News
Obituary: Kassé Mady Diabaté 1949-2018
Mali has lost one of its greatest singers of all time, Kassé Mady Diabaté, who passed away in Bamako on May 24, aged 69. Lucy Durán writes about the life of a much-loved musician and friend.
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Obituary: Amadou Bagayoko (1954–2025)
One of Africa's finest guitarists, best known as half of the much-loved Malian duo, Amadou & Mariam, has died
A Beginner's Guide
Martin Carthy | A Beginner's Guide
One of British folk music’s most influential figures is marking his 80th birthday. Julian May delves into his prolific and remarkable recordings
Features
Levellers: A Beginner's Guide
For over 30 years, the anarcho-folk collective have succeeded by doing things their own way. Chris Wheatley finds out about their grassroots rise to fandom and their enduring popularity
Features
The 4 Corners and Centre of Kadialy Kouyate’s Universe
The Senegalese kora player chooses five albums that have shaped his career, showing him the potential of his instrument and how to honour tradition in his songwriting.
News
Obituary: Papa Noel (1940-2024)
Congolese guitarist and soukous innovator Papa Noël Nedule has passed, aged 83.
Features
Essential 10 La Réunion Albums
Artists and labels from La Réunion select the albums that have helped this small, isolated island become a hotbed of musical creativity
A Beginner's Guide
The Chieftains: A Beginner’s Guide
Nigel Williamson looks back at the enduring global popularity of the Irish musical ambassadors
Features
Frank Cottrell-Boyce's My World Interview
Russ Slater Johnson speaks to the screenwriter and author about Irish jigs, anti-recruiting songs and how a scouser gave Manchester a city motto
Features
Courir de Mardi Gras: A Photo Essay
Every Mardi Gras, a blur of costumed Cajun and Creole revellers in Louisiana head off in search of gumbo ingredients. When an ingredient is offered, such as a live chicken, the race is on. David Simpson has been documenting this unique tradition for over 25 years, with a new book capturing the centuries-old celebrations
Essential 10
The 10 Best Live Albums
Jim Hickson selects ten top live-in-concert world music albums, featuring Fatoumata Diawara & Roberto Fonseca, Oum Kalthoum, Ozomatli, Radio Tarifa and more
Features
At home with Ali Farka Touré
To record Ali Farka Touré’s album 'Niafunké', World Circuit took a mobile studio all the way to Mali. Nigel Williamson went to meet Touré for Songlines in the summer of 1999 and found out why his commitments at home meant that the mountain had to go to Mohammed
Features
Zakaria Ibrahim (1952-2024)
Founder of Egyptian band El Tanbura, champion of the simsimiyya and an important icon of the Egyptian revolution, Zakaria Ibrahim has passed away
Features
The great musical genres of the 20th and 21st centuries
The music of the world has been constantly shaped by its wider contexts – from politics to economics and social movements. Here Chris Moss selects the most important genres to have been born across the last 100-plus years
