11 April 2010
By Lyov
In Folk, Jazz
How Much Is Yours
BBC Awards for World Music 2006 Winner.
Armenia is a nation that invokes many descriptions: landlocked, ancient, nestled in the foothills of the Caucasus mountains and bearer of many tragic events. Yet Armenia is also celebrated for its music, especially the duduk, a flute carved from apricot wood with a cane reed whose range is barely one octave. When played by a master such as Djivan Gasparyan the duduk creates one of the loneliest, most moving sounds ever heard.
Yet Armenia is not land locked in the past; instead, it has maintained a connection with Western thought and culture – this has been helped by a huge Armenian diaspora, many of whom live in the USA – and The Armenian Navy Band are the most brilliant example yet of how an ancient culture can comfortably blend with a contemporary one....
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armenian, Armenian Navy Band, ethno jazz, How Much Is Yours, Jazz, world, world music
28 February 2010
By Lyov
In Folk
Armenian Fantasies
Few instrumentalists dominate and define their instrument like duduk player Djivan Gasparyan. In Gasparyan’s hands, the Armenian oboe (carved from apricot branches) takes on a warm, spiritual tone that sounds at times ethereal, at others spirited. Until now, we’ve heard Gasparyan either solo or with minimal accompaniment (namely, his collaboration with Canadian guitarist Michael Brook on Black Rock). But on Armenian Fantasies, Gasparyan performs with his largest ensemble yet, a group of 10 traditional Armenian instrumentalists. The results are mesmerizing. On the “Armenian Suite,” we get a catchy medley of folksy love songs; “Kamantcha Blues” is a shorter, more introspective work of improvisation; and “Armenian Romances” focuses on the country’s more melancholic songs of longing. With each track, we hear the meditative, shadowy sounds of the duduk, along with indigenous instruments such as the tar (lute), kamantcha (fiddle), and kanon (zither) played at their peak. Highly recommended....
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armenian, Armenian Fantasies, Djivan Gasparyan, Ensemble, Folk, traditional, world, world music
25 February 2010
By Lyov
In Folk
Oyo
Once again, the Beninese diva rakes off to keep her title as queen of world music and offers a very beautiful album.
The Beninese singer has been taking her muse on holiday recently, with albums inspired by Brazil and the Caribbean. But her eighth album is reminiscent of her fourth, Oremi, on which she investigated African-American grooves. So here we get Africanised versions of Move on Up, Cold Sweat, I’ve Got Dreams to Remember and Baby, I Love You — all good, but you never forget the inspirations. More interesting is a vocal version of Santana’s Samba Pa Ti, while the African covers are better yet.
World-music purists may well turn up their noses, but the Beninese singer’s celebration of her musical roots turns out to be a magnificently upbeat marriage of African tradition and western pop. Kidjo’s inspired version of James Brown’s Cold Sweat is one of the most exhilarating performances she has ever put on record. The spirit of Miriam Makeba hovers over the lullaby Lakutshona Llanga, and the American jazz-soul diva Dianne Reeves joins in the Aretha-esque testifying on Baby, I Love You. Kidjo even honours Sidney Bechet with the tender lyrics of Petite Fleur. The world is awash with bloodless X Factor wannabes; Kidjo reminds you what a real voice sounds like....
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africa, african, Angelique Kidjo, female vocalists, Oyo, world, world music
16 December 2009
By Lyov
In Folk
Miss Perfumado
This 1992 recording, which is being released in the US for the first time, established this 57-year-old singer from the Portuguese West African island of Cabo Verde as an international star. Not quite a traditionalist, Cesaria Evora specializes in the Portuguese folk/cabaret ballad called Morna, a moderately paced, highly expressive song-form characterized by meandering minor-key melodies and lyrics which express suffering, hope, and, above all, the all-encompassing Portuguese concept of “saudade,” or nostalgia. As listeners on the Continent have already discovered, MISS PERFUMADO is a perfect introduction to this dignified artist. To be sure, not every song is slow to mid-tempo; there are some lively numbers, though Ms. Evora never loses her poise or even raises her appealingly musky voice. Credit also goes to guitarist/pianist Paulinho Vieira, who directs the sympathetic acoustic accompaniment, so evocative of the sea and warm nights of Evora’s beloved Cabo Verde....
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cape verde, Cesaria Evora, female vocalists, latin, Miss Perfumado, world, world music
18 November 2009
By Lyov
In Folk
Kolektiv
The Belgian band Jaune Toujours has a strong reputation in being a festival highlight wherever they play. This octet with stacks of trumpets, accordion, percussion and so on. Brings a nice blend of brass, klezmer, ska, folk, chanson and all those other styles. They fit perfectly in the new wave of brass-influenced-multi-crossover-folky-bands. This new album contains eleven new recordings, mostly sung in French but some English and Dutch as well. Like their previous output, a nice album. But not surprising in any way. Sure there are some differences with earlier albums, but somehow not enough to really make my ears stay focused. It’s like the band takes it a bit calmer and the different styles that in earlier work were so recognisable, now grew together into one kind of sound. So my personal conclusion would be that Jaune Toujours still is the nice band they were, but not as refreshing as they once were. ...
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belgian, dranouter2007, Folk, Jaune Toujours, Kolektiv, world, world music
Hayes Carll
Lyambiko
Bobby Byrd
Raymond Wright
