· March, 2012

Stories about Music from March, 2012

Puerto Rico: “National Day of Salsa” in the Conservatory

  26 March 2012

The Puerto Rican Conservatory of Music joins the National Day of Salsa celebration in the island. This year, the singer Cheo Feliciano and the singer and trumpet player Jerry Medina participated along with students from the Department of Caribbean Jazz and Music. Wilma Colón shares photos of the event.

Puerto Rico: “My Favorite Bars”

  24 March 2012

The music blog Mala Vida Buena Música [es] (Bad Life, Good Music) explains why La Respuesta in Santurce, a neighborhood in the capital city of San Juan, is one of their favorite bars in the island.

Puerto Rico: An Archipelago of Indie Music

  22 March 2012

The music blog Puerto Rico Indie has launched their first video series titled Archipiélago (Archipelago). The series aims to document the local independent music scene on the island. Global Voices presents Archipiélago's three first recorded sessions with the bands Campo-Formio, Mima, and Tach.dé.

Hungary: An Eventful Celebration of the National Holiday

  20 March 2012

The prime minister compares the country to a frog; a rapper is elected as "the alternative president"; far-right protesters break into the IMF office; a techno party is held at Budapest's Heroes' Square, followed the next day by a paramilitary group's oath ceremony. Marietta Le reports on this year's eventful celebration of Hungary's National Day.

Armenia: Eurovision withdrawal a wasted opportunity

  14 March 2012

Cilicia.com comments on recent news that Armenia has withdrawn from the Eurovision Song Contest in Baku, capital of neighboring Azerbaijan. Taking a pro-Armenian line on the matter, the blog says that Azerbaijan had no choice but to allow Armenia to participate, and to provide guarantees that Armenians could visit Azerbaijan...

Ukraine: Eurovision, Gaitana, and Racism

  10 March 2012

Odessablog writes about the Ukrainian far right's reaction to this year's Eurovision nomination – Gaitana, a Ukrainian singer and songwriter of Ukrainian and Congolese descent: “It doesn’t matter that she was born in Kyiv, has lived there all her life, is a Ukrainian citizen, or that her mother is a...

Armenia: Eurovision withdrawal after propaganda attempt backfires

Following a botched attempt to justify boycotting this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Baku, Azerbaijan, Armenia today officially withdrew from the international music competition. “As expected, #Armenia Public TV withdraws from #Eurovision They could have announced it earlier with dignity. For now, they are #losers,” writes Unzipped on Twitter, also...

Russia: Sex, Women, Putin and Videos

RuNet Echo  6 March 2012

Young women calling on co-enthusiasts to rip off their clothes for Putin last summer, seemed to have disappeared from the scene. As the election season draws to a close in Russia, it is worth taking a look back at how that movement evolved, and how it inspired other women - both, for and against Putin - to get creative.

Armenia: Eurovision propaganda fiasco

Unzipped comments on a call by Armenian singers to boycott this year's annual Eurovision Song Contest in Baku, Azerbaijan. Armenia and Azerbaijan remain deadlocked in a conflict over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh and the call to boycott was ostensibly made in protest at the killing of an Armenian...

Azerbaijan: Singer-Activist calls for Eurovision Boycott

News and Noise! calls for a boycott of this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Azerbaijan by featuring an interview with activist and singer-song writer Cirttan (Azer Mamedov) seeking asylum in the Netherlands. The post also includes a clip, produced by the NIDA civil movement in Azerbaijan, parodying a promotional video...