PRI's The World » April Peavey

Jazz Guitarist Yuto Kanazawa Writes ‘The Ocean’ in Aftermath of Fukushima Disaster

April Peavey — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 13:00:35 +0000

Yuto Kanazawa wanted to play pop and jazz standards when he first set out to become a professional musician.

He enrolled at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, and soon he was writing his own compositions.

Yuto Kanazawa performs “The Ocean.”

Kanazawa was far from his home city of Fukushima, Japan in March 2011 when the earthquake and tsunami devastated the northeast coast of Japan.

And the direction of his compositions changed.

Kanazawa came to The World studios recently and played one of those tunes, called “The Ocean.”

Watch the video above of his performance and interview with The World’s Marco Werman.

The Future of Reggae According to Former Jamaican Prime Minister Edward Seaga

April Peavey — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 13:00:24 +0000

Jamaica is the birthplace of ska, rocksteady and reggae.

And a new box set gives new scope to the history of all this great music.

It’s called “Reggae Golden Jubilee 50th Anniversary, Origins of Jamaican Music.”

It was compiled by Edward Seaga.

He’s the former Prime Minister of Jamaica, serving during the 1980s.

Before that, he led the JLP, or Jamaica Labor Party.

And before that Seaga was a record producer.

Over the years, Seaga has watched as Jamaican music production and musical culture changed.

Here’s Edward Seaga talking about the historic moment in 1978 when Bob Marley coaxed him and political rival Michael Manley on stage the One Love Concert.

And watch the historic moment from the “Marley” documentary by Kevin MacDonald.

Music Heard on Air for February 1, 2013

April Peavey — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 10:00:11 +0000

START TIME: 6:27

Mali Report
Algeria Interview
Turkey Interview
Amina Cachalia Obit

END TIME: 19:37

SONG: Softly Robin
ARTIST: Spiro
CD TITLE: Kaleidophonica
CD LABEL: Real World Records

START TIME: 21:00

Geo Quiz
Romania Ads Interview
Geo Answer Interview

SONG: Washingtonian
ARTIST: Super Hi-Fi
CD TITLE: Dub to the Bone
CD LABEL: Electric Cowbell

END TIME: 29:29

SONG: Sugar Water
ARTIST: Hollie Cook
CD TITLE: Hollie Cook
CD LABEL: Mr Bongo

START TIME: 32:53

Remi Ochlik Interview

SONG: Syriana
ARTIST: Al Bidayeh
CD TITLE: Syriana
CD LABEL: Real World

Latino Farmer’s Report
Rhinos Drone Interview

END TIME: 48:58

SONG: Flaximus
ARTIST: Brownout
CD TITLE: Oozy
CD LABEL: Nat Geo Music

START TIME: 50:00

Ireland Drunk Driving Pkg
Show Ender (Coppelia in Havana)

END TIME: 58:09

Hard Rock Sounds from the Swedish Band Graveyard

April Peavey — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 13:00:41 +0000

The music of the Swedish group Graveyard gives you a jolt, but in a good way.

The band’s drummer is Axel Sjöberg and he’s the one responsible for giving the band its jolt.

Rock drumming is a tough gig, physically.

“I guess it exhausts me because it’s quite energy draining to play live,” Sjöberg says.

But he also admits, it’s fun.

01/29/13 Asheville, NC The Orange Peel

01/30/13 Nashville, TN Exit/ In

01/31/13 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade

02/01/13 Memphis, TN The Hi-tone Cafe

02/02/13 St Louis, MO The Firebird

02/04/13 Detroit, MI The Shelter

02/05/13 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall

More Dates

Music Heard on the Air for January 28, 2013

April Peavey — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 14:00:02 +0000

START TIME: 6:27

Immigration Reform Pkg
Beneficiary of ’86 Amnesty Interview
Asian Dreamers Interview

END TIME: 19:37

SONG: Coombia Del Piano Triste
ARTIST: El Trip Selector
CD TITLE: Future Sounds of Buenos Aires
CD LABEL: ZZK Records

