Topic Records' World Series

Various - Poetry And Languid Charm - Swahili Music From Tanzania and Kenya From The Late 1920s - 1950s - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-936)
As recorded music developed in the early part of the 20th century, there was more and more pressure on commercial record labels to capitalise on indigenous music in Africa, Asia, South America and the Caribbean. This was not some sort of altruistic exercise, rather a market that was open to exploitation. On the East African coast, site of the present day Tanzania and Kenya, there was a "gold rush" fever in the 1930s to record the local music stars. The music recorded was mostly "taarab", sung poetry accompanied by an ensemble that played with both traditional African rhythms with Arabic influences and used Arabic and Indian instruments. This exciting music is being here released on CD for the first time and has been remastered to produce outstanding sound quality from the original 78 rpm recordings.

Various (2 CDs) - Songs Of Survival - Traditional Music Of Georgia - $24.99
(cdRoots# topic-935)
Georgia lies on the Black Sea to the west, shares borders with Turkey and Armenia in the south and Azerbaijan in the east. Formerly part of the Soviet Union, Georgia is a small, very mountainous and poor country with a population of under five million but with a rich and ancient cultural life, mainly centring around music. Considering itself European, Georgia is at the crossroads of the east and west, a Christian country influenced by its Muslim neighbours. Songs of Survival is a comprehensive survey of the traditional music of Georgia with well over two hours of mostly vocal music celebrating the three part polyphonies that lie at the heart of its musical life. There is a 28 page illustrated booklet with copious background notes as well as notes on the songs and performances - hymns, carols, lullabies, work songs, wrestling music, wedding songs, healing songs, city songs. Georgia’s male polyphony is one of the musical wonders of the world. Both archaic and modernist, and melding influences from east and west

Various - Songs Of Defiance - Music Of Chechnya And The North Caucasus - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-934)
In this first ever survey of the music of this region, Michael Church shows us a vibrant musical tradition. The small but troubled Republic of Chechnya is a member of the Russian Federation, located in the North Caucasus Mountains between the Black and Caspian Seas. With a population of a little more that one million, its fight for independence has kept it in the news and kept visitors out. Michael Church has recorded and compiled the stunning music on this disc, partly in Chechnya itself. Some of the tracks are love songs and circle dances, others are living history, accompanied by balalaika, violin, drum and accordion, these songs celebrate heroes and denounce genocidal crimes.

various - Voices For Humans, Ancestors And Gods: A Musical Journey Through India's Interior (East And North East) - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-933)
This acoustic journey starts in Eastern India, and travels up the Ghat mountain range, into the plains of Western Bengal. In the North East it enters the Assamese river delta and finally climbs up to the Himalayan highlands. This musical journey roughly follows the real journey of the sound recordist Rolf Killius, who has been documenting Indian music for the last ten years. This selection comprises regional music cultures (bargit, odissi, bhajan, Baul and loko geet), music of the minstrel balladeers (Daasari, Maasti and Baul) and music of the Adivasi cultures (Saora, Deori and Monpa).The collection focuses on what many believe to be India's primary melody instrument - the voice. It includes many incredibly rare performances including those of the Adivasi, the original inhabitants of India. Most of the performances are accompanied, variously, on thumbra (3 string lute), drums, jenjurungrai (lute), cymbals and other percussion, violin, tambura, murali flute, etc etc.

various - Falak, The Voice Of Destiny: Traditional, Popular and Symphonic Music Of Tajikistan (2 CDs) - $21.99
(cdRoots# topic-932)
Falak, (literally "sky" or "destiny") is a characteristic musical genre of the rural mountain regions of Tajikistan in Central Asia. Falak songs "cry to the sky" of the transient nature of life and separation from loved ones induced by a perceived inescapable fate. Tajik mountain music also comprises folk, dance and wedding songs, as well as a tradition of epic singing and settings of Persian classical poems. This double CD highlights the crossover – the continuity and change – between rural and urban, traditional and modern, old and new, and includes exciting contemporary popular and symphonic music. Whether rooted in local practices or borrowed from elsewhere, all these musical expressions belong ultimately to the Tajik people and forma fertile musical world with a distinctive Tajik character.

