Showing 1 - 10 of 26
Rhythms of the Northeast
Life, John Clewley, Published on 21/02/2026
» The first Maha Morlum Festival, a showcase soft power event, was held in Maha Sarakham from Feb 13-14 and World Beat travelled to the Isan province to enjoy the two-day, one-night immersive experience promised by the event's organisers.
Exile songs resurface
Life, John Clewley, Published on 27/09/2025
» From the early 1970s to the 80s, Mogadishu boasted one of the Horn of Africa's liveliest night scenes with groups from this "Golden Era" like Dur Dur Band entertaining at clubs and hotels across the city. A coup in 1991 and subsequent civil war put a stop to the music and musicians had to go underground or migrate. Those who went by the latter route took their music and culture across the Somali diaspora (one of Africa's largest).
Remembering the King of Zydeco
Life, John Clewley, Published on 01/07/2025
» Music fans celebrated the 100th anniversary of the birth of the King of Zydeco, Clifton Chenier, late last month. Chenier (June 25, 1925 -- December 12, 1987) was a pioneering musician from Opelousas, Southwest Louisiana who helped create zydeco music, a genre sung in French creole (his first language) that came out of the Creole traditions of the region, spliced with blues, R&B and Cajun music.
Carrying the torch forward
Life, John Clewley, Published on 04/02/2025
» Rizwan-Meuzzam Qawwali Group is a Pakistani Qawwali ensemble led by brothers Rizwan and Muazzam Ali Khan. The duo performs with their seven-member party, who provide harmonium, percussion and handclaps. The singing brothers are nephews of the late great Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, who popularised the Islamic Sufi genre worldwide before his untimely death at 48 in 1997.
Fresh new sounds
Life, John Clewley, Published on 24/12/2024
» Justin Adams and Mauro Durante's second album Sweet Release (Ponderosa Records) tops the Transglobal World Music Chart for December. This fusion album carries on the collaboration from the success of their debut Still Moving, in 2021.
A tribute to Jamaican heritage
Life, John Clewley, Published on 30/01/2024
» Studio One, one of Jamaica's most influential recording studios and labels, was founded by Clement "Coxsone" Dodd in the 1950s on Brentford Road, Kingston. His first recordings were made in 1963 and for the next 20 years, he would help reshape Jamaican popular music and propel it around the world.
Top tunes this June
Life, John Clewley, Published on 20/06/2023
» Veteran kora master Toumani Diabaté and Kayhan Kalhor soar to the top spot on the June edition of the Transglobal World Music Chart with a new release on Real World, The Sky Is The Same Colour Everywhere. Diabaté is well-known for his cross-cultural collaborations, from his early days with Ketama, a flamenco, jazz, West Africa fusion, to later work with the London Symphony Orchestra (Korolen), while Kalhor is an award-winning Kurdish-Iranian master of the kamancheh (fiddle) and setar (lute).
Suave guitar grooves
Life, John Clewley, Published on 28/03/2023
» The late Malian singer and guitarist Ali Farka Toure took his music on the road, travelling from his beloved farm in Niafunke, in northwestern Mali, to thrill audiences around the globe, until his untimely death in 2006.
Country comes to the city
Life, John Clewley, Published on 31/01/2023
» The All-Thidsa Molam Band was in Bangkok this past weekend to perform at the Thailand International Jazz Conference. World Beat caught up with band last Friday when they played two sets at Isan Spicy BBQ, a rooftop bar at the Jim Thompson Art Center.
Seen and heard
Life, John Clewley, Published on 11/10/2022
» It has been nearly 30 years since Dr Grace Nono released her first album on a new label, Tao Music, which she set up with her late partner, producer and guitarist Bob Aves. With her musical collaborator, she set about searching for her musical identity.