We just discovered BBC’s World Routes, a new archive of world music, an eclectic and unusual collection of indigenous music. You can sample the sounds of more than 40 countries, from Brazil, Corsica, China, Cuba, to Iran, Mozambique and Turkey. We’ve just spent an hour listening to Appalachian music, much of it acapella, and the Bambara Blues of Mali.

Commentators from BBC Radio 3 traveled through each country, including several conflict zones, to record the music. They set the scene with cultural details and history of the music you’re listening to. If you’re not in the mood to hear the interspersed descriptions or interviews, you can just move the music player’s slider to jump to the music.

This is an exceptionally rich archive, perfect for listening to when you’re driving, cleaning, cooking, crafting, hanging out on a weekend…

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2 replies on “bbc’s astonishing world music archive – free

  1. Or maybe just to listen to when you crave good radio, without doing anything else? 🙂

    I’m a huge fan of WR. I was interviewed by one of its presenters, Lucy Duran, many years ago during Radio 3 World Music Awards.

    Greetings from London.

  2. Greetings to you, too. Are you a musician?
    And yeah, “without doing anything else”!

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