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Steven Feld Captures "Voices of the Rain Forest"

Terry talks with ethnomusicologist Steven Feld. His new record, "Voices of the Rainforest," captures the songs of the Kaluli people of Paupa New Guinea. Feld also works for preservation of the world's rain forests, since if the forests are eliminated, so will much indigenous music.

16:16
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Other segments from the episode on April 15, 1991

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, April 15, 1991: Interview with Pham Thanh and Elizabeth Farnsworth; Interview with Steven Feld; Review of the television show "The 90s."
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22:30

A New Life in the United States after "Thanh's War"

Vietnamesse-American Pham Thanh and American filmmaker Elizabeth Farnsworth. As a child, Thanh was seriously injured when the Americans bombed his village. He eventually was brought to America and raised by foster parents. Farnsworth has made a documentary about Thanh's life, and the legacy of the Vietnam war on that country's children. It's called "Thanh's War," and it's being shown this week on PBS.

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04:18

PBS Takes a Close Look at the Current Decade

Television critic David Bianculli reviews "The 90s," public television's weekly, quirky, sprawling and enjoyable show featuring bizarre news stories, essays, and occasional music performances.

Review

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25:23

A Language Based on Sound and Song

Ethnomusicologist Steven Feld shares soundscapes of the daily life of indigenous rain forest communities in New Guinea. He explains the importance of song as a mode of communication in the cultures he studied.

Interview
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47:46

Waterfall Music of Papua New Guinea.

Steven Feld is a ethnomusicologist who teaches sound communication at the University of Pennsylvania. Ethnomusicology combines anthropology and music theory, and attempts to learn about culture through music. Feld is also a jazz musician who has incorporated the genre into his work. His work has taken him to Papua New Guinea, where he studied the Kaluli tribe, and the Southwestern United States. He joins the show to discuss his work. (INTERVIEW BY DANNY MILLER.)

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