various - Women Of Egypt 1924-1931: Pioneers Of Stardom And Fame - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-931)
Featuring: Umm Kulthumm, Fathiyyah Ahmed, Munira al-Mahdiyyah etc.... A CD compilation of Arab women, stars of Egyptian theatre and song who recorded in the nineteen twenties and early thirties. Taken from original 78rpm recordings of the time and remastered to the highest standards, this collection features among others the legendary Umm Kulthum. Between 1890 and 1920, theatres and European-style cabarets sprang up all over Egypt. Performers flocked there from all over the Arab world and from Europe. Isadora Duncan, Pavlova and Mistinguette included Cairo in their world tours. At their peak, the most famous female Arabic women singers were earning as much, if not more, than their male counterparts. The 1920s was the heyday of this music and its recordings and these performers can be seen as having struck a blow for the emancipation of women. The Wall Street crash and the associated economic downturn marked the end of the recording industries' boom years, leaving us a legacy of remarkable performances of imme

various - Bagpipes of Greece - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-930)
An collection of authentic Greek bagpipes recorded across the entire country over the last thirty years. Many of the musicians are shepherds and peasants and have been recorded in their homes or local environments. Currently, Greece appears to have no bagpipe revival (perhaps due to the lack of bagpipe makers) so these recordings chronicle a rare traditional culture. Recorded and annotated by Wolf Dietrich.

various - Songs From The Steppes: Kazakh Music Today - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-929)
Invited to judge a classical piano competition in the Kazakh capital, Astana, music critic Michael Church stumbled on a parallel competition for players on the flute and horse-hair fiddle, and for ballad singers self-accompanied on the lute. Realising that the cultural heritage of this vast and politically crucial land was unknown in the West, Church went back to record Kazakh nomad music in both Astana and in the old capital, Almaty, near the border with Kyrgystan. Church's recordings reflect the vigour of Kazakhstan's present-day bardic tradition, and the virtuosity of the horse-hard fiddlers. It also reveals the music young musicians are creating with ancient instruments like the jew's harp and zither which combine with the richness of Kazakhstan's vocal music. A unique look at a culture not often heard from.

various - Blowers From The Balkans: Classic Historic Recordings - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-928)
Classic Historic Recordings featuring clarinet, tárogató, nai, bagpipes, kaval - A remarkable collection of recordings from players of wind instruments from the countries that make up the Balkans: Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Albania and the former Yugoslavia. The recordings were made from 1906 through the mid 1940s. All have been nicely re-mastered. The featured instruments include clarinets (and related reed instruments), panpipes, bagpipe and flutes with a variety of backings. Includes detailed notes from the compiler Risto Pekka Pennanen as well as historic photographs.

Various Cuban - Out Of Cuba: Latin American Music Takes Africa By Storm - $special order
(cdRoots# topic-927)
This HMV GV series is a catalogue of roughly 250 double sided 78rpm discs issued between 1933 and about 1958, comprising almost entirely Latin music, mainly from Cuba but also from Puerto Rico and Brazil. It drew on recordings originated by Gramaphone and Victor (hence the GV prefix). The series was aimed initially at the West African market, but subsequently reached and became very popular across the entire African continent, particularly in the Congos. This CD provides a snapshot of what African musicians heard as they listened to the GV recordings on record, on the radio and live in local bars.