START TIME: 21:00

Mali Interview
Urban Farming Pkg

END TIME: 29:29

SONG: Nsu Na Kwan
ARTIST: Ebo Taylor
CD TITLE: Appia Kwa Bridge
CD LABEL: Strut Records

START TIME: 32:53

Brazil Fire Interview

SONG: Frost
ARTIST: Maggie Bjorklund
CD TITLE: Coming Home
CD LABEL: Bloodshot Records

Geo Quiz
Antarctic Melting Report
Geo Answer Interview

END TIME: 48:58

SONG: Jeeper Creeper
ARTIST: Sinkane
CD TITLE: Mars
CD LABEL: DFA Records

START TIME: 50:00

Burma Games Interview
Global Hit Pkg

END TIME: 58:09

Jazz Samba Singer and Pianist Tania Maria

April Peavey — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 13:00:23 +0000

Brazilian singer, pianist and bandleader Tania Maria fronted her first band when she was only 13.

Now at 64, Tania Maria is still going strong, releasing her 25th album recently. It’s called “Canto.”

Intimidade – 03/11 – Tania Maria en Live sur RTL by rtl-fr

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Music Heard on the Air for January 24, 2013

April Peavey — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 02:00:24 +0000

START TIME: 6:27

Obama and Drones Interview
Tweets about Drones Interview
Engineer Interview
Drones Pilots reader

END TIME: 19:37

SONG: La Poli
ARTIST: Daleduro
CD TITLE: Future Sounds of Buenos Aires
CD LABEL: ZZK Records

START TIME: 21:00

Spain Corruption Report
Mafia and Renewable Energy Interview

END TIME: 29:29

SONG: Familia Oca
ARTIST: Domenico
CD TITLE: Cine Prive
CD LABEL: Plug Research Music

START TIME: 32:53

Women in Combat Interview
VET Obit Remembrance
Identifying Migrants Interview

END TIME: 48:58

SONG: Tiwista
ARTIST: Samuel Yirga
CD TITLE: Guzo
CD LABEL: Real World

START TIME: 50:00

Geo Quiz and Answer
Global Hit

END TIME: 58:09

Music Heard on the Air for January 18, 2013

April Peavey — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 14:00:32 +0000

START TIME: 6:27

France Reaction Interview
Algeria Clip
Engineer Interview
Diplomat Rober Fowler reader

END TIME: 19:37

SONG: The Blues of Wollo (Dessye Mix)
ARTIST: Samuel Yirga
CD TITLE: Guzo
CD LABEL: Real World Records

START TIME: 21:00

China “Leftover” Report
Geo Quiz

END TIME: 29:29

SONG: Firma Ena Wereket
ARTIST: Samuel Yirga
CD TITLE: Guzo
CD LABEL: Real World Records

START TIME: 32:53

Lance Armstrong Report
Charity Interview
Fast Train Report
Mexico City Interview – Geo Answer

END TIME: 48:58

SONG: Abet Abet
ARTIST: Samuel Yirga
CD TITLE: Guzo
CD LABEL: Real World Records

START TIME: 50:00

No Pants in Jeruslam Report
Global Hit – Samuel Yirga

END TIME: 58:09

Ethiopia’s Samuel Yirga: From Dub Colossus to Solo Artist

April Peavey — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 13:00:54 +0000

Samuel Yirga is a member of the UK/Ethiopian group Dub Colossus.

Now, the pianist and composer branches out with a solo CD called “Guzo.” Anchor Marco Werman tells us about it.

The Tradition of Murder Ballads in Finland

April Peavey — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 13:00:36 +0000

With all the bleak and unsettling news happening around the globe, it could seem in bad taste for us to talk about murder ballads.

But bear with us.

You see, in Finland, there’s a long tradition of singing about murders.

And a Finnish duo calling itself “Murder Ballads” recently recorded a CD full of songs about murder.

Kimmo Pohjonen remembers singing some of these songs when he was a young boy. He says “it’s a funny thing that even children would sing these horrible songs.”

Cuban Government Confirms Cholera Outbreak in Havana

April Peavey — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 14:40:35 +0000

Here in the US everyone is talking about the flu epidemic.

In Cuba the concern is over cholera.

Cuban officials Tuesday confirmed an outbreak in Havana.

