Ep #178 with Mac Ritchey, composer, oud player and producer. Mac Ritchey plays the oud, a Middle Eastern lute, and writes music that fuses funk, blues, rock as well as Arabic music. He is an excellent improviser and composer. We do a live music piece at the end of the show where he plays the curved didgeridoo that's tons of fun. A Worldsoul Records production derrikjordan.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063982602329 Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaHReq2p45E&t=953s Podcast: https://soundcloud.com/hilljoy/twfs-podcast-ep-33-mac-ritchey-192 ..read more

Ep #177 with Christiane Karam, singer and composer. Christiane Karam grew up in Lebanon during the war and is a true musical force of nature. She directs a Balkan choir, started a Middle Eastern music festival after 9/11, speaks 4 languages and teaches at the Berklee School Of Music. She is a very expressive and soulful singer and works with some great collaborators. Facebook: / 977416157334906 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i24zXl1uuGg Soundcloud ..read more

Ep #176 with Jamshied Sharifi, composer, orchestrator and keyboardist. Jamshied Sharifi is in great demand as an orchestrator and won an award on Broadway for "The Band's Visit." He is a very expressive keyboardist and uses a breath controller when he plays. He writes original compositions for orchestra and produces music for many other artists. A Worldsoul Records production On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100063982602329/videos/754156736747992 On YouTube: https://youtu.be/9DSAvtqxTyQ ..read more

Ep #175 The World Fusion Show Sampler #2 The World Fusion Show Sampler #2 featuring six of our previous guests doing live in the studio music, most of which was never aired before today. No interviews. Massamba Diop, superstar from Senegal on tama (with Tony Vacca also on tama), Abiodun Oyewole of The Last Poets doing his trademark fiery spoken word (also with Tony supporting), Jed Blume on handpan, Jim Matus on laoutar, Emily Lanxner on steel pan joined by Maestro Renald on hand drum and Stephen Katz on cello and shaker. A wide variety of fantastic musicians playing a wide variety of instrume ..read more

Ep #174 with John Hughes, composer and kora player, The kora is a 21 stringed harp that is common throughout West Africa. John builds his own koras employing his background as a sculptor and visual artist. A Worldsoul Records Production. www.derrikjordan.com Facebook: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/watch?v=2265963090403675 Youtube: https://youtu.be/BimqJ0RStJE Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/hilljoy/twfs-podcast-ep-7-john-hughes-192 ..read more

Ep #173 - with Sweet Plantain, World Fusion String Quartet Sweet Plantain is a dynamic latin-influenced string quartet from NYC but they are quite unusual in that their violinists double on trombone and mandolin. They also bring a wide range of World Music into their performances and original compositions. In this episode we get to hear their arrangement of the classic Brazilian samba “Chega De Saudade” and also some original compositions that feature rap, Swedish fusion and the Cole Porter song "Love For Sale." They have traveled around the world but mostly perform in NYC where they enjoy bri ..read more

Ep #171 with Valerie Naranjo, composer and gyil player Valarie Naranjo is Native-American and grew up in the southwest of the US in a musical family. She plays the gyil, the West African balafon from Ghana. She spent many summers in Ghana with her mentor. She has many pieces for gyil and Ghanaian orchestra some of which are included in this episode. She has been a member of the SNL Band for 29 years. A Worldsoul Records production derrikjordan.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=825253606284052&set=a.474080504734699 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3tAiOG2aTA Soundc ..read more

Ep #170 with Brian Shankar Adler, percussionist and composer Brian Shankar Adler began his life on an ashram and from a very early age started playing the tabla. He went on to study drum set and jazz in NYC. He is a teacher and composer and does many collaborations with musicians of all kinds. A Worldsoul Records production derrikjordan.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100063982602329/videos/1136409767348500 YouTube: https://youtu.be/xL42UxwmG1Q Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/hilljoy/ep-170-brian-shankar-adler-percussionist-and-composer ..read more

Ep #169 with Barbora Xu. singer, guzheng player and composer Ep #169 with Barbora Xu, singer, guzheng player and composer. Barbora Xu was born in Czechoslavakia and lives in Finland. She studied in China where she discovered the guzheng, a Chinese zither, that reminded her of her Finnish kantale. Her music is inspired by her love of nature. She works by adapting ancient Finnish song lyrics to her contemporary songs. A Worldsoul Records production derrikjordan.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100063982602329/videos/337709212380726 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D04EaJubE3g&t ..read more

Ep #168 with Mark Allan Stone, Array Mbira player and composer. Mark plays a new and very unusual instrument - the Array Mbira. It is based on the mbira (kalimba) from Zimbabwe and South Africa but it has been expanded to have 120 tines. You can play in any key and modulate keys freely. The instrument was invented by Fred Wesley and is not yet played by many people. Mark also plays marimba, gyil (balafon) and other African percussion instruments. He is deeply inspired by his Ghananian mentor Bernard Woma who played the gyil and one of his pieces is featured on this episode. Mark teaches a Worl ..read more