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World Instruments
The traditional Chinese Pipa is a four-stringed lute with up to 30 frets and a pear-shaped body. The instrumentalist holds the pipa upright and play with small plectra attached to each finger of the right hand. The history of the instrument dates back at least 2000 years and developed from a pentatonic scale to full scales. The instrument has an extremely wide dynamic range and remarkable expressive power.
More information on the Pipa at:
Higher Ground
World Music Quiz
When presented, listeners are invited to take part in Jonathan's World Music Quiz! It's designed to be fun and educational. Questions are posted here on Saturday evening (during live broadcasts only) just before the quiz is announced on the air.
When there is a quiz, review the question(s) below, listen for additional details on the specific prizes announced and how much time is allotted for the quiz (usually about 30 minutes). Please wait until Jonathan has introduced the quiz, before you submit your responses addressed by e-mail only to: highergroundlive@wpr.org
Correct responses (during live broadcasts only) qualify for the drawing. Participants must include their mailing address with their first entry attempt.
Featured Artists
World Music Spotlight
Dobet Gnahore
Jonathan with Dobet Gnahore backstage just before her July 10, 2008 concert in Madison, Wisconsin. Gnahore is from the Ivory Coast and was on her U.S. summer tour showcasing her wonderful voice, amazing dancing and great stage presence. She is considered to be one of most exciting new artists emerging from Africa.
Her newest album Na Afriki appears on the Cumbancha label..
Habib Koité
Malian guitarist Habib Koité is one of Africa's most popular and recognized musicians. Habib Koité was born in 1958 in Thiès, Senegal. Habib comes from a noble line of Khassonké griots, traditional troubadors who provide wit, wisdom and musical entertainment at social gatherings and special events. Habib grew up surrounded by seventeen brothers and sisters, and developed his unique guitar style accompanying his griot mother.
Koite appeared at the Majestic Theatre in Madison, Wisconsin on Tuesday, August 5, 2008 .
Orchestra Baobab
Orchestra Baobab are one of Africa's great iconic bands, creators of one of the world's most sublime and truly distinctive pop sounds. Founded in 1970, Orchestra Baobab fused Afro-Cuban rhythm and Portuguese Creole melody with Congolese rumba, high life and a whole gamut of local styles – kickstarting a musical renaissance in their native Senegal, which turned the capital Dakar into one of the world’s most vibrant musical cities. Higher Ground was pleased to welcome the 12 piece Senegalese Band The Orchestra Baobab who performed on Sunday, June 29, 2008 at the Barrymore Theatre in Madison, Wisconsin.
For more details visit www.barrymorelive.com
Tamara Smith
Affectionately known as "Tammy", Wisconsin native Tamara Smith is, according to her website, an "anointed, appointed and gifted singer". Her singing and speaking voice became her trademark and her solid church background and love for singing all kinds of music, from classical to Christian Contemporary to Gospel, has broadened her career and inspired many throughout the United States and internationally.
Tammy's CD is called "Instrument of Praise" www.cdbaby.com/cd/tamarasmith
Allen Toussaint
This virtuoso musician, gifted producer, and inspired songwriter has worked at the center of the Crescent City sound for over five decades.
Toussaint grew up imbibing a wealth of sounds, from opera, to Appalachian, to the boogie bounce of Prof. Longhair rollicking 88s.
He has written and produced countless albums for New Orleans musicians like Lee Dorsey, Irma Thomas, and The Meters. He recently collaborating with Elvis Costello on a Grammy Nominated album, The River in Reverse.
Latest CD: "The River in Reverse"(Verve Forecast)
Feature first aired on 3/24 and 3/31
Song clips: "Tipitina and Me" (Toussaint), "Java" (Tousan), "Big Chief" (Professor Longhair), "Ruler of My Heart" (Irma Thomas), "Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further" (Irma Thomas), "Who's Gonna Get Brother Get Further" (Toussaint/Costello), "Yes We Can Can" (Toussaint), "Yes We Can Can Part 1" (Lee Dorsey)
Yawo
Togolese born Yawo Attivor brings a diverse mix of language and culture to his energetic brand of afro-pop.
Togo, which was colonized by Germany, France, and England - a who's who of imperial powers - gave Yawo a taste for French and American pop songs.
Yawo, who led a student movement in Togo for free speech back in 1991, still considers protest an important part of his music. He was accompanied by percussionist Edi Gbordzi, who is from Ghana.
Latest CD: "Take Out the Fences" (Caveman Records)
Feature first aired on 2/3/07
Song clips: "Banaya Fils Attivon", "Mère d'Afrique", "Mia Woe Zon", "Ayiko"
The Idan Raichel Project
In an area charged with ethnic strife, the young Israeli composer Idan Raichel has found a way to blend the heritage of disparate cultures into a unique musical sound that embraces love and tolerance.
Conscripted into mandatory service in the Israeli army at age 18, Idan joined the military rock band, building his chops touring the country. Upon his release he began working with immigrants and troubled youth. This introduced him to the burgeoning community of Ethiopian Jews in Israel. Idan was inspired by the unique music they shared with him, cassettes of Mahmoud Ahmed, Aster Aweke, and the sounds from Addis Ababa.
