A brand new lyric video from Jess Penner featuring Phillip Peterson on strings and me on percussion. Jess says “It’s about conquering my fear of losing the ones I love… ” Great song Jess.
Enjoy this fantastic French documentary called Latcho Drom (“safe journey”) that brings a little insight into the journey of the Romany people through musicians and dancers (there is very little dialogue). I love how the musical sound and styles have evolved as the communities have wandered from India, to Egypt, Turkey, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, France, and Spain.
As the early morning mist hovered over the fields like a soft blanket, I walked uphill towards the prayer tower on Gottesacker (God’s acre). Gravestones etched with the marks of time loomed eerily out of the haze and I pondered on the stories that they held. Read More
A wonderful drum, I managed to pick up on my travels in India. Whereas the Tabla and Pakhavaj are used more in classically influenced situations the Dholak is widely used in folk music in India.
A wonderful afternoon at Barona reservations 7th annual Gathering listening to traditional bird singing and watching the dancers. Unlike many other tribes, where the drum is the instrument of choice, a gourd or tortoise-shell rattle filled with native palm seeds accompanies the Kumeyaay bird songs. Read More
Martin’s musical mystery tour – This month’s blog comes from Switzerland. I have just come back from Geneva where I have been working for the last 10 days – also had a couple of days exploring inland and re-visiting Montreux, a lakeside city that has had links with the music industry since the 70’s – Smoke on the Water!!
Check out this world record gathering of 508 Alphorn players in 2013. What an incredible sound!
What an amazing sound – apparently they were used to signal to each other from across the valleys, in order to summon help, communicate to each other, and announcing daily activities, such as calling a council, or gathering for war!
If you would like to learn how to play – check out the Alphorn project.
Talerschwingen or talerrollen is a fascinating tradition used with yodeling in the east of Switzerland. The players take a 5 Swiss franc coin and throw it inside an earthenware bowl. The bowl is then slowly rotated as they sing. Three bowls of different pitches are often used in a performance. The sound created is inspired by the cow bells heard in the fields.