Jarana's Four Aces - Vocal Duels From The Streets Of Lima - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-926)
This recording from Peru, produced in 1958 by the late Latin American literary historian, Professor José Durand Flórez (Peru, 1925-1990) is unique in that it features Manuael Quintana Olivares and Augusto Ascuez Villanueva, two of the most important practitioners of jarana who have ever lived, singing canto de jarana with Elías Ascuez Villanueva and Luciano Huambachano Temoche (both also playing guitars), known locally as the four aces. This CD tells a fascinating story of the emergence of the genre jarana, with the development of perhaps Latin America's most intriguing capital city and the people who lived there and created this exceptional music.

Topic World Series - The Kings Musicians: Royalist Music Of Buganda-Uganda - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-925)
Possibly no other African rulers maintained such a rich variety of musical ensembles at their courts as the Kabakas (kings) of Buganda. Here is a unique sample of this musical richness, featuring the two different xylophone ensembles, the royal flute band, the songs of the king's harpist and lyre players, as well as praise drumming and dancing.

Ewe Drumming From Ghana - the soup which is sweet draws the chairs in closer - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-924)
The Ewe people of Ghana and Togoare reknowned for their polyrhythmic drumming and beautiful call and response singing. Travelling through this region, one is struck by the way in which they have preserved their traditional music alongside the new cultural ideas brought by globalisation. The Dzigbordi group is a community dance drumming group that people from all age groups can join. On this CD they perform several classic dances from the Ewe repertoire before moving on to their own 'proprietary' dance - The Dzigbordi (Patience) Dance. Usually these dances are performed live at funerals and religious ceremonies, but for this recording, the group chose a secluded courtyard outside the town, resulting in a crystal clear sound that showcases both the drums and the songs.

Topic World Series - Gumboot Guitar: Zulu Street Guitar Music From South Africa - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-923)
Rootsy guitar from the streets of Durban. In the late 19th century, music previously played on Zulu musical bows was transferred in the new urban environment to the guitar and often concertina and violin too. Musicians often joined miners' gumboot dance teams to accompany this exhilarating genre, which mostly traditionally takes place on the streets of single-sex hostel compounds. These recordings from 1988 and 1996 feature musicians and gumboot players who live in one such hostel outside Durban.

Topic World Series - Drumming and Chanting In God's Own Country: The Temple Music Of Kerala In South India - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-922)
Recordings in and around the Hindu temples of Kerala in Southern India between 1995 and 1997, which demonstrate the vast range of performance genres. The huge percussion orchestra performances, the ancient styles of devotional singing, and the small music ensembles featuring rare traditional instruments like the huge C-shaped horn, the kombu, are some of these electrifying styles.

Various Asian Artists - Before the Revolution - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-921)
Back in stock: A 1909 Recording Expedition In The Caucasus And Central Asia By The Gramophone Company, music from Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Chechnya and other culture groups in the northern Caucasus, as well as Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Xinjiang in Central Asia

various Artists - The Yemen Tihama (Topic World Series 920) - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-920)
Tibbal music from the Tihama, Red Sea coastal plain of the Yemen, is an Afro-Arabian amalgam featuring lyres, reeds and virtuosic drumming. It is performed by members of the akhdam, an outcast group with a reputation for sorcery.

Various Artists - The Moken: Sea Gypsies Of The Andaman Sea - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-919)
Field recordings of the Moken, sea-faring gypsies of the Andaman Sea, who have been sailing up and down the west coast of the Malay Peninsula for hundreds of years.

Topic World Series - Healing Feasting and Magical Ritual: Papua New Guinea - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-918)
Songs and dances of hunting, war, work, totemistic ritual, cannibalism, myth, initiation, courtship, rain-making, funerals, magical healing, shark catching and marathon feasting, recorded in remote coastal and inland villages in five far-flung regions of Papua New Guinea, to the north of Australia.

Topic World Series - Zanzibar: Music Of Celebration - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-917)
Taarab is the most common style of music performed at weddings on the island of Zanzibar - a unique blend of musical elements from the Middle East, India and the West, combined with, to varying degrees, local African musical practices. It is an essential ingredient of most celebrations. And when Zanzibaris are not playing taarab, they are playing maulidi. Although this is primarily a sober religious performance style (celebrating the birth of the Prophet Mohammed) it is also becoming common at wedding celebrations, albeit in a more extrovert guise.