They say 51 people have been infected in the capital.

Cholera is a bacterial infection that can cause severe diarrhea, dehydration and in some cases death.

“Every time there’s a confirmed case doctors are going around, giving preventative antibiotics to people in neighborhood,” says the BBC’s Sarah Rainsford, who is in Havana.

Rainsford also says the government is closing down “bars and cafes unless they sell sealed bottles and cans or pre-packed food.”

Read the Transcript
The text below is a phonetic transcript of a radio story broadcast by PRI’s THE WORLD. It has been created on deadline by a contractor for PRI. The transcript is included here to facilitate internet searches for audio content. Please report any transcribing errors to theworld@pri.org. This transcript may not be in its final form, and it may be updated. Please be aware that the authoritative record of material distributed by PRI’s THE WORLD is the program audio.

Marco Werman: On this side of the Atlantic, disease outbreaks are in the news. Here in the U.S., everyone’s talking about the flu epidemic. In Cuba, the concern is over cholera. Cuban officials today confirmed an outbreak in Havana. They say 51 people have been infected in the capital. Cholera is a bacterial infection that can cause severe diarrhea, dehydration, and, in some cases death. The BBC’s Sarah Rainsford is in Havana, and the Cuban government, Sarah, had been denying there was this cholera outbreak, in Havana, and apparently the first case was detected January 6. Why did it take the government so long to actually admit there was an outbreak?

Sarah Rainsford: They hadn’t actually denied there was a cholera outbreak, but what they hadn’t done was give any concrete information on exactly what was going on, and they’d left it to the rumor mill to do its work. There’d been weeks of rumors here in Havana on the streets of a cholera outbreak. Just last Friday, I called the main hospital which I had been told was dealing with the cases. And one person there, who wasn’t authorized to speak officially, but one person there told me that the hospital wards were all dealing with cholera cases, or suspected cholera cases, and said that they were almost all full. And when I called back, another woman told me that there’d been no confirmed cases. So, there was an awful lot of confusion. And given that this is a disease which the World Health Organization and all sorts of international bodies say is crucial that there’s a lot of public information about it to prevent its spread, there was a huge lack of official information about it until now.

Werman: Well, you yourself reported on possible cholera cases ahead of the government announcement today. Do you think your reporting helped put pressure on the government to admit there was an outbreak?

Rainsford: I think certainly we’ve been asking for information, asking for official confirmation from the Health Ministry, and getting nothing. What has been happening on the ground is that family doctors have been going door to door and have been checking for symptoms of cholera in their neighborhoods. There are a huge number of doctors in Cuba and they’re very well informed about the patients that live in, that they’re responsible for in their particular neighborhood. And, so, in this case, we knew that doctors had been asking about people with sickness and diarrhea, and had been referring them to the main hospitals here for tests. And, I had spoken to one family, a family of five, including a boy of seven, who’d all been sent to hospital and had tested positive for cholera, they were all fine and well, they were back at home a week later, but the government was still not confirming that there was an outbreak. So, whilst doctors on the ground were doing their work, the Health Ministry was saying nothing. And I also spoke to the sister of a man who died on January the 6th, which was when this outbreak, we now understand, was first detected. She told me that the doctors told her that he had cholera. He had had two tests for cholera and both came back positive, so, as far as I understand, there is one death in this cholera outbreak, although still the Health Ministry is not confirming that officially.

Werman: Now, those Cuban doctors on the ground presumably helped to trace this outbreak to a food vendor, who caught it in the East of the country. Is this outbreak in Havana connected to a previous outbreak in Cuba?

Rainsford: It does appear to be, and I think perhaps the reason the information is so slow in coming out is that the government, like happened in a previous outbreak last summer in the East of the island, the government likes to wait until it has the situation entirely under control before it actually tells people what’s going on. In a case like cholera, what’s absolutely crucial is public information, the public needs to know what’s going on, they need to know what measures to take to protect themselves, washing their hands, making sure that food is properly cleaned and prepared, and using, perhaps, purifying solutions in their water to make sure that they’re protected. Here in Cuba, the family doctors were doing that in the particularly effected neighborhoods, but the whole country, the whole of the city, and don’t forget how many tourists come to Havana, they knew nothing about it.

