Hunting for New Sounds

In the past few years, I have had the opportunity to visit some countries. Besides learning about each country's history and mindset and looking forward to new sights, experiences and flavors, I naturally tend to look for new sounds wherever I go.

Usually, right before each trip, during the trip, and after I return home, I am constantly listening to music. I want to have an aural impression of each new country with me as I move through these exotic places.

In 2023, I went to Argentina, the Azores (Portugal) and Colombia. So I paired these journeys with the music of Astor Piazzolla, some Fado music, and then listened to one of the earliest albums by Sharika. In 2024, the journey to Japan got me interested in some Japanese folk music. I had listened to some Kabuki here and there as a child since there was a lot of Japanese TV in the Dominican Republic. The following year (2025), I returned to Argentina. Traveling way south to Patagonia got me curious about Argentinian folk music, and a chance encounter with a live concert on TV broadcasted from Mendoza got me interested in another lovely album as well. The same year, I studied some of the Greek language and listened to the music of some Greek composers before visiting this magical country. And now in 2026, I returned to the Mediterranean, but this time to the incredible country of Türkiye, so listened to some pop music before the trip, and some folk music on the way back.

Here is the list of albums:

• ARGENTINA - Astor Piazolla: Wallet Box (10-CD collection), 2004

• PORTUGAL - Ana Catarina Grillo: Quem me dera ser o Fado, 2015

• PORTUGAL - Edson Cordeiro: Fado, 2016

• COLOMBIA - Shakira: Pies Descalzos, 1995

• JAPAN - Shogetsu Watanabe: Japanese Folk Music, 2005

• ARGENTINA - Hugo Giménez Agüero: Patagonia, a pesar de todo, 1999

• ARGENTINA - Nahuel Pennisi: Ser Feliz, 2017

• GREECE - Mikis Theodorakis: In the Music of My Land, 2023

• GREECE - Mikis Theodorakis: Songs of Life and Struggle, 2023

• GREECE - Yannis Markopoulos: Ta Tragoudia Tou Neou Patera, 2007

• TÜRKIYE - Sezen Aksu: Gülümse, 1991

• TÜRKIYE - Various Artists: Halimiz Ahvalimiz Koro İle T.H.M. Ezgileri, Vol. 2, 2000

Music is such an integral part of culture. Of ALL cultures. I always feel my trip is complete unless I take a good listen to the music created by the people of these various amazing places.

As a composer, I also think that listening to new music is akin to a writer's need for reading, the cook's quest for new recipes, or the tailor's action of browsing through new fabrics. We don't necessarily need to use everything we try, but these experiences have the potential to afford us new material for inspiration. At the very list, it provides recreation and respite, and hopefully makes us want to create more.