Month: November 2011

  • Bombino: Nov 29 concert archived online & interview

    Update: Full audio of this concert is archived here The excellent new Tuareg guitarist, Omar Moctar, known as Bombino, played a blistering set this past July at the Lula Lounge, to a highly enthusiastic, but much-too-small audience. He’s touring again, but unfortunately will miss Toronto this time around. Catch him live online though, in a […]

  • Youssou N’Dour to Put Music on Hold and Turn to Politics

    From the New York Times“Arts Beat”: With his country gearing up for a hotly contested presidential election early next year the Senegalese singer and songwriter Youssou N’Dour, one of the biggest stars of the “world music” genre, is putting his career on hold to plunge into the political fray. It’s not clear in what capacity […]

  • Benefit concert for John Collins with Afrafranto: Dec. 11: Updated Dec 10

    One of the greatest archivists and collectors of West African music, Professor John Collins of Ghana last month experienced a severe flood and mudslide, which damaaged and destroyed much of the material he has been assembling since the 1970’s. His home is in the same premises, and his family narrowly escapted drowning. The Bokoor African […]

  • Odds, ends & catchups

    As noted previously, I haven’t been able to post updates or newsletters recently. The events page (www.events.to-music.ca) now has extensive updates through the new year. Below are a few scatttered items that have been accumulating recently, in no particular order: “Music for Peace” Steve Paikin, on TVO’s “The Agenda” interviews David Buchbinder (Flying Klezmer Bulgar […]

  • Bassekou… and other upcoming events

    A few upcoming shows of note. Details of these, and many more (going into the new year) are posted at www.events.to-music.ca   Nov. 27: Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba West African music fans around Toronto have been looking forward to this Sunday’s concert for some time: Bassekou Kouyaté and Ngoni Ba make their second Toronto […]