We love concept videos, but sometimes the best way to really understand what a musician is about, is to see them perform! Block #107, our ninth "In Performance" block, brings you Mamak Khadem a vibrant singer from Iran, Malian guitarist Habib Koite, the Southern Brazilian accordionist Renato Borghetti, Russia's DDT at a massive concert in St. Petersburg, Cape Verdean diva Mayra Andrade  at the Africa Festival in Lisbon, and Ojos de Brujo (Spain) with Faada Freddy (Senegal) rocking the house with Bob Marley's "Get Up, Stand Up.".

Block #109, AKA "What a World" shows how world music artists address a variety of serious issues: Michael Franti speaks to the unity of mankind but keeps it all very danceable;  K'Naan describes the difficulties of being a refugee in a new country, and Nasjota rap about the Sudanese homeland. Then Aterciopelados sings about the misplaced love of money with "Don Dinero" and El Hadj N'Diaye makes an impassioned plea about third world debt. We close with DDT's animated anthem to the Kursk tragedy, "Captain Kolesnikov."

And of course, these two blocks will both be streaming on our site soon!

We've been trumpeting the arrival of several new programs, and this week we're rolling three of them out. Soweto Strings is a totally endearing documentary about violist Rosemary Nalden, the music school she founded in Soweto, and her exceptional students. Coming from the impoverished township, their lives have been difficult to say the least, yet all of them show an openness and enthusiasm for learning classical music that Ms. Nalden (and we) find irresistible. On a side note, I showed this documentary to a friend of mine, who used to be the Concert Master for the Metropolitan Opera here in New York, and he thought Ms. Nalden had put together "a damned fine orchestra!"

We are also debuting two new music blocks (and in a few weeks these will be available streamed on our website, too).

Block #106 "Mashups" is a fun-filled block with videos that are musically and visually eclectic. Here's a brief rundown: Magnifico's "House of the Rising Sun" goes Balkan, Mexican Institute of Sound visits the dinosaur room, Rahul Sharma presents a philosophical hallucination, SoCalled deconstructs his head, Ojos de Brujo create a spiritual and cultural collage, Dengue Fever pays tribute to the Road Warrior, and Antiquarks get down on the dance floor - with the hurdy gurdy.

Block #108, aka "Romance" has Ziskakan praising Gypsies in Rajasthan, Sona Mohapatra presenting different styles of Indian dance, Federico Aubele playing guitar a bordello, while Rupa and the April Fishes take us to a Paris Bistro that is not really in Paris. Then Dato brings us a mournful love song illustrated by sand art, and we finish with Kiran Ahluwalia and a contemporary setting of an ancient Urdu love poem.

What better way to usher in the Summer than with some videos that take us on the road? World Music Block #53 starts out with Spain's Dusminguet packing their instruments for a bucolic outing, then Zdob si Zdub, from Moldova, offer up a retro hommage to state sponsored music. Next we have one of our viewers' favorites, "Manne Ke Manjeere" about the first female lorry driver in India, followed by a rooftop bash in Brazil with Silverio Pessoa. We cap it off with a madcap street chase from Mano Negra, the group that gave Manu Chao his platform to becoming a soloist and superstar.

There you have it - a globetrotting road trip... without using a single drop of fuel!