The Rain is Coming: Regina Carter and "Kothbiro"

Today's random tune is by Detroit-born jazz violinist Regina Carter, who reinterprets an African song called Kothbiro that was composed and sung by Kenyan musician and nyatiti lyre player Ayub Ogada in 1993. Regina Carter began studying the violin along with piano when she was four years old. In high school she took master classes with Itzhak Perlman and Yehudi Menuhin and eventually studied classical music at the New England Conservatory of Music. However, she switched to jazz during her classical studies and finished out her education at Oakland University in Michigan. After graduation, she did a stint teaching music in the Detroit Public Schools, but needing a break and a new direction, she moved to Germany for two years. When she came back in the late 1980s, she joined the all-female quintet Straight Ahead, which did pop and jazz and earned kudos from Branford Marsalis. She went solo in 1991 and has released ten solo albums since 1995, and has played on another seventeen albums in collaboration with a wide variety of musicians such as Kenny Barron, Anthony Davis, Cassandra Wilson, Joe Jackson and Eddie Palmieri. Kothbiro can be found on her 2010 album Reverse Thread. She records the song as an instrumental - the original has lyrics and is about the coming of rain.

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/Regina_Carter

Little Devil: The Ricardo Herz Trio and "Saci"

Brazilian popular violinist Ricardo Herz and his trio brings us Saci for our random tune today. Ricardo Herz is a classically trained violinist from São Paulo who also received an education in jazz from the Berklee College of Music. His music uses Brazilian melodies as well as a varied rhythmic structure, such as choro, samba and variations. He has also conducted much research, leading to an in-depth knowledge of Brazilian music. Saci is from the Ricardo Herz Trio's 2012 album Aqui é o Meu lá. The title refers to the mythological Brazilian trickster with a magical red cap that rides dust devils.

Looky, Loki: Annbjørg Lien and "Loki"

From Norway comes today's random tune by Annbjørg Lien. A player of the hardingfele (Hardanger fiddle), violin, and nyckelharpa, Lien first became known in Norway in the mid 1980s by combining traditional Norwegian music with jazz and rock. She is also a member of the String Sisters, a group of female string players from six different countries. This song, Loki, is from her album Baba Yaga (2000), and references the trickster god of Norse mythology.

Anatolian Violin: Murat Sakaryalı and "The Seaside of Your Dreams"

Today's random song comes from Turkish violinist Murat Sakaryalı. I cannot find much information on him, at least information that I wouldn't have to run through Google Translate and give you a bad translation of, so I won't. I'll just let his music speak for itself. You can find this song, The Seaside of Your Dreams, on the 2007 compilation album Turca Lounge, Vol. 1.

Christmas Time All Year: White Fort and "Svyatki!"

It took awhile, but I finally realized that today's random world music song selection was a Christmas/holiday song. You see, not having much of a second language, I often don't know the meaning of the titles of songs that I find. I just listen to the song and if I like it, it gets added to my collection and eventually makes it on to our Global Music Show. I suppose I could have run the title, Svyatki!, through Google Translate, but I often don't think of that.

What I heard when I listened to this song at first was amazing guitar and violin work, a fast tempo, a catchy tune that one would want to dance (fast) to, and man, could these guys play! I don't know about you, but my idea of Christmas music, which has evolved over the past 20 years or so, was still music that had some kind of identifier that it was holiday-oriented. Either a word (which was out because I don't understand Russian) or clues in the music such as bells or choirs. Admittedly, my ideas of Christmas music have changed since I have become a kind of collector of interesting, non-traditional Christmas music but, there was always still that identifier somewhere. But not understanding Russian, all I heard was a really jammin' song that had no connection to the holiday. And I liked it. I played it over and over.

I once lived in a community house in Milwaukee and another resident was an ex-nun who had a few issues and loved Christmas music and would play said Christmas music at all times of the year. We eventually had to make it a rule that she wouldn't play Christmas music except during the holiday season. Well, I felt like I must have seemed a little like her when I found out last year, after a year of listening to Svyatki!, that it was a Christmas song. I could see myself in Russia, telling people in July what a great song this was and playing it over an over while they looked at each other and made the universal symbol of craziness sign by twirling a finger around an ear. And wouldn't you know it, just as I was starting to write this post I had the idea to look up the title in Google Translate and the title is very plainly, translated into English, Christmas Time!

Well, I still like the song. And I still will play it whenever I want because I like it so much. The label doesn't mean anything. I shouldn't have been so judgmental of my ex-nun roommate and her Christmas music love, and it took White Fort to teach me that lesson.

White Fort is a duo from Russia. Consisting of guitarist Yuriy Matveyev and fiddler Artyom Yakushenko, the two met in college and started making music together while procrastinating from their studies. They took a prize for Best New Band at their first national folk festival in Novosibirsk and were put on probation back at school. After 3 studio CDs and a ballet score, they moved to Moscow and were discovered by an American promoter who released an album of their music in the US under the title "Two Siberians." They also continued making albums in Russia, and scored film and television. They suspended their music-making in 2008 to take sabbaticals, but reunited in 2012 and began recording touring again. Svyatki!, is from their 2012 CD 6/8.