World Music in 2008

That's great news, Jurgen! Quite a few British Asian artists have been releasing their latest projects in Japan, typically including bonus tracks and mixes like this one

Thomas Mapfumo, Omar Faruk, and Anoushka coming into town? Yay for world music in Sydney! :D

And you guys must be gearing up for WOMADelaide 2008 with a stellar line-up as usual (this year featuring one of my fave artists--DJ Nickodemus of NYC's Turntables on The Hudson fame)

Just back from the Cheb i Sabbah Devotion album release event in SF over a musically busy lunar new year weekend in the city by the bay (full write-up to follow). Portland's next with another Devotion-themed event organized by the folks who did Tribal Matrix last year (my fave world fusion event) and Balkan Beat Box live in concert.

Thanks so much for sharing your personal experiences of Mali and the Festival in the Desert with us, Aniqa! Mali sounds like quite a world music hotspot. Will see if it manifests in my not so distant future, along with WOMADelaide, of course :)

It looks like website hasn't been updated yet www.jaipurfestival.org/

You might wanna contact the organizers directly via email which is listed here www.jaipurfestival.org/contactus.html

The January festival which changed format this year into the Jaipur International Literature Festival (as opposed to two days at the end of the Jaipur Heritage Int'l Fest when I attended two years ago) apparently still included nightly musical performances by international artists the likes of Anoushka Shankar and Susheela Raman.

The website has been updated www.jaipurfestival.org/

15-page program Pdf www.jaipurfestival.org/pdf/JV...008.pdf

Festival program flyer www.jaipurfestival.org/pdf/JV...yer.pdf

Featuring guest artists from the Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland, and Australia this year.

here was last saturday playing Trilok Gurtu in Tilburg. He played in the new recently finished concert building. was wondering how many people came to Tilburg, because mostly if anything is playing outside the Randstad (the area between Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht) its always hard to get the place full.
However it didnt obstruct Trilok Gurtu to play a nice 2 hour gig. The most of songs where of course lead by the percussion of Trilok himself he had a really nice band with an violin/organ/mouth organ player from Italy, an African bassplayer from the suburs of Paris, a German/Spanish guitarist and a female singer from Mumbai.
Exact 8.30pm the gig started after the band came up and plug in thier instruments, after that came Trilok on stage and recieve before he play any note a big applaus from the audience. after Trilok settle himself between his percussion he start playing his tabla and the rest of the band come they start play laidback song and direct next song follow with some amazing vocals from the female singer.
After this 2 songs Trilok use the break between the band to welcome everybody tonight in Tilburg and introduce directly the musicians he took with him for this show.
Halfway the show the songs goes more uptempo and Trilok improvise with his voice to say the boles of tabla while the rest of the band follow this riddim.
after this he take place in the front of the stage to play cajun while he joking with his Indian English accent about Mumbai and about the songs he play; that when people think i its a difficult song its easy and when people think its easy its a difficult song.
After few instrumental songs on the cajun he return back to his percussion drumkit and he start with an echoed microphone different sorts of hand percussion and create some great ambient vibes flowing.
He introduce after a while again the musicicans he took along for this gig and ask or we want hear another song and after a big loud applause he going back to his percussion kit. before he start with playing again he say everybody can sing this song and start singing "dha dha dha dha dha dha" and ask the audience and clap along. after a while everybody repeats the words that Trilok say and let the crowd saying this in a wave from left to right and from the back to the front.
After the gig is done look on my watch and see he played for a little 2 hours and time was flying.....

went see this monday Gogol Bordello in Tilburg, they where again amazing full of energy they played an almost 2 hour set of all thier albums including a duet with Benji Webbe (from the Welsh ragga metal band Skindred).
Think skindred was the biggest suprise of the evening after i'm met them 8 years ago for a private gig in thier rehearsal room.