Podcast
The Sound Kitchen
Hosted by RFI English · EN
Music, interviews, quirky listener essays ... you never know what you'll be served up on the Sound Kitchen where Susan Owensby is cooking. And remember, you can find the Sound Kitchen on Facebook.
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Episodes
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There’s Music in the Kitchen, No 43
Apr 400:16:32Tap to summarizeThis week on The Sound Kitchen, a special treat: RFI English listener’s musical requests. Just click on the “Play” button above and enjoy! Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday. This week, you’ll hear musical requests from your fellow listeners Nasyr Muhammad, Hossen Abed Ali, and Alan Holder. Be sure you send in your music requests! Write to me at thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Here’s the music you heard on this week’s program: “The Cup of Life” by Luis Gómez Escolar, Desmond Child, and Draco Rosa, sung by Ricky Martin; “Englishman in New York”, written and performed by Sting, and “Mona Lisa” by Raymond B Evans and Jay Livingston, sung by Nat King Cole.
Transcribe →Happy World Radio Day!
Feb 1400:53:27Tap to summarizeThis week on The Sound Kitchen, you’ll hear your fellow listeners from around the world offering their World Radio greetings. There’s the answer to the question about France’s voluntary military service, The Sound Kitchen Mailbag, your answers to the bonus question on “The Listeners Corner” with Paul Myers, and a tribute to our Magic Mixer Erwan Rome on “Music FOR Erwan”. All that and the new quiz and bonus questions too, so click the “Play” button above and enjoy! Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all! Facebook: Be sure to send your photos for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure to subscribe to see all our videos. Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you! Our website “Le Français facile avec rfi” has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bilingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard. Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”, and you’ll be counselled on the best-suited activities for your level according to your score. Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service, told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it”. She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it! Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts! In addition to the breaking news articles on our site, with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more. There’s Spotlight on France, Spotlight on Africa, the International Report, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We also have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our excellent staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with! To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone. To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. Teachers take note! I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in all your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. NB: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload! This week’s quiz: On 17 January, I asked you a question about our article “France launches recruitment for 10-month voluntary national military service”. You were to send in the answer to these two questions: How many volunteers will be accepted into the 2026 program, and what will their jobs be? The answer is, to quote our article: “From September, around 3,000 volunteers will join the army, navy, or air and space force for missions carried out exclusively on French soil. Tasks will range from helping out during natural disasters and providing support for counter-terrorism surveillance, to more specialized jobs such as drone operation, mechanics, electrical work, baking, or medical support.” In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question: What is the most romantic thing that has ever been said to you? Or the most romantic action? Or the most romantic gift? Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us! The winners are: RFI English listener Murshida Parveen Lata, who is the Co-Chairman of the Source of Knowledge Club in Naogaon, Bangladesh. Murshida is also the winner of this week’s bonus question Congratulations on your double win, Murshida. Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Ashraf Ali, a member of the International RFI DX Radio Listeners Club in West Bengal, India; Sumara Sabri, a member of the RFI Online Visitors Club in Sahiwal, Pakistan; Sameen Riaz – also from Pakistan, this time from Sheikupura city – Sameen is a member of the RFI Listeners Club in that fair city, and last but not least, RFI Listeners Club member Sami Mossad from Giza, Egypt. Congratulations winners! Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Fast Bob” by Romane and Stochelo Rosenberg, played by the Rosenberg Ensemble; “La Marseillaise” by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, arranged by Claude Bolling and performed by the Claude Bolling Big Band; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “You’re the Top” by Cole Porter, sung by Ella Fitzgerald. Do you have a music request? Send it to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr This week’s question ... you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read our article “Cambridge University Museum set to return Benin bronzes to Nigeria”, which will help you with the answer. You have until 9 March to enter this week's quiz; the winners will be announced on the 14 March podcast. When you enter, be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number. Send your answers to: english.service@rfi.fr or Susan Owensby RFI – The Sound Kitchen 80, rue Camille Desmoulins 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux France Click here to find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize. Click here to find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club, or form your own official RFI Club.
