Travel Notes

Travel Notes highlights the LEAF Global Arts retreat happening May 9-12 in historic lake Eden, NC and talks with special guests, Jennifer Pickering who is the co executive director of LEAF Global Arts non-profit based in Asheville NC and Adama Dembele, LEAF Cultural Ambassador who is also a talented djembe and balafon player from the Ivory Coast. They listen to some of Adama’s music and dive into everything you need to know about LEAF Global Arts Retreat and the organization as a whole!

In today’s episode of Travel Notes we are talking with Derek Gripper who has been on the show before and a renowned South African guitarist, whose love for the kora set him to transcribing and recording some of its greatest works. He is joined by Malian kora virtuoso, Ballaké Sissoko for their upcoming performance at the Savannah Music Festival this weekend, March 30th at 5:30 PM and 8PM. For their performance, Sissoko and Gripper explore the ancient musical traditions of the griots of Mali in their performance titled: The Art of the Kora.

This episode features an unreleased bonus track at the end of the program which will be on Derek & Ballaké album, 'Derek Gripper & Ballaké Sissoko' coming out in early May 2024

Join us on today's episode of Travel Notes as we journey to Uppsala, Sweden to chat with folk musician Gabbi from the Nordic folk/rock band, FRÄNDER.

I was lucky enough to catch FRÄNDER live at the Scandinavia House in New York City earlier this year and I can tell you first hand that you guys are in for a treat. Not only is their music dynamic and fantastic live, it’s also very thoughtfully rooted in Nordic folk music traditions which we dive into in more detail in today’s show.

On today’s episode of Travel Notes, we are featuring a musical group that had humble beginnings on a farm in South Africa some 63 years ago. Today, they are living legends whose music has played a pivotal role during the apartheid in South Africa. Nelson Mandela listened to their music while he was imprisoned during the apartheid citing their music carried a powerful message of peace. 

Today’s featured guest is the legendary group, Ladysmith Black Mambazo

 We dive into their origin story, the style of music they sing, their new 2023 album ‘Soothe My Soul: Songs From Our South African Church’ and revisit some of their most memorable moments throughout their incredible six decade long career. They’ve won more grammys than any other world music group in recorded music history - and today I’m honored to have Albert Mazibuko who is celebrating his 55th year as a member of Ladysmith Black Mambazo on the show.

Drum roll….it’s the first episode of Travel Notes for 2024! I’m so excited about this year’s first guest - Clay Ross, a multi-grammy award winning guitarist/vocalist, composer and educator about his group American Patchwork Quartet or APQ. I saw the American Patchwork Quartet perform at the APAP conference in NYC this past January and was absolutely blown away by their live performance and music.

This dynamic and virtuosic group binds timeless American folk songs with jazz sophistication, country twang, West African hypnotics, and East Asian ornamentation on their debut self titled album which comes out Friday, February 9th. 

Throughout the album, we find potent symbols of unity in diversity, exploring universal truths through a range of musical languages and cultural lenses - themes like longing, heartbreak, desire, fulfillment, tranquility and love...ultimately revealing the joys, sorrows, and unwavering hope of a nation crafted by shared dreams and diverse histories.

In this episode of Travel Notes we are exploring the current political and cultural dynamic in Cuba through the eyes and upcoming album of Grammy nominated powerhouse duo, Elizabeth Rodriguez and Magdelys Savigne’s who perform under the name OKAN. Fusing Afro-Cuban roots with jazz, folk and global rhythms in songs about immigration, resistance and love, OKAN takes their name from the word for heart in their Afro-Cuban religion of Santeria.

Today on Travel Notes Grace is joined by special guest is Kurtis Lamkin, a Philadelphia born and Charleston based poet and musician specializing in the west african kora and an instrument called the jinjin. In true griot fashion, he blurs the line between poet, musician and storyteller. Kurt has performed on stage, radio, film, and television, and was one of the featured poets in the Bill Moyers documentary, Fooling With Words. He also hosted MultiKultiMove, a reading series featuring writers from around the world; and produced a radio series called, “Living Proof: Contemporary Black Literature.”And as Mark Nepo, NYTimes best selling author puts it - “Kurtis Lamkin is a singular talent of our generation entering his years of mastery. He is an innovator, a storyteller, a musician, a poet and a moral historian who has studied and mastered the kora, a West African bridge harp with twenty-one strings...And in the tradition of Homer he travels the country singing the truth of our history, the hope of our humanity, and the imagination of our community…”

In this episode of Travel Notes, we embark on the first leg of a journey through Venezuela's rich musical landscape with award winning Venezuelan born Toronto based musician, Eliana Cuevas. Her most recent album, Seré Libre, blends together classical, jazz, Afro-Venezuelan rhythms and folk music to create a seamless reflection of the multifaceted music of Venezuela.

Join host Grace McNally for an all new Travel Notes episode on Native American music and culture featuring Cathy Nelson from Keepers of the Word, an organization that works to preserve South Carolina Native culture and Two Piece, a Charleston based musical duo comprised of Delia Chariker and Bill Whittaker.