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Martin Neil

Tanzania relief

By TanzaniaNo Comments
Mnase 1 076

Dear friends – the news of famine in Tanzania is not good and according to Switzerland-based non-governmental organisation ACT Alliance “Nine regions of Tanzania, namely Arusha, Manyara, Kilimanjaro, Shinyanga, Dodoma, Iringa, Mwanza, Mara and Tabora, are caught up in chronic and transitory food insecurity due to poor or no harvests,” Seth writes …..

“I am at Dodoma this time,trying to go in the villages to see and evaluate the famine effect to the poorest and disable communities,and trying to rescue just few of them,because so many people are becoming very weak,sick and dying.”

We are looking at sending a truck load of maize to the village – and we need your help – if 1000 people gave £4 each we would be able to send roughly 100 sacks of maize to Mnase village. We so appreciate your help – Asante sana.

14. February 2013
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Martin’s musical mystery tour – 5

By Music that inspiresNo Comments

Martin’s musical mystery tour – We are out in San Diego and so this month’s selection is from another Spanish speaking country – Mexico. One of the radio stations I always look for when travelling in the car in southern California is the Mexican music stations. This music just makes me smile – pure fun. The mariachi orchestra is composed of at least two violins, two trumpets, a Spanish guitar, and two other types of guitars – the vilhuela and guitarron. Here is an amazing Mexican folk ensemble the Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, who have been together in various formats since 1897 – must be some sort of record!

6. February 2013
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News from Tanzania

By Tanzania2 Comments

2nd download 030Seth writes from Tanzania – ” The food Problem is covering the whole Dodoma Villages and town,Central Region and More other parts of the Country,No rain this time and the food prices especially maize still shooting higher,last time as I shared to you 1 sack of maize was 100,000.TSH from 40,000 TSH,But now is 130,000 SHS, the situation is very bad.”

You can help by buying their music –

1. February 2013
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Let me explain something about guitar playing. Everyone's got their own character, and that's the thing that's amazed me about guitar playing since the day I first picked it up. Everyone's approach to what can come out of six strings is different from another person, but it's all valid

Jimmy Page
17. January 2013
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Korean percussion

By DrumsNo Comments

Here is a very passionate drum group from Korea. Kim Duk Soo playing the hourglass drum in this video was the founder of this genre of traditional Korean drumming called Samul nori (Samul meaning four objects and nori meaning to play). The group consists of the Kkwaenggwari (a small gong) a Jing (a larger gong) the Janggu (an hourglass-shaped drum) and a Buk (a barrel drum similar to the bass drum).

11. January 2013
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There are so many incredible sounding instruments that we have encountered on our travels, yet there is nothing quite like the human voice for it's range, diversity and uniqueness. From Tuvan throat singing practised amongst nomadic Mongolian farmers to the South Indian art of vocal percussion called Konnakol, every culture, people group and religion uses their vocal chords to produce singing. In some communities, it is so much a part of life that everyone participates, ie. Central African pygmies where everyone is an incredible vocalist and is able to sing complex yodeling.

Martin Neil
1. January 2013
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Roneat

By CambodiaNo Comments

The roneat is a Cambodian instrument that is similar to the Western xylophone. There are two played in an ensemble, the roneat ek, positioned at the front of an orchestra, considered to be the female voice and the roneat thong, the male voice.

20. December 2012
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‘A‘ohe pau ka ‘ike i ka hālau ho‘okahi - All knowledge is not learned in just one school.

Hawaiian proverb
9. December 2012
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Martin’s musical mystery tour – 3

By Music that inspiresNo Comments

Sweden

Martin’s musical mystery tour – Just come back from Sweden so this months music videos comes from that beautiful land. They have some unique traditional instruments like the nyckelharpa and wonderful traditions like yoiking (a style of singing).

I love this song sung by Sofia Jannok a singer-songwriter from Sweden who has taken the  tradition of yoiking (Sami singing) and made it her own on this pop song.

5. December 2012
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