Idan brought to the Israeli scene a diverse group of 70 musicians, a sentiment reflected in the decision to name the collective The Idan Raichel Project. He has achieved the status of a pop star in Israel, producing triple platinum albums, but he is a new kind of pop star, one who preaches tolerance through his words and his methods.
Latest CD: "Within My Walls" (Cumbancha, 2009)
Feature first aired on 1/27/07
Song clips: "Come With Me", "Out of the Depths", "If Thou Wisheth"
Clyde Stubblefield
The heartbeat behind the hardest working man in show business, Clyde "The Funky Drummer" Stubblefield laid down the drum tracks behind some of James Brown's greatest hits.
Stubblefield's tenure with the band during the mid to late 60's meant his playing supported some of Brown's most important work, as the group was transforming the sound of rough edged R&B and Soul into the beginnings of Funk. His impeccable groove can be heard on tracks like "Mother Popcorn", "Say It Loud (I'm Black and I'm Proud)", and the eponymous "Funky Drummer". The drum break from that song went on to become one of hip-hop's seminal samples, earning Stubblefield the unofficial title of "World's Most Sampled Drummer".
Born in Chattanooga, TN, Stubblefield has lived and worked in Madison, Wisconsin since the 1970's, and plays a weekly gig with his band at the King Club in downtown Madison. He also maintains a band with friend and fellow James Brown Alumn John "Jabo" Starks.
Latest CD:"Find the Groove"
Feature first aired on 1/20/07
Song clips: "Sweet Home Chicago", "Mustang Sally", "Daddy's Home "
Forró For All
To find the musical home of this artist, one must journey Brazil’s North East country side, where the style of music know as forro was born.
Rob Curto’s Forró For All highlights a stunning mixture of musical elements. Afro-Brazilian percussion intertwines with the European mazurkas and waltzes of the late 19th century, lead by the charging sound of the accordion. In this way it bears a resemblance to the American Creole hybrid of Zydeco, which combined the accordion driven music of French and Acadians with backbeat of rhythm and blues.
Forró, once a regional sound, has become a part of Brazil’s wider musical heritage and influenced major Brazilian artists like Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso. Curto, the band’s founding member, is a trained jazz musician who has immersed himself in Brazilian music and culture, where he spent years playing.
Latest CD:"Forró For All" (Rob Curto 2006)
Feature first aired on 12/16/06
Song clips: "Nenem Mulher", "Feira de Mangaio", "Qui Nem Jilo"/"Balança a rede"/"Xamego" (Luis Gonzaga)
AZA
Fattah Abbou and Mohamed Aoualou are Moroccan musicians, playing a sound unique to their region. They formed the band AZA six years ago, giving it a name that is the symbol of the Amazigh, or Berber people of North Africa.
On their debut recording, Marikan, recorded in their new home of Santa Cruz, California, the band takes the listener on a journey through the music of Berber culture. Fattah and Mohamed provide the stirring vocals, while complex harmonies and traditional instruments of African music are married to a quartet of talented western musicians. While the band acknowledges influences from across the globe, the ultimate goal is to persevere in creating a new and unique style. Latest CD:"Marikan"(2003 Certain Moment Publishing)
Feature first aired on 12/09/06
Song clips: "Sidi Daoud", "Zrigh", "Azul"
Curumin
Luciano "Curumin" Albuquerque was born in Brazil to Spanish and Japanese parents. At first listen, his music might remind American listeners of artists like Beck - with his soul inflected singing, tropical-funk beats, and playful electronic instrumentation.
While a short listen will tell you that Curumin, a Brazilian nickname meaning precocious child, is a thoroughly modern artist, he is also drawing on the rich heritage of MPB, or Musica Popular Brasileira. In the Sao Paulo of the 1970’s Curumin was exposed to artists like Tim Maia and Bebeto who combined elements of American soul into the samba music of Brazil.
Most prominent among these MPB artists was Jorge Ben, whose brilliant alchemy of Brazilian bossa nova, afro-pop and American funk is a clear predecessor to the multi-faceted work of artists like Curumin. In 2005, Curumin released his debut album, Achados E Perdidos, Portuguese for "Lost and Found".
Latest CD: "Achados E Perdidos"(2005 Quannum Projects)
Feature first aired on 12/2/06
Song clips: "Vem Menina", "You Haven’t Done Nothing", "Guerreiro", "Samba Japa"
Wade Fernandez & The Black Wolf
Wade Fernandez grew up on a Menomonie reservation surrounded on all sides by forest. There he would walk for hours, absorbing the sounds of nature all around him, an atmosphere which infuses Fernandez’s music.
Traditional forms of tribal music, performed at pow-wows and ceremonies, were a big part of his musical upbringing. Afterwards people would gather together for "49" parties. Fernandez says the number 49 comes from an old song, sung for 49 warriors that were killed. "Folks would just pound on the hood of a car like a drum, singing in English and traditional vocalizations. All that would come floating through my bedroom window as a kid."
Add to this mix a family record collection that introduced Fernandez to Johnny Cash, Otis Redding, and the Stones, and perhaps you can begin to see where this performer got his unique and captivating style.
Latest CD:"Song of the Black Wolf" (2004 Wade Fernandez)
Feature first aired on 11/04/06
Song clips: "Rainwoman", "Commodity Cheese Blues", "Remembering"