A jury of experts from Radio 3 and our partners select the winners in each category from a shortlist of nominees.
The shortlist is selected by delegates at WOMEX, the annual world music expo held in October in Seville.
THE JURY:
Ben Mandelson Ben Mandelson is a freelance record producer who has worked in all areas of world music. He is co-founder and A & R Manager / house producer for the 'GlobeStyle Records' label which has almost 100 releases to date from all over the world. And that's just one of a multitude of companies that benefit from his production talents. Ben has on-site recording experience in Africa, the Balkans and beyond. He was Director of WOMEX 1994-1997. His current musical activity 'on the other side of the glass' is as member of Billy Bragg's fabulous orchestra, "The Blokes".
Charlie Gillett Charlie Gillett is a pioneer of world music, having provided first UK airplay on his radio show for a host of African and Caribbean artists, among them Youssou N'Dour, Arrow and Salif Keita, in a broadcasting career that spans thirty years. Author of The Sound of the City (first published in 1970; third edition 1996), Charlie began his broadcasting career on 大象传媒 Radio London in March 1972. He moved to Capital Radio where he worked from 1980 to 1990. Since 1995, he's presented Saturday Night on 大象传媒 London Live where he has been host to all the main figures of world music in Britain as well as visitors including David Byrne, Taj Mahal and Dan Storper from USA , Francis Falceto (France) and Stan Rijven (Holland). Charlie was Sony broadcaster of the Year in 1991 and compiled the CD sets, World 2000 (Hemisphere) and World 2001 (Virgin). He is also co-director of the Oval record label and publishing company, whose 'Would You...?' by Touch and Go was a worldwide hit, 1998-1999.
Eric Soul Rwandan by birth, Belgian by upbringing, British by residence and global by choice, Eric Soul is currently stirring up a fire on London's dance and lounge circuit with his blazing m茅lange of hip hop, soul and an array of global urban sounds. Several years on Belgium's club circuit established Eric firmly as one of the most original DJs on the scene. Drawn to London by the forceful pull of the drum'n'bass wave in the mid 90s, Eric soon became known as a DJ who played a selection of styles that was as eclectic as it was compelling. In order to broaden the mix further, he founded the seminal DJ collective 'Groov'n'Bass Movement' in 1997. In 2000, he provided the surrounding soundscapes to the Paris and London parts of Keziah Jones' tour. From 2001 onwards, Eric's artful mix-ology became a dependable part of London's biggest multicultural celebration, the annual Respect Festival. It was this event that led in 2001 to his first opportunity to spread his musical vision on CD. He compiled the RAW mix-album for the T&G workers union - a record of innovative global music that received high acclaim from world music connoisseurs such as Charlie Gillett. At the moment, Eric is devoting his energies to the promotion of popular African culture via his brand new Afrogroov clubnight - an event featuring live MCs, Fula flute and percussion over Eric's mixes that are deeply rooted in the spine-tingling alchemy of hip hop and musical gems from Africa and beyond.
Ian Anderson Ian Anderson's day (and night) job is as founding editor of the pioneering world music, roots and folk magazine fRoots, currently celebrating its 25th year of regular publication. As a working musician his career progressed from a teenage country blues guitarist in the '60s (sharing stages with the likes of Mississippi Fred McDowell) to rowdy English/world dance band Tiger Moth in the '80s (soon to be revived), making some 15 albums en route. As a writer and photographer he has contributed to many publications, as a broadcaster he has hosted numerous shows including a 12 year run on 大象传媒 World Service and the original World Routes on Jazz FM. He directed one of the early UK World Music labels Rogue Records (Baaba Maal, Flaco Jimenez, Tarika, Dembo Konte & Kausu Kuyateh) as well as major festivals, artist tours and individual events. Ian developed the Awards For World Music project for 大象传媒 Radio 3 and is currently producing the Europe In Union concert series.
