Square Dancing: Paolo Conte and "Quadrille"

The random tune for today, Quadrille, is by Paolo Conte. Conte was born in Asti in the Piedmont region of Italy, and he began his music career as a vibraphone player traveling in local and touring bands. He started writing songs early on in his career with his brother Giorgio but eventually began writing on his own. His star rose in the 60s and 70s as he was the main creative songwriter behind hits of other well-known Italian artists. His solo career commenced in 1974. His songs are known for being evocative of colorful and dreamy Italian and Mediterranean sounds. His music is often jazzy, reminiscent of South America and French singers, and filled with a wistful melancholy. His music has also been used in many movies. Quadrille can be found on his 1998 compilation album The Best of Paolo Conte.

Usually When I Have to Go: Adjágas and "Hás It!"

Adjágas, from Norway, bring the random tune for today...Hás It! The band is made up of joikers Lawra Somby and Sara Marielle Gaup along with other musicians (joiks are highly spiritual song with no rhyming or structure that are common in the Sami cultures of northern Scandinavia). "Adjágas" itself is a Sami word for the state between waking and sleeping. Hás It! can be found on their album Mánu Rávdnji, released in 2009.

I Know: Zi Punt and "Who Knows"

Who Knows, by Zi Punt, is our random tune for today. Zi Punt is a Turkish group made up of Oguz Kaplangi, Chi K. and Orange who mash up electro and rock. Oguz Kaplangi produces Zi Punt as well as other groups and gives concerts in Turkey and abroad. Chi K is originally from Turkey but she spent five years in New York City singing at Bard College. Orange is the stage name of Istanbul-based, New Zealand born musician and video artist Reuben de Lautour. He studied music at Princeton and DJ'd in New York and New Jersey before moving to Istanbul. He is on the faculty of the Istanbul Technical University. Who Knows can be found on the 2007 compilation Istanbul Calling Vol. 2.

This One Seals It: The Secret of Roan Inish and "Selke Song"

Today's random song is from the soundtrack to the film The Secret of Roan Inish, which centers on the tale of selkies - seals that can shed their skin to become human in appearance. The music for the film was written by Mason Daring, an American composer and musician who is largely known for his scores to films by John Sayles. Selke Song can be found on The Secret of Roan Inish soundtrack (1995).

Swaying Swedish: The Perishers and "Sway"

Today we have a slow rock tune by The Perishers, a Swedish indie-rock band formed in 1997. The band got a big break in 2005 when they were hand picked by Sarah McLachlan to open for her on her Afterglow tour. They have also been highlighted on soundtracks to American television shows such as The O.C., One Tree Hill, Greek and Veronica Mars. This song, Sway, is from their 2005 EP by the same name.

Doing the Dance: George Acosta and "Someone"

George Acosta brings the dance to the random tune today. A Cuban DJ and producer who was raised in Miami, he has been described a force in the genre of dance music. He began as a DJ spinning tunes at high school dances, house parties and the like but then a trip to Germany changed his perspective. He started working in dance music and produced Planet Soul, which had a major hit called Set You Free. He gradually began changing his focus into progressive house music in the 2000's. He continues to produce and create, and has started his own label called AcoMusic. This song, Someone, can be found on his album of the same name.

For City and Father: Yungchen Lhamo and "Lhasa"

Today's random tune is by Yungchen Lhamo, a Tibetan exile in New York City. Lhamo's name translates to "Goddess of Song," and was given to her by a lama after her birth in Lhasa. Fleeing Tibet in 1989, she first lived in Australia and then in New York. She tours extensively, singing unaccompanied, and has collaborated with artists such as Annie Lennox, Billy Corgan, Sheryl Crow, Michael Stipe and Peter Gabriel, to whose label, Real World Records, she is under contract. This song, Lhasa, can be found on her 2008 album Ama, and is dedicated to her father.