African music
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Album review: ″Ensen″ by Emel Mathlouthi
Princess melancholy
Tunisian singer-songwriter Emel Mathlouthi first shot to fame with her hit "Kelmtil Horra", which was adopted as the unofficial anthem of the Arab Spring. With her latest offering, ″Ensen″, Emel has produced the perfect album for our times. By Richard Marcus
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Album review: "Jinja" by The Nile Project
Go with the flow
Thirteen musicians from seven countries came together to work on "Jinja", sharing not only a love of music, but another concern as well – preserving the Nile River. By Richard Marcus
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Album review: "Jamal" by Alkibar Jr.
Mali's musical resistance
Despite attempts by the former Malian government to brand the Tamasheq as terrorists and turn the general population against them, not to mention the Islamists′ drive to ban music and turn Muslim against Muslim in a bid for control and power, the album "Jamal" by newcomers Alkibar Jr. stands for unification and a better future. By Richard Marcus
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Project: ″Music Spaces in the Arab World″
Between the pots and pans
The Arabic music scene is booming. The Goethe-Institut is therefore creating new spaces and networking opportunities for local artists. Living rooms and kitchens from Tunis to Baghdad are being converted into concert halls. The Musikraum project showcases the sound of Middle Eastern indie-pop between the pots and pans and reveals what it is that Sudanese girl groups sing about. By Friederike van Stephaudt
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Album review: ″Abbar el Hamada″ by Aziza Brahim
The agony of dispossession
While singing about the hopes and aspirations of her own people, Aziza Brahim has created an album of songs which captures the plight of refugees and displaced peoples everywhere. Richard Marcus listened to this powerful and heartrending collection
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Album review: "Alone" by Terakaft
The lions of Tamasheq music
Since 2012, the Kel Tamasheq way of life has been under renewed threat from the violence of insurgents. But according to Richard Marcus, if the insurgents thought they would be able to shut Tamasheq bands up and obliterate Tamasheq culture by forcing them into exile, they were very wrong indeed. Bands such as Terakaft are determined to keep their traditions and culture alive through their music
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Album: ″Lost in Mali″
Celebrating a musical landscape
Showcasing a rich diversity of West African music traditions, ″Lost in Mali″ plunges the listener into a world apart. Incidental audio footage of street sounds and children playing enhances the ″on-location″ feel. Richard Marcus reviews the album
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The "Musiques Sacrees du Monde" festival
Fez: an African reflection
Morocco's cultural ties with the regions beyond the Sahara provided the fascinating theme for the most recent Festival of World Sacred Music in the Moroccan city of Fez. Stefan Franzen was there
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Album review: "Bamako Today" by the BKO Quintet
A fascinating mix of the old and the new
The BKO Quintet was founded during the state of emergency in Mali in 2012. Even though the tracks on the quintet's album "Bamako Today" feature primarily traditional Malian instruments, the resulting sound is anything but typical of the music of this country. According to Richard Marcus, it is raw and both extraordinary and thrilling to the ear
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Album review: "Kirike" by Kasse Mady Diabate
"Understanding is what we wish for: to live in peace"
Kasse Mady Diabate has been described as "the greatest singer in Mali". He is more than just a singer, he is also a griot: an oral historian and musical storyteller. On his latest CD, "Kirike", Kasse Mady Diabate goes back to his musical roots. The result, says Richard Marcus, is captivating
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Abderrahmane Sissako's film "Timbuktu"
In the beginning there was violence
Abderrahmane Sissako's film "Timbuktu" portrays the nightmarish horror of Islamist rampages and at the same time invokes gentleness as a source of resistance. The compelling story is captured in masterful imagery by the cameraman Sofiane El Fani. By Hans-Jörg Rother
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Album review: "The Paris Session" by The Touré-Raichel Collective
Expanding each other's musical horizons
An Israeli keyboard player/composer, a Malian guitarist and a chance meeting in an airport that resulted in an amazing meeting of musical worlds. Richard Marcus on The Touré-Raichel Collective's second album, "The Paris Session"