Transcribe →Africa Cup knockout tie legends
Feb 700:27:29Tap to summarizeThis week on The Sound Kitchen, you’ll hear the answer to the question about the knockout tie in the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations. There’s the Sound Kitchen Mailbag, your answers to the bonus question on “The Listeners Corner”, Ollia Horton’s “Happy Moment”, and a tasty musical dessert on Erwan Rome’s “Music from Erwan”. All that and the new quiz and bonus questions too, so click the “Play” button above and enjoy! Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all! Facebook: Be sure to send your photos for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure to subscribe to see all our videos. Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you! Our website “Le Français facile avec rfi” has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bilingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard. Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”, and you’ll be counselled on the best-suited activities for your level according to your score. Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service, told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it”. She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it! Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts! In addition to the breaking news articles on our site, with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more. There’s Spotlight on France, Spotlight on Africa, the International Report, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We also have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our excellent staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with! To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone. To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. Teachers take note! I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in all your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. NB: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload! This week’s quiz: On 13 December, I asked you a question about Paul Myers’ article “Nigeria power past Mozambique into quarterfinals at Africa Cup of Nations”. Nigeria had just beaten Mozambique 4 to 0. Paul noted in his article that the win was the biggest winning margin in a Cup of Nations knockout tie since the Africa Cup in 2010. And that was one of your questions: you were to tell me which countries played in the Africa Cup semi-finals in 2010, and who won that knockout tie by 4 to 0. The second question was: In the Nigeria/Mozambique match, what is the name of the Nigerian player who scored the fourth goal? The answer is, to quote Paul’s article: “Akor Adams, fed by Lookman, thrashed in Nigeria's fourth goal 15 minutes from time to notch up the biggest winning margin in a Cup of Nations knockout tie since Egypt battered Algeria 4-0 in the semi-finals at the 2010 tournament in Angola.” So, Egypt/Algeria, and Akor Adams are the correct answers. In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by RFI Listeners Club member Pradip Basak from West Bengal, India: “How do you deal with jealousy when your friend achieves something you secretly wished for?” Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us! The winners are: Amir Jameel, the president of the RFI Online Visitors Club in Sahiwal, Pakistan. Amir is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations on your double win, Amir. Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Sharifun Islam Nitu, a member of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh, and Faheem Noor, the president of the WULO RFI Club in Nankana Sahib, Pakistan. There are also two RFI Listeners Club members: Hans Verner Lollike from Hedehusene, Denmark, and S. J. Agboola from Ekiti State, Nigeria. Congratulations winners! Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Heer on Sarangi”, traditional music from Pakistan performed by Ustad Sultan Khan; “Water No Get Enemy” by Fela Kuti, performed by Fela Ransome Kuti & Africa 70; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer; “Happy” by Pharrell Williams, and the traditional Andalucian “La Saeta del Larios”, sung by Diana Navarro. Do you have a music request? Send it to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr This week’s question ... you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read our article “French DJ wins Grammy for Lady Gaga remix”, which will help you with the answer. You have until 2 March to enter this week's quiz; the winners will be announced on the 7 March podcast. When you enter, be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number. Send your answers to: english.service@rfi.fr or Susan Owensby RFI – The Sound Kitchen 80, rue Camille Desmoulins 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux France Click here to find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize. Click here to find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club, or form your own official RFI Club.
Transcribe →Is disinformation “freedom of expression”?
Jan 3100:32:42Tap to summarizeThis week on The Sound Kitchen, you’ll hear the answer to the question about the difference in “freedom of expression” between the US and the EU. There are your answers to the bonus question on “The Listeners Corner”, and a tasty musical dessert on Erwan Rome’s “Music from Erwan”. All that and the new quiz and bonus questions too, so click the “Play” button above and enjoy! Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music … so be sure and listen every week. World Radio Day is just around the corner, so it’s time for you to record your greetings for our annual World Radio Day programme! WRD is on 13 February; we'll have our celebration the day after, on the 14 February show. The deadline for your recordings is Monday 2 February, which is not far off! Try to keep your greeting to under a minute. You can record on your phone and send it to me as an attachment in an e-mail to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Be sure to record your greeting from underneath a blanket. Then the sound will be truly radiophonic – I mean, you want everyone to understand you, right? Don’t miss out on the fun. 2 February is just around the corner, so to your recorders! Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all! Facebook: Be sure to send your photos for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure to subscribe to see all our videos. Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you! Our website “Le Français facile avec rfi” has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bilingