Rob Weisberg

Some of these musicians play instruments or perform in traditional styles usually reserved for men. Here are innovators Asnakech Worku, Siti Amina, Marta Periera da Costa, and others.

New Sounds highlights trailblazing musicians who happen to be women, some playing instruments traditionally reserved for men, all with remarkable stories. Here are just a few.

A play about chimpanzees can make actors go bananas. 

A new play, "Hominid," reenacts a violent incident that took place in a chimpanzee colony. Primate expert Frans de Waal and the play's actors describe what it took to stage a chimpanzee drama with a very human story. Produced by Philip Graitcer, with

The buzz around Colombian music is growing, and the country's biggest rock band, Aterciopelados, is up for a Grammy this weekend. Studio 360's Rob Weisberg explains how Colombia's coolest pop draws on old traditions that used to be called "grandpa's music."

Colombia has a very wide range of musical styles, reflecting the country's strong regional cultures and diverse roots - African, indigenous, and European.  It's similar to Brazil, and that shows in the music.  But I think many of us are more conscious of the richness of Brazilian music.  Here are ...

GlobalFest, the annual festival of world music, takes over Webster Hall this weekend.  We've got picks for the best shows on all three stages, and beyond.

As I was getting psyched to see the band Tinariwen for the third time, a friend said, "Yeah, Tinariwen. They’re great, but they just do the same thing over and over."  But, oh, that thing they do. I just can’t get enough of it.

Aren't you tired of all the same old treacly seasonal saccharine that is relentlessly pounded into our heads on tv commercials and in shopping malls? Here's some music that you may no...

New York, NY —

It's only December First, but you might already be tired of the saccharine holiday music that plays relentlessly in shopping malls and doctors' offices. WNYC's Rob Weisberg has some suggestions for some worldly music that you may not have heard one, or two, or ten ...

A new play, "Hominid," reenacts a violent incident that took place in a chimpanzee colony. Primate expert Frans de Waal and the play's actors describe what it took to stage a chimpanzee drama with a very human story. Produced by Philip Graitcer, with

New York, NY —

Summer is always a good time for world music fans, thanks to all the festivals and smaller events that bring in artists from abroad and bring local artists out from the woodwork.

This Saturday, there's an unusual convergence of great African music in the city.

WNYC's Rob ...

For hundreds of years, musicians from India and Pakistan have taken the poetry called ghazal and set it to music. The songs project such deep longing that you don’t need to know Urdu to feel the pain. Produced by Rob Weisberg. 

"The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency" finishes up its season on HBO this weekend. It's based on the mystery novel series by Alexander McCall Smith. Botswana music producer Solo B. tells Studio 360's Rob Weisberg about the musicians on the ...

New York, NY —

The international success of the Anglo-Sri-Lankan rapper MIA and her producer Diplo has sparked the spread of new, hard-edged, world-music-infused dance music. And a lot of it is coming through New York this spring. WNYC's Rob Weisberg has this musical preview:

Stephen Byram has created album covers for everyone from the Beastie Boys to jazz great Dave Douglas. As a child of the 1960s, Byram became seduced by rock n' roll poster art. Produced by Rob Weisberg.

Weigh in: Has a work of art changed your ...

New York, NY —

Sunday night at Webster Hall - it's New York's annual sneak peak at bands that could be on the verge of international fame. Global Fest brings together 12 world music acts on three stages.

And WNYC's Rob Weisberg has his picks for the best in the ...

Joe Boyd witnessed key moments in music history, like hiring Pink Floyd as a London house band, or helping Bob Dylan plug in his electric guitar at the Newport Folk Festival. Joe describes the fateful afternoon he decided to go into music. Produced by ...

Extra Golden is an unusual collaboration of musicians from Western Kenya and the Eastern USA. They recorded their first CD in Kenya, on a laptop, in a bar. Studio 360's Rob Weisberg asks the motley crew about how they manage to mix ...

New York, NY —

Almost 20 years ago, the "Red Hot" organization came up with a strategy to raise awareness and money around HIV/AIDS prevention. They presented big benefit concerts and multi-cultural, multi-artist recording projects. The original album, Red Hot and Blue, featured pop singers taking on Cole Porter ...