Host Rhiannon Giddens performs and talks with pipa master Wu Man, a 2023 NEA National Heritage Fellow who has been part of Silkroad Ensemble since its founding in 2000 by cellist Yo-Yo Ma. They talk about the origins of the pipa and discuss Silk Road’s multi-year “American Railroad” project.

Host Rhiannon Giddens shares a musical visit with Celtic harpist Maeve Gilchrist in an historic North Carolina train station. They discuss the harp’s place in different musical traditions and talk about Maeve’s original composition for Silkroad Ensemble’s “American Railroad” project.

Host Rhiannon Giddens visits with Mazz Swift, a violinist, vocalist, and improvisational conductor whose musical journey includes education at Juilliard, playing music in the New York subway, and working with goats on a farm.

Sandeep Das is a virtuoso on the northern India drums called tabla, and his musical education included living for twelve years in the home of a famous guru. Sandeep and host Rhiannon share a visit in L.A.’s Union Station that concludes with a Silkroad Ensemble performance at U.C. Berkeley featuring the tabla.

Japanese percussionist Haruka Fujii talks with Rhiannon about the surprising history of the marimba in Japan and her own mission to spread the beauty of Japanese music to diverse audiences. They discuss Silkroad’s “American Railroad” project, and the episode ends with a performance of Fujii’s original composition “Tamping Song”.

Native American vocalist and lap steel guitarist Pura Fé has both Tuscarora and Taino blood in her veins and generations of ancestors in her voice. She shares her personal background and musical journey in an episode that culminates in a Silkroad Ensemble performance of her song “Mahk Jchi”.