I spent a fair amount of time this weekend in my office trying to decide whether “astonishing” or “riveting” was a better adjective to use in a report. With only the sound of the air conditioning to keep me company, I decided to catch up on some long-neglected Canada Live podcasts. First in my queue … More Music Monday – Rose Cousins
Deep in the recesses of my brain are bits and pieces of the thousands of hours of television and movies I watched as a kid. Brief clips of David & Goliath, that staple of Sunday morning cartoons, merge with the opening credits of Battle of the Planets and the theme song to Casper the Friendly … More The Violin
For the past couple of years I’ve been listening primarily to musicians from the Prairies. Fortunately Manitoba and Saskatchewan have produced an incredible number of great bands and solo artists, so getting to know them was more fun than work. Now that the festival is over, I’ve been able to spend some time checking out … More Music Monday: Royal Wood
A couple of weeks ago I picked the debut album by Mumford & Sons. I hadn’t read much about them, missed their performance at the Grammys, and hadn’t heard any of their songs. I put the CD on for the drive home and broke into a huge grin – it’s a fun album, and I … More Under the Influence
A couple of weeks ago, The Guardian published an article on thumb pianos – mbira, kalimba, etc. It’s a good introduction, and you can find the full article here. Most percussionists at one point or another study some form of African percussion – for me, it meant dabbling a bit in Ugandan amadinda music in … More A Little Mbira Music
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