Jan Fairley
Jan Fairley is a freelance who has sung since the age of four (the gamut from Gilbert and Sullivan, Bach, Opera to musicals, acapella and sacred). With a first degree in Literature and Languages she first got into music writing through meeting members of the 'new song' movement when teaching in Chile between 1971-3. She returned to do an M.Phil in Latin American Studies at Oxford and then a PhD in Ethnomusicology at Edinburgh on Chilean exile musicians and has researched extensively in Latin America and Spain since the 1970s particularly with political singer-songwriters and in flamenco. From the late 1980s she has worked as an editor notably for CUP's Popular Music journal and The New Grove Dictionary. In her guise as a music writer and critic she contributed chapters to The Rough Guide to World Music, has written for fRoots since the mid-1980s (today aka Christine Charter) and Songlines since the first edition. She has made cultural documentaries for 大象传媒 World Service, notably on Finland in the early 1990s and the 12 part world music series 'Ports of Call'. She pioneered world music on 大象传媒 Radio Scotland with Earthbeat in the early 1990s and has made many music/cultural series and documentaries for 大象传媒 R3, R4 and World Service. She writes on world music for various outlets including Scottish newspapers and has recently completed a book chapter on Music in Cuba in the 1990s. As well as compiling various discs she has written liner notes, tour managed and club DJ-ed since the 1980s.
Juan Carlos Jaramillo Juan Carlos Jaramillo read Law and Music in his native Colombia. After graduating in 1986 he worked as a lawyer in the fields of music copyright and intellectual property. By then he had started writing on music in leading newspapers in Bogota. In 1989 he joined the national broadcasting corporation, Radio Nacional de Colombia, where he gathered experience in programming, recording live concerts and folk music festivals. In the early 90's he combined post graduate studies in Musicology at King's College, London with freelance work at the 大象传媒 Latin American Service. In 1993 he became a staff member where he has worked in Current Affairs and Features and eventually World Service Music since 1999. He has produced, among other things, series on Latin American music, both folk and Classical as well as produced and presented a series both in English and Spanish on Latin American folk music instruments. Juan Carlos plays the piano and sings, but he especially enjoys playing Colombia's folk music on the accordion.
Lucy Duran Lucy Duran, presenter of 大象传媒 Radio 3's "World Routes", is an ethnomusicologist and lecturer in music at the School of Oriental and African Studies. She was born in New York into a musical family and lived also in Chile and Greece where her early years were filled with folk music. Though she specialised in Indian and Greek music, the music of West Africa and Cuba became the focus of her research after hearing a recording of the kora. She studied with a kora maestro in the Gambia and has worked with musicians like Youssou N'Dour, Ali Farka Toure and Mory Kante. In the eighties Lucy presented Radio 4's "Kaleidoscope" as well as many location features including "Talking Drum" and "Latins in the USA" (Sony silver award, 1994). She spent long periods in Mali researching the music and has produced several albums of kora music including Songhai 2 (NAIRD award-winner 1994) and Kulanjan (Folk Roots album-of-the-year, 1999). She received the Andy Kershaw Radio 2 Folk Award 2000.
Mark Ellingham Mark Ellingham is the Publisher of Rough Guides, which he set up 20 years ago. He edits, with Simon Broughton, the door-stopping, two volume reference book, The Rough Guide to World Music.
Rita Ray Club and radio DJ who plays the global musical spectrum; in the 1990s revitalised the world music scene in London with the Mambo Inn; with Max Reinhardt runs the Shrine club night at Cargo and tours with the Shrine Synchro System all over Europe and Africa; creates soundscapes for Nitro theatre company and others; programmes international music festivals in London; co-presented the first two 大象传媒 Radio 3 Awards for World Music (and compiles the annual CD); currently making a documentary on Fela Kuti to be broadcast on 大象传媒 Radio 3 in September 2004 and will present the Festival in the Desert from Mali for 大象传媒4 in 2004.