Topic World Series 916 - Music Of Makran - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-916)
MIDDLE EAST/INDO-PAKISTAN : This remote coastal area's musical tradition and fusion of cultures has developed over centuries. Vocal and instrumental genres demonstrate a high level of musicianship and improvisational artistry, and much of this selection is performed during healing ceremonies as music designed to aid the state of trance. Adopting "another way of listening" will be highly rewarding.

Topic World Series - Instrumental Music From Greece - $special order
(cdRoots# topic-915)
The benchmark compilation of Greek folk music.

Topic World Series - Gypsy Music From Macedonia - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-914)
The essential collection; all the fire and depth of expression captured in Wolf Dietrich's field recordings.

Topic World Series - Flute And Gamelan Music Of West Java - $special order
(cdRoots# topic-913)
Fascinating recordings of the beautiful and varied sounds of Southern Indonesia, with excellent notes.

Topic World Series 912 - Music Of The Tatar People - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-912)
From the Central-Volga region between Moscow and the Ural Mountains; wonderful recordings of traditional songs and melodies, featuring Tatar forms of the flute, Jew's harp and violin.

Topic World Series - Music From The Shrines Of Ajmer And Mundra - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-911)
Classical and popular nuabat recorded at festivals and weddings in Northern India. An indispensible record of a unique outdoor tradition of music.

Topic World Series - Music from Ethiopia: the central highlands, desert nomads and Eritrea - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-910)
Re-edited for CD from three volumes of classic recordings by Tangent Records in 1970; fascinating and varied music by the Desert Nomads, and from the Central Highlands and Eritrea.

Topic World Series - Vocal and instrumental music of Mongolia - $special order
(cdRoots# topic-909)
The peoples of Mongolia prize singing and sung poetry, and this album, collected by Jean Jenkins, includes remarkable examples of highly ornamented lyrical song. The accompaniments and instrumental music are chiefly on the morinxuur (two-stringed fiddle) or limbe (flute), but there are also recordings of the yatga (zither), yenchin (hammered dulcimer) and jew's harp. (Special order item... e-mail for info)

Topic World Series - folk music of Turkey (Topic 908) - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-908)
Excellent representative cross-section of Turkish Anatolian music which remained unique and unaffected by western European influence.

Topic World Series - folk music of Greece (Topic 907) - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-907)
Recorded in 1966, '67 and '69 by Wolf Dietrich, presenting a stunning collection of both instrumental and ceremonial music, and lyrical songs and ballads.

Topic World Series - folk music of Yugoslavia - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-906)
Visiting the Yugoslav republics of Croatia, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Serbia and Macedonia, the collector Wolf Dietrich recorded these fascinating vocal solos and duets and tunes played on bagpipes, fiddles, flutes and clarinets. The raw part-singing of amateur village performers is of particular beauty.

Topic World Series - folk music of Bulgaria (Topic 905) - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-905)
Few countries can match Bulgaria for wealth and brilliance in folk music; ancient survivals abound, while new songs are made daily. Collected by A.L. Lloyd.

Topic World Series - Folk Music Of Albania - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-904)
Reissues of classic archive material on CD. Remarkably rich, varied and original music, sampled in 1965 from virtually every region and tradition.

Topic World Series - Music in the world of Islam (Topic 903) - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-903)
Reeds and Bagpipes, Drums and Rhythms'

Topic World Series - Islam Strings - Flutes & Trumpets - $19.99
(cdRoots# topic-902)
Two of the original Tangent 'Music In The World Of Islam' albums on one CD. Intriguing and beautiful music from parts of Africa, Europe and Asia which are, or have been, Islamic. Recorded at weddings, religious festivals

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