December 6, 2012
Scenes for Adventurous Armchair Travelers
This Week, we present you with some ultra-vivid audio scenes from Mali to Morocco to Tanzania to Zimbabwe to Cuba to Brazil to Ecuador and beyond (complemented by our gorgeous photo essays.) Let your imagination take you with us as we travel to some of the most exciting musical destinations anywhere.
Mali
Mali is one of Afropop’s favorite musical destinations. From the magnificent griot singers primarily in the south to the Tuareg rockers in the north, this is a magical country to visit—the grand mud mosque at Djenne on market day to hiking in Dogon country to traveling by boat down the Niger River to hanging out at Bamako nightclubs. Of course, you can't forget two of Africa’s best festivals, the "Festival in the Desert" in Timbuktu and the less well-known "Festival on the Niger." Of course, given the current situation in Mali, almost all sightseeing has come to a total standstill. Yet the festival in the desert is still being held in defiance of northern fundamentalists, and Mali's musical community has faced terrible trauma with its spirit unbowed. * Featured Artist: Ali Farka Toure * Festival Au DesertZanzibar, Tanzania
Madagascar
Guinea
Cuba
Brazil
Peru
Dominican Republic
Mozambique