3 women dressed in white wearing funny hats. Their description said something like "ethnic chaos music." So, I nestled into the Roy E. Disney Theater at the National Hispanic Cultural Center and prepared for what I thought would be a nice little concert of Ukrainian music. Instead, it was one of those shows that make your jaw drop. From the opening song, when all four members (there is a man in the group as well) pound out a frantic rhythm on drum to the three female voices putting it down on a Ukrainian rap, to a jazzy number with scat from the male member of the group, the whole audience was transfixed. I've since seen them again in, of all places a country and western bar, and they didn't disappoint, and were even in a playful mood which was charming.

DakhaBrakha presents the styles of several different ethnic groups, which includes Indian, Arabic, African, Russian and Australian instrumentation. Their name is a combination of two Ukrainian words meaning "give" and "take." All the groups members are graduates of the Kiev National University of Culture and Arts, and DakhaBrakha was originally a project of the avant-garde theater project called Dakh. This theatricality is embodied in their shows, including their costumes. This song, Please Don't Cry, can be found on their 2014 album Light.

DakhaBrakha in Albuquerque Video 2

Here is the second video of DakhaBrakha's performance in Albuquerque on December 1, 2012 at the Dirty Bourbon Dancehall and Saloon. This song is Sho z-pod duba, one of my favorites by them. I hope you enjoy it too! Shot on my Samsung Galaxy phone and edited on YouTube - it has good sound!

DakhaBrakha in Albuquerque Video 1

The Ukrainian group DakhaBrakha performed in Albuquerque on Monday, December 1 at the Dirty Bourbon Dancehall and Saloon and I was glad to see them for a second time. The performance was arranged by AMP Concerts and Avokado Artists. I first saw them at Globalquerque two years ago. They seemed to be in a playful mood as they wowed the crowd with a variety of genres, often in the same songs. This video is of their opening number, and was filmed on my little Samsung phone and edited with YouTube. The sound is very good quality.