Sam Farah Sam has spent the last twelve years exploring the heart and soul of the Arabic music world. As features & music producer/presenter for 大象传媒 World Service, he is responsible for the Arabic Service's output of Arabic, Western and World music, weaved together in his popular and long running weekly show "The Jukebox". In 2002, he set up SongEvent, a music production company based in the Middle East, specialising in Arabic instrumental music which marries the diverse rhythms of the east with a distinctive world beat. Born in Lebanon and raised on the hauntingly beautiful voices of Fairuz and Abdul Halim Hafez, he then discovered world music after living in the US in the early 80's and Cyprus in the late 80's, before finally settling down in the UK in 1990 and joining the 大象传媒. Married with 2 little boys, Sam now works full time for 大象传媒 Arabic, with regular forays into 大象传媒 Radio 3 and contributions to various music publications in London.
Simon Broughton Simon Broughton is an experienced writer, broadcaster and filmmaker and an authority on World Music. He is editor of Songlines, the World Music magazine launched in Jan 1999 and he is co-editor of the Rough Guide to World Music (now in its second edition) which is the essential handbook to popular and traditional music around the globe. He also wrote 100 Essential World Music CDs (Rough Guides), a choice of top recordings for those taking their first steps into some of the fantastic sounds around the world. He has produced an array of radio and television programmes on world music and culture including "Gypsy in my Soul" for 大象传媒 Radio 4, a forthcoming pioneering series on music in Iran for 大象传媒 Radio 3 and 2 episodes of the groundbreaking 大象传媒 "Rhythms of the World" back in the early 90's.
Verity Sharp Verity Sharp joined 大象传媒 Radio 3 in 1993 where she has worked at all levels of radio production. She currently presents "Late Junction" which features an eclectic mix of repertoire reflecting her love of everything from world music to contemporary classical. Last year she won the Silver Sony Music Broadcaster Award. Her education at Dartington College of Arts in Devon laid the foundation for her World Music credentials where she was introduced to African music by the expert, Frank Denyer, the Japanese shakuhachi by Yoshikazu Iwamoto and the Indian tabla by Sharda Sahai. She has a music degree from York University where she studied composition with John Paynter, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Steve Martland. She recently anchored the live web cast and concert for 大象传媒 Radio 3's Africa Music Night from London's Jazz Cafe. Verity plays the cello and piano and enjoys travelling.
Ben Mandelson is a freelance record producer who has worked in all areas of world music. He is co-founder and A & R Manager / house producer for the 'GlobeStyle Records' label which has almost 100 releases to date from all over the world. And that's just one of a multitude of companies that benefit from his production talents. Ben has on-site recording experience in Africa, the Balkans and beyond. He was Director of WOMEX 1994-1997. His current musical activity 'on the other side of the glass' is as member of Billy Bragg's fabulous orchestra, "The Blokes".
Charlie Gillett is a pioneer of world music, having provided first UK airplay on his radio show for a host of African and Caribbean artists, among them Youssou N'Dour, Arrow and Salif Keita, in a broadcasting career that spans thirty years. Author of The Sound of the City (first published in 1970; third edition 1996), Charlie began his broadcasting career on 大象传媒 Radio London in March 1972. He moved to Capital Radio where he worked from 1980 to 1990. Since 1995, he's presented Saturday Night on 大象传媒 London Live where he has been host to all the main figures of world music in Britain as well as visitors including David Byrne, Taj Mahal and Dan Storper from USA , Francis Falceto (France) and Stan Rijven (Holland). Charlie was Sony broadcaster of the Year in 1991 and compiled the CD sets, World 2000 (Hemisphere) and World 2001 (Virgin). He is also co-director of the Oval record label and publishing company, whose 'Would You...?' by Touch and Go was a worldwide hit, 1998-1999.