Werman: So, what are the officials, what are officials in Cuba doing to keep the epidemic contained? Does it start with just getting information out?

Rainsford: Well, I think that’s obviously a crucial part of it, and finally that’s happened now. Every time there’s a confirmed case, doctors are going ’round, they’re giving preventative antibiotics to people, a course of antibiotics to everyone who lives nearby in the neighborhood, and they’re also closing down bars and cafes, and saying that unless they sell sealed bottles of drink, or sealed cans, or pre-packed food, then they’re not allowed to sell food and drink on the streets anymore. So, fairly strict measures in place. I understand that the bus station here, you’re also having to have your shoes disinfected as you come in and out of the bus station. So, a lot of measures in place now, and I think crucially, finally, the information out there too.

Werman: The BBC’s Sarah Rainsford, in Havana. Thanks a lot.

Rainsford: Thank you.

Copyright ©2012 PRI’s THE WORLD. All rights reserved. No quotes from the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to PRI’s THE WORLD. This transcript may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without prior written permission. For further information, please email The World’s Permissions Coordinator at theworld@pri.org.

Music Heard on the Air, January 10, 2013

April Peavey — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 14:00:44 +0000

START TIME: 6:27

Google Korea Diplomacy Interview
Diplomacy in Paris Package
Kurdish Activists Killed

END TIME: 19:37

SONG: Shadow Thief
ARTIST: Andreas Kapsalis and Coran Ivanovic
CD TITLE: Guitar Duo
CD LABEL: www.akciduo.com

START TIME: 21:00

Israel Also-Ran Parties Report
Iran Music Interview

END TIME: 29:29

SONG: Gerogina +2
ARTIST: Tareq Abboushi & Shusmo
CD TITLE: Mumtastic
CD LABEL: shusmo.com

START TIME: 32:53

Rhodes Scholar Syria Interview
Venezuela Expats Report
Geo Quiz

SONG: Djarabi
ARTISTS: Toubab Krewe
CD TITLE: Toubab Krewe
CD LABEL: Upstream Records

END TIME: 48:58

MUSIC:
SONG: Aarthi
ARTIST: Red Baraat
CD TITLE: Shruggy Ji
CD LABEL: Sinj Records

START TIME: 50:00

Geo Answer and Dictator’s Daughter Interview

END TIME: 58:09

David Bowie Breaks Decade-Long Musical Silence

April Peavey — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 13:00:31 +0000

David Bowie has musically been out of the public eye for 10 years.

And so it came as a total surprise when David Bowie released a new single and video Tuesday.

The song is called “Where Are We Now?”

John Wilson of the BBC arts program Front Row says, “Some Bowie fans some can barely contain their excitement. I’ve seen on Twitter this morning several people talking about being in tears listening to this song. So I mean, okay, it’s a pop release but he’s an artist, he’s a proper artist. He doesn’t release records because it’s time for another record. He releases records when there is something for him to say.”

What’s your take? Do you like what Bowie has to say with “Where Are We Now?” Add your thoughts in the comments below.

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Discovering South African Opera Singer Mthetho Maphoyi

April Peavey — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 13:00:27 +0000

Here’s the story of how a young man from a township near Cape Town, South Africa, wound up singing opera.

His name is Mthetho Maphoyi. And he was discovered by pianist Derk Blaisse quite by chance.

In 2012 Mthetho Maphoyi sung at the TedxTeen conference in New York City.
His performance is below.

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Welsh Band Pays Tribute to Samoa for Jumping the International Dateline

April Peavey — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 13:00:50 +0000

The Welsh band Howl Griff had the honor of being the FIRST band to have their music broadcast in 2013.

Their song, International Dateline, was played at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s by a radio station in Samoa.

In 2011, the Pacific Island nation switched its time zone becoming the very first country to ring in the New Year.

This provided Howl Griff the inspiration to write the song.

Band members sent an mp3 of the track to the D-J’s at radio station Samoa F-M, who decided to play it.

As singer Hywel Griffiths says, “You get a lot of Christmas singles, but this is probably the first New Year’s single.”

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