The World Fusion Show

Ep #66 with Arcomusical, berimbau and vocal sextet. What's a berimbau? A musical bow. Hence the name of this truly unique and innovative group from Illinois who use this simple ancient African and Brazilian instrument in a whole new way. They fine tune the single string on the bow to different pitches and together are able to create some beautiful chords and textures. Then they add their voices. Y...

EP #65 with Frevo, World Fusion Chamber Quartet. Frevo is a quartet of mixed stings and winds - flute, clarinet, cello and guitar - who enjoy presenting a wide variety of music to their audiences. From The Beatles to World Music they cover the globe. In this episode they perform three of my World Fusion classical pieces - Two Brazilian influenced compositions (Dream Of Bahia and Everyone Loves Bra...

Ep #64 with Glen Velez, frame drummer and composer. Glen Velez is a master of the frame drum and works with many people including Trio Globo with Howard Levy and Eugene Friesen. He has traveled to Egypt and Morocco to further his studies. His phenomenal technique on the frame drum always serves his expression and deep musicality. On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/109866072979176/videos/5700025...

Ep #63 on The World Fusion Show - Sampler #5. We bring you six of our fantastic guest artists with unreleased performances from when they were here with us in Brattleboro, VT at BCTV. Bideew Bou Bess, Joel Veena, Crocodile River Music, Lath Sidiq, Gokh-Bi System and Tantra Zawadi are featured. An embarrassment of riches! On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-World-Fusion-Show-109866072979176/?...

Ep #62 with Mei Han, zheng player and composer. Mei Han grew up in China during the cultural revolution and her exposure to music was limited to propaganda songs praising Mao and the Communist Party. She started learning the ancient zheng which was considered to be a dying instrument. She directs a Chinese World Fusion Quartet called Red Chamber and has worked with musicians from all over the worl...

Ep #61 with Steve Gorn, bansuri flutist and composer. Steve has devoted his life to the study of the Indian bansuri flute and is considered by many to be the foremost non-Indian bansuri player in the world. He performs with many World Fusion musicians in a variety of styles but his signature beautiful flute sound is the centerpiece of his work. On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-World-Fusio...

Ep #60 with Howard Levy, composer, harmonica and piano player. Howard Levy is a truly innovative musician who has expanded the range of the blues harp by finding all the "other" notes. He plays harmonica and piano often at the same time. He is a wonderful composer and a member of The Flecktones and Trio Globo. He wrote a concerto for harmonica and orchestra which has been performed all over the wo...

Ep #59 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. On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pg/The-World-Fu...

Ep #58 with Om Shalom Trio, Indian and Jewish fusion. They bring together Indian classical and folk along with Jewish and Western Classical music. Abhik Mukherjee plays sitar, Ranendra Das plays tabla and percussion and Jessie Reagen Mann plays the cello. On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pg/The-World-Fusion-Show-109866072979176/videos/ On YouTube: https://youtu.be/XPXDwwwlLlc Podcast: https:/...

Ep #57 with Yulia Musayelyan, flutist and composer. Yulia Musayelyan grew up in Russia and started playing classical music at a very early age. She has been deeply influenced by the music of Argentina, Venezuela and Brazil and teaches at Berklee in Boston. She has a beautiful sound and is a very adept improviser. The World Fusion Show brings you interviews, video clips and live in the studio perfo...

Ep #56 with Senie Hunt, percussive guitarist and singer songwriter. Senie Hunt was born into war-torn Sierra Leone and was adopted by a family in NH when he was 5. He has used his love of music to overcome his traumatic early life. He is currently performing throughout New England with his percussive style guitar playing and his original songs. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-World-Fusion-S...

Ep #55 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. On Facebook: https://www.facebo...

Ep #54 with Derrik Jordan, World Fusion String Quartets. This episode features excerpts of 4 of my 7 World Fusion String Quartets, each one inspired by a different style of World Music. For these string quartets I have added one or two unusual instruments like shakuhachi, electric guitar, djembe, kalimba, shekere, steel pan and congas. The idea behind these pieces is to create new hyhbrid styles b...

