The sweetly engaging Canadian singer-songwriter sings highlights from her two albums at the NPR Music offices. And, as an added bonus, she trots out a surprise from Poland.
For those who fell in love with Sam Beam's spare solo work, he plays his new full-band material as a solo performer here. Watch Beam show a fresh side of his new songs at the NPR Music offices, and top them off with his devastating 2004 gem "Naked As We Came."
Most bands that perform a Tiny Desk Concert need to adjust their sound to accommodate the setting's limitations. Malian kora player Ballake Sissoko and French cellist Vincent Segal are an exception.
Following a frenetic and enjoyable set at the Newport Folk Festival, David Wax Museum brings its infectious blend of American and Mexican folk music to the NPR Music offices. Watch the band perform with a Mexican jarocha guitar and percussive donkey jawbone.
Gyptian, who'd already conquered radio from Kingston to French Guyana and London with his song "Hold You," won hearts at NPR Music's Washington, D.C., office within moments of walking in the door.
Washburn planned to study law at Beijing University, but her love of bluegrass landed her a record deal instead. Still, China remains in her heart: Her latest album, City of Refuge, mixes American bluegrass with Chinese folk music. Watch her play songs from the album at the NPR Music offices.
Maita's music combines crisp staccato guitar licks, a subtle Brazilian pulse and vocals as soft as a late-afternoon ocean breeze. Yet without the electronic touches of her studio recordings, Maita glides, floats and sprinkles notes onto just the right places in this engaging Tiny Desk Concert.
With a pink tinsel tree and an animatronic singing Santa hat, the extraordinary jazz drummer clearly embraces the campy side of Christmas. His band's look may be a bit hokey, but as it proves in this performance, their musicianship isn't.
Chris Otepka of The Heligoats performs a Tiny Desk Concert at the NPR Music offices.
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The Heligoats' Chris Otepka is the star of NPR Music's 100th Tiny Desk Concert. In many ways, he's the perfect act to mark that milestone: His music is best heard in an intimate setting, where his words can unfurl clearly and he can hold a small room rapt — which he does here, to say the least.
The 10 members of The Red River normally play with guitars and violins, French horns, keyboards and drums. But they rose to the challenge and re-arranged their songs for a stripped-down performance.
Yolanda Kondonassis plays the harp for a Tiny Desk Concert on October 12, 2010.
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Harps are something of a curiosity, even to the other members of the orchestra: They're huge and difficult to tune. So when Kondonassis parked her giant and distinct Art Deco-inspired instrument behind the Tiny Desk, it had a powerful presence in the room.
Arone Dyer and Aron Sanchez of Buke and Gass play a Tiny Desk Concert October 7, 2010.
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Buke and Gass' homemade quality is what draws you in at first. Arone Dyer plays a modified baritone-ukulele run through effects that squeal with delight while bandmate Aron Sanchez runs his guitar-bass hybrid through two amps. Watch the duo play a joyfully pummeling set from the Tiny Desk.
Khaira Arby and band performing their Tiny Desk Concert September 17, 2010.
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The queen of desert rock arrived like international royalty to perform selections from her new album, Timbuktu Tarab. Watch the Malian singer unveil her stunning vocal chops.
The Icelandic singer usually warbles her folk-flavored tunes in her native Nordic tongue. But her new record, Innundir Skinni, is her first to include songs sung in English. Watch Arnalds perform a lovely Tiny Desk Concert from the NPR Music offices.
Hear new songs by two down-to-earth people with their heads in the clouds: Sean Lennon and Charlotte Kemp Muhl. Together, they write dreamy musings on everything from dark matter to the pedestrian and mundane. Watch the duo perform songs from Acoustic Sessions in the NPR offices.
