“An organic mix of rumba, Gypsy, jazz, Middle Eastern and Spanish flavours – they all mix together beautifully… brilliantly executed!” – ERROL NAZARETH, CBC RADIO ONE
Chris McKhool (violin) and Kevin Laliberté (guitar), the songwriters behind the music of Sultans of String, take you on a musical journey around the world!
McKhool met Laliberté just as the guitarist was coming off the road from touring around the world with Jesse Cook and cross Canada with The Chieftains. When McKhool (who has performed with Jesse Cook, Pavlo, Club Django) first heard guitarist Laliberté’s rumba rhythm their musical mind-meld created Sultans of String’s sound – the intimate and playful relationship between the violin and the flamenco guitar. Acoustic strings meet with electronic wizardry to create layers and depth of sound, creating soundscapes that seem impossible to be coming from just two people.
Larger than the sum of its parts, this 3x JUNO Award nominated, 3x CFMA Award winning dynamic duo take you on a journey to hear the horses of Sable Island, underwater to hear the calls of Luna the Whale, and on the silk road through Spain and the Middle East, through the Gypsy-jazz cafés of Eastern Europe, and then back to Canada for a trip to the majestic Arctic.
“Kevin and Chris are two extremely talented and creative musicians. Each of them have an extensive background in various traditions and numerous musical accomplishments to their credit. Their own compositions are … exciting and highly original. They are musicians and songwriters of the highest calibre!” – KEN WHITELEY, PRODUCER
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If you’re a regular NPR listener, you know BJ Leiderman‘s music. BJ Leiderman is the noted composer of the theme music heard on NPR’s Morning Edition, Weekend Edition, and Wait Wait..Don’t Tell Me!. His themes are among the most instantly recognizable sounds in all of public radio.
Music and music making comes easily to Leiderman, who was born on Valentine’s Day 1956 and grew up as the only child in a musical family. As a member of a variety of different bands during his high school and college years, BJ found he was a natural at writing memorable music — including jingles.
With his heart in his music, BJ abandoned plans for a career in broadcast journalism in favor of touring, composing, and recording (in fact, he believes he may be American University’s oldest living senior). His professional credits also include jingles and soundtrack packages for countless corporate and broadcast accounts. In addition, BJ has worked as a writer (as in “copywriter”) for clients as diverse as Nickelodeon, The Chris Rock Show, Fox Kids, Cartoon Network, Christian Broadcasting Network, and Spike TV.