Rwandan by birth, Belgian by upbringing, British by residence and global by choice, Eric Soul is currently stirring up a fire on London's dance and lounge circuit with his blazing m茅lange of hip hop, soul and an array of global urban sounds. Several years on Belgium's club circuit established Eric firmly as one of the most original DJs on the scene. Drawn to London by the forceful pull of the drum'n'bass wave in the mid 90s, Eric soon became known as a DJ who played a selection of styles that was as eclectic as it was compelling. In order to broaden the mix further, he founded the seminal DJ collective 'Groov'n'Bass Movement' in 1997. In 2000, he provided the surrounding soundscapes to the Paris and London parts of Keziah Jones' tour. From 2001 onwards, Eric's artful mix-ology became a dependable part of London's biggest multicultural celebration, the annual Respect Festival. It was this event that led in 2001 to his first opportunity to spread his musical vision on CD. He compiled the RAW mix-album for the T&G workers union - a record of innovative global music that received high acclaim from world music connoisseurs such as Charlie Gillett. At the moment, Eric is devoting his energies to the promotion of popular African culture via his brand new Afrogroov clubnight - an event featuring live MCs, Fula flute and percussion over Eric's mixes that are deeply rooted in the spine-tingling alchemy of hip hop and musical gems from Africa and beyond.
Ian Anderson's day (and night) job is as founding editor of the pioneering world music, roots and folk magazine fRoots, currently celebrating its 25th year of regular publication. As a working musician his career progressed from a teenage country blues guitarist in the '60s (sharing stages with the likes of Mississippi Fred McDowell) to rowdy English/world dance band Tiger Moth in the '80s (soon to be revived), making some 15 albums en route. As a writer and photographer he has contributed to many publications, as a broadcaster he has hosted numerous shows including a 12 year run on 大象传媒 World Service and the original World Routes on Jazz FM. He directed one of the early UK World Music labels Rogue Records (Baaba Maal, Flaco Jimenez, Tarika, Dembo Konte & Kausu Kuyateh) as well as major festivals, artist tours and individual events. Ian developed the Awards For World Music project for 大象传媒 Radio 3 and is currently producing the Europe In Union concert series.
Jan Fairley is a freelance who has sung since the age of four (the gamut from Gilbert and Sullivan, Bach, Opera to musicals, acapella and sacred). With a first degree in Literature and Languages she first got into music writing through meeting members of the 'new song' movement when teaching in Chile between 1971-3. She returned to do an M.Phil in Latin American Studies at Oxford and then a PhD in Ethnomusicology at Edinburgh on Chilean exile musicians and has researched extensively in Latin America and Spain since the 1970s particularly with political singer-songwriters and in flamenco. From the late 1980s she has worked as an editor notably for CUP's Popular Music journal and The New Grove Dictionary. In her guise as a music writer and critic she contributed chapters to The Rough Guide to World Music, has written for fRoots since the mid-1980s (today aka Christine Charter) and Songlines since the first edition. She has made cultural documentaries for 大象传媒 World Service, notably on Finland in the early 1990s and the 12 part world music series 'Ports of Call'. She pioneered world music on 大象传媒 Radio Scotland with Earthbeat in the early 1990s and has made many music/cultural series and documentaries for 大象传媒 R3, R4 and World Service. She writes on world music for various outlets including Scottish newspapers and has recently completed a book chapter on Music in Cuba in the 1990s. As well as compiling various discs she has written liner notes, tour managed and club DJ-ed since the 1980s.
Juan Carlos Jaramillo read Law and Music in his native Colombia. After graduating in 1986 he worked as a lawyer in the fields of music copyright and intellectual property. By then he had started writing on music in leading newspapers in Bogota. In 1989 he joined the national broadcasting corporation, Radio Nacional de Colombia, where he gathered experience in programming, recording live concerts and folk music festivals. In the early 90's he combined post graduate studies in Musicology at King's College, London with freelance work at the 大象传媒 Latin American Service. In 1993 he became a staff member where he has worked in Current Affairs and Features and eventually World Service Music since 1999. He has produced, among other things, series on Latin American music, both folk and Classical as well as produced and presented a series both in English and Spanish on Latin American folk music instruments. Juan Carlos plays the piano and sings, but he especially enjoys playing Colombia's folk music on the accordion.