Ep #53 - Sampler #4 on The World Fusion Show. Featuring six of our deeply talented musical guests with unreleased performances from the show. Moonlight and Morningstar, Erik Lawrence, Tantra Zawadi, Jim Matus, John Sheldon and Yehuda Glantz. All music, no interviews. Check it out and let me know what you think! A Worldsoul Records production derrikjordan.com On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/T...

Ep #52 with the Worldbeat band Simba. Simba has been one of the most popular groups in southern VT for 30 years. Playing a wide variety of danceable World music with their legendary Solstice celebrations, they always keep the people moving and grooving. Known for their blazing horns and scorching percussion, they also feature three composers in the band. A Worldsoul Records production derrikjordan...

Ep #51 with Leni Stern, guitarist and singer-songwriter. Leni Stern plays a gold Fender Stratocaster and is very inspired by the music of Mali, where she has traveled and performed many times. She works with some of the top superstar musicians in Mali. She also plays ngoni and has a unique fusion of American and African music in her songs. On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-World-Fusion-Sho...

Ep # 50 with Yehuda Glantz, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Yehuda was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and has lived for many years in Jerusalem. He is a wonderful songwriter and composer and has a very deep spiritual and uplifting energy in his music. He plays charango, accordion, guitar, piano and sings. In this episode he performs three of his songs with the Israeli Symphony Orches...

Ep #49 with Carpe Diem String Quartet. From their roots as orchestral Classical musicians, Carpe Diem have taken on the world in their endless pursuit of global culture. On this episode we hear them playing music by an Iranian composer, an excerpt from Chinese composer Tan Dun's Ghost opera and an original Bluegrass composition by their violist Korine Fujiwara. They always take a deep dive into ev...

Ep #48 with Joel Veena, Indian slide guitarist and composer. Joel Veena plays an unusual instrument that is now well established in India although it is relatively new on the scene. He performs in the US and in India and studies with a master Indian sarod player. He grew up in Brattleboro, VT and his initial musical inspiration was Bob Marley. This is our first episode that features Indian music b...

Ep #47 with Joris Feuillatre, ngoni player and composer. Joris Feuillatre lives in France and plays the kamale ngoni which is a West African harp that usually has 8-14 strings. He has a deep connection to Mali. He builds and sells ngonis and plays with a wide range of World Fusion musicians. On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-World-Fusion-Show-109866072979176/?ref=bookmarks On YouTube: http...

Ep #46 with Gokh-Bi System, World Fusion hip hop. Gokh-Bi System began in Senegal, arrived in the US twenty years ago and have gone through a number of personnel changes but Mamadou Ndaiye and Sana Ndaiye have been leading the group all along. Sana plays the ekonting (a West African banjo) that has a long history in the culture of the Casamance from southern Senegal. They mix a wide range of style...

Ep #45 with Mohamed Amine Kalai, kanun player and composer. Mohamed Amine Kalai plays the kanun, a Turkish zither, and lives in Tunisia. He plays traditional, original and European classical music - sometimes with the Tunisian Symphonic Orchestra. He has a duo with concert harpist Maia Darme called Harkan. This episode for The World Fusion Show was skyped with Mohamed in Tunisia. Facebook: https:/...

Ep #44 with Crocodile River Music - Malian Fusion. Based in Worcester, MA, The Crocs are a dynamic Malian World Fusion group. Three of the members joined me on The World Fusion Show to share their traditionally based music and their vision of bringing art and culture to our community. Included is an excerpt of my piece Bamako Beyond which is a collaboration they did with The Worcester Chamber Musi...

Ep #43 with Layth Sidiq, violinist, singer and composer. Layth was born in Baghdad and grew up in Jordan in a very musical family. He went on to study music at Berklee in the US and is a member of many groups including the Berklee Indian Ensemble. He has a partnership with Vasilis Kostas who plays the laouto (Greek lute) who joins him on this episode for the live music. Layth's accomplishments are...

Ep #42 with Moonlight and Morningstar, singer-songwriters. Moonlight Davis and Morningstar Chenven spread their messages of love and harmony through their visionary songs. Moonlight is one of the finest gospel and R&B singers I have ever worked with. They are environmental activists and even wrote a song that helped stop the pipeline going through Massachusetts. You will love this episode! You can...