Your photographic art and live music magazine based in Switzerland, providing a selection of funky articles on rock, jazz, blues, reggae and world music
Ethnic Folk-Dance is a slow reading site
→ Take your time and discover incredible leading musicians
→ Listen to their music and jump to other articles
→ Step into this kaleidoscopic music box
Why this name: Ethnic Folk-Dance
In the early 1960s, Charles Mingus was one of the most influential bassists, composers, and bandleaders in modern jazz - and an advocate for change. To him, jazz was a degrading term referring to bastringue music played in gambling dens and brothels.
For the back cover of his two essential albums on the prestigious label impulse!, Charles Mingus decided to rename the slogan The New Wave Of Jazz Is On Impulse! to The New Wave Of Folk Is On Impulse! - Ethnic Folk-Dance Music.
It is with great respect for Charles Mingus that we have adopted the name Ethnic Folk-Dance for our web site.
The original back cover slogan of impulse! on the 1961 John Coltrane album Africa/Brass
And the slogan renamed by Charles Mingus on his 1963 album The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady
Who are we ?
Since the 1980s, Pascal Schmidt has attended and photographed concerts at festivals and clubs in Switzerland and Europe. In 2024 he joined the international photo agency Hans Lucas.
Ethnic Folk-Dance presents a number of prominent musicians with live photo portraits in the context of their history and their music. The articles are grouped by theme, with notes on the musicians and a selection of recordings. The aim of Ethnic Folk-Dance is also to present the work of other actors in the world of culture, especially in the fields of photography and music, such as the book Helvécia, A Swiss colonial history in Brazil
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All images are available to buy as print on our shop or on request
→ Limited edition of 100, hand numbered and signed on back
→ Fine Art prints on professional Ilford Pearl photo paper
→ Sold unframed, shipping fees offered
Small and large stages
Punk rock flying guitar of Warren Harry | Music Machine, London, UK - Sept 1978
First European tour of Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band for The River album | Hallenstadion, Zurich, Switzerland - Apr 1981
First of five performances of Gal Costa at the Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland - July 1980
The king of Afrobeat Fela Anikulapo Kuti on tour with his African Queens | Palais de Beaulieu, Lausanne, Switzerland - July 1984
Bob Dylan singing Masters Of War in front of the grim Nazi tribune | Open Air Festival, Zeppelinfeld, Nuremberg, Germany - July 1978
Punk rock legends The Clash on tour for their album Sandinista! | Palais de Beaulieu, Lausanne, Switzerland - May 1981
Hot jazz club session by the 86-year-old young piano master Kirk Lightsey | Club Chorus, Lausanne, Switzerland - Feb 2023
Circles Songs project by Bobby Mc Ferrin | Freight & Salvage, Berkeley (CA) - Jan 2023
Meetings and interviews
Interview with Gilberto Gil | Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland - July 1982
Photo: Antoine Duplan
Interview with Caetano Veloso | Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland - July 1983
Sound check with Ney Matogrosso | Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland- July 1983
Interview wih LKJ | Open air festival African Roots, Leysin, Switzerland - Aug 1981
Sound check with Freddie King | Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland - July 1973
Interview with Matumbi, while holding one of my portraits of Jimmy Cliff on the music scene magazine cover | Zurich, Switzerland - Sept 1982
In the news
The photo portraits were published in the regional press of French-speaking Switzerland, such as the magazine générations or, at the time, in the short-lived magazine music scene, dedicated to interviews and concerts in Switzerland.
generations-plus.ch - Sept 2022
Jimmy Cliff | music scene - Sept 1982
Graphics: Jean-Noël Pellaud
Phil Collins, Genesis | music scene - Oct 1982
Graphics: Jean-Noël Pellaud
Lester Bowie, Art ensemble of Chicago | music scene - Dec 1982
Graphics: Jean-Noël Pellaud
Jacques Higelin | music scene - June 1982
Graphics: Jean-Noël Pellaud
Palms Zumbi Capoeira, symbol of an ancestral struggle | Radio-TV-je-vois-tout - June 1982
The song of the favelas, priest jailed for a song | Radio-TV-je-vois-tout - June 1982
Solar Promises, what if the Brazilians had their say? - interview with Caetano Veloso during Brazil's military disctorship | Construire – Sept 1983
Exhibitions
Various photo exhibitions were scheduled at unusual venues like fairs and gigs.
For the 50th edition of the Montreux Jazz Festival in 2016, Presence Switzerland organized a one-day open-air exhibition in Brazil of the festival's cover posters alongside my photographic portraits. The event took place at the famous Circo Voador concert hall in Rio de Janeiro and included live concerts in Rio, São Paulo and Montreux by the Brazilian band Nação Zumbi and the Swiss band The Young Gods.
Selfie in front of my photo portraits of Tom Jobim, João Gilberto and Caetano Veloso.
My selection of music records
Magazine articles on musicians are illustrated with a selection of music records from my collection.