Lucy Duran, presenter of 大象传媒 Radio 3's "World Routes", is an ethnomusicologist and lecturer in music at the School of Oriental and African Studies. She was born in New York into a musical family and lived also in Chile and Greece where her early years were filled with folk music. Though she specialised in Indian and Greek music, the music of West Africa and Cuba became the focus of her research after hearing a recording of the kora. She studied with a kora maestro in the Gambia and has worked with musicians like Youssou N'Dour, Ali Farka Toure and Mory Kante. In the eighties Lucy presented Radio 4's "Kaleidoscope" as well as many location features including "Talking Drum" and "Latins in the USA" (Sony silver award, 1994). She spent long periods in Mali researching the music and has produced several albums of kora music including Songhai 2 (NAIRD award-winner 1994) and Kulanjan (Folk Roots album-of-the-year, 1999). She received the Andy Kershaw Radio 2 Folk Award 2000.
Mark Ellingham is the Publisher of Rough Guides, which he set up 20 years ago. He edits, with Simon Broughton, the door-stopping, two volume reference book, The Rough Guide to World Music.
Club and radio DJ who plays the global musical spectrum; in the 1990s revitalised the world music scene in London with the Mambo Inn; with Max Reinhardt runs the Shrine club night at Cargo and tours with the Shrine Synchro System all over Europe and Africa; creates soundscapes for Nitro theatre company and others; programmes international music festivals in London; co-presented the first two 大象传媒 Radio 3 Awards for World Music (and compiles the annual CD); currently making a documentary on Fela Kuti to be broadcast on 大象传媒 Radio 3 in September 2004 and will present the Festival in the Desert from Mali for 大象传媒4 in 2004.
Sam has spent the last twelve years exploring the heart and soul of the Arabic music world. As features & music producer/presenter for 大象传媒 World Service, he is responsible for the Arabic Service's output of Arabic, Western and World music, weaved together in his popular and long running weekly show "The Jukebox". In 2002, he set up SongEvent, a music production company based in the Middle East, specialising in Arabic instrumental music which marries the diverse rhythms of the east with a distinctive world beat. Born in Lebanon and raised on the hauntingly beautiful voices of Fairuz and Abdul Halim Hafez, he then discovered world music after living in the US in the early 80's and Cyprus in the late 80's, before finally settling down in the UK in 1990 and joining the 大象传媒. Married with 2 little boys, Sam now works full time for 大象传媒 Arabic, with regular forays into 大象传媒 Radio 3 and contributions to various music publications in London.
Simon Broughton is an experienced writer, broadcaster and filmmaker and an authority on World Music. He is editor of Songlines, the World Music magazine launched in Jan 1999 and he is co-editor of the Rough Guide to World Music (now in its second edition) which is the essential handbook to popular and traditional music around the globe. He also wrote 100 Essential World Music CDs (Rough Guides), a choice of top recordings for those taking their first steps into some of the fantastic sounds around the world. He has produced an array of radio and television programmes on world music and culture including "Gypsy in my Soul" for 大象传媒 Radio 4, a forthcoming pioneering series on music in Iran for 大象传媒 Radio 3 and 2 episodes of the groundbreaking 大象传媒 "Rhythms of the World" back in the early 90's.
Verity Sharp joined 大象传媒 Radio 3 in 1993 where she has worked at all levels of radio production. She currently presents "Late Junction" which features an eclectic mix of repertoire reflecting her love of everything from world music to contemporary classical. Last year she won the Silver Sony Music Broadcaster Award. Her education at Dartington College of Arts in Devon laid the foundation for her World Music credentials where she was introduced to African music by the expert, Frank Denyer, the Japanese shakuhachi by Yoshikazu Iwamoto and the Indian tabla by Sharda Sahai. She has a music degree from York University where she studied composition with John Paynter, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Steve Martland. She recently anchored the live web cast and concert for 大象传媒 Radio 3's Africa Music Night from London's Jazz Cafe. Verity plays the cello and piano and enjoys travelling.