FolkTales set to Music from Around the Globe

Palestine - Thuraya and the Ghoul - Firas Zreik and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail In this Palestinian folktale featuring our storyteller Bill Gordh and qanun master Firas Zreik, Thuraya is whisked away to a mysterious palace tower by

Japan - The Dancing Tea Kettle with Kaoru Watanabe and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail The story follows an old man living in the mountains who discovers his leaking tea kettle has magical properties: When he tries to boil water, the kettl

India - A Flowering Tree with Saraswathi Ranganathan and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail In a tiny village, sisters Gitika and Lalitika are on a mission to save their struggling mom by selling blossoms from Gitika, who can magically transfor

West Africa - Why Sun and Moon Are Up in the Sky with Yacouba Sissoko and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail For this FolkTale episode, Bill plays banjo and is joined by Malian kora master, singer, and fellow storyteller Yacouba Sissoko. Yacouba was born to a w

Ukraine - A Garment for the Moon with Lisa Gutkin and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Grammy Award-winning fiddler and vocalist Lisa Gutkin (The Klezmatics) and Bill Gordh tell the Jewish-Ukrainian tale A Garment for the Moon. The moon lo

Persia - Parinaz and the Golden Lamp with Mehrnam Rastegari and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Mehrnam Rastegari and storyteller Bill Gordh improvise this Persian folk tale which tells the story of a young woman named Parinaz who escapes being mar

China - The Dragon's Eye with Zhou Yi and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Storyteller Bill Gordh and pipa master Zhou Yi improvise the Chinese folktale The Dragon's Eye which tells the story of a tinker who meets and befr

Morocco - The Sultan's Horse with Samir LanGus and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Storyteller Bill Gordh and gnawa artist Samir LanGus improvise the Moroccan tale of The Sultan's Horse, in which the Sultan must choose one of his

Finland - The Enchanted Kantele with Kardemimmit and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Storyteller Bill Gordh and Finnish ensemble Kardemimmit improvise the folktale  "The Enchanted Kantele".  In this magical story, a hunter saves a squirr

Tibet - The Gathering Tree with Techung and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Storyteller Bill Gordh and Tibetan artist Techung improvise the folktale  "The Gathering Tree", which delves into the adventures of Paulden, a lone trav

South America - The Two Girls with Harpist Edmar Castaneda and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Storyteller Bill Gordh and Colombian harpist Edmar Castaneda improvise the South American folktale "The Two Girls" - a cautionary tale of two girls: one

Brazil - Night Comes to the Rainforest with Cyro Baptista and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Storyteller Bill Gordh and percussionist Cyro Baptista improvise the Brazilian folktale "Night Comes to the Rainforest".  The story follows a farmer&apo

Ireland - Red Rory and the Fairies with Seamus Egan and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Storyteller Bill Gordh and multi-instrumentalist Seamus Egan improvise the Irish  folktale "Red Rory and the Fairies".  Red Rory likes showing off and t

India - Grandmother Rabbit and the Elephant King with Saraswathi Ranganathan and Bill Gordh

Send us Fan Mail Storyteller Bill Gordh and veena player Saraswathi Ranganathan improvise the Indian folktale "Grandmother Rabbit and The Elephant King", an enchanting