When Music Speaks – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Technical and general information from the podcast's RSS feed.

When Music Speaks

Laura McPherson

Science

Frequency: 1 episode/375d. Total Eps: 4

Talking drums? Xylophone praises? Flutes that seduce? All around the world, cultures have found ways to communicate using notes and rhythms of music, in what have been called "musical surrogate languages". This podcast explores these incredible traditions and what they can teach us about language, music, and the richness of human culture.

Recent rankings

Latest chart positions across Apple Podcasts and Spotify rankings.

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

No recent rankings available

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Links found in episode descriptions and other podcasts that share them.

See all

https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-africa-49928252
1 share

RSS feed quality and score

Technical evaluation of the podcast's RSS feed quality and structure.

See all

RSS feed quality

To improve

Score global : 58%

Publication history

Monthly episode publishing history over the past years.

Year

Latest published episodes

Recent episodes with titles, durations, and descriptions.

See all

Nigeria's musical surrogates, with Dr. Samuel Akinbo

Season 1 · Episode 4

Sunday, July 27, 2025 • Duration 33:42

After a long hiatus, we're back! Here I talk with Dr. Samuel Akinbo of the University of Toronto about a survey we've launched to catalog the diversity of musical surrogate languages found in Nigeria. But we also talk about his journey, how his childhood in Nigeria has shaped his research trajectory, and what it means to do Indigenous science.

Read moreCollapse

The Igbo oja past and future, with Gerald Eze

Season 1 · Episode 3

Sunday, March 12, 2023 • Duration 48:21

In our first ever interview on When Music Speaks, I talk with friend and collaborator Gerald Eze. Gerald is a master of the oja, a wind-blown Igbo instrument from Nigeria, whose poetry can praise, warn, and uplift those it addresses. This is a longer episode, but trust me, it's worth it. We talk about the history of the tradition, the challenges it faces in today's Nigeria, its connections to jazz, how Catholic priests are surprising conveyors of traditional art, and what the oja can offer the modern world.

To hear more of Gerald's music, follow him on Instragram @officialgeraldeze

To see the oja in action, check out Gerald's 2019 interview with the BBC:

https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-africa-49928252

When Music Speaks – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

When Music Speaks – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

BBC1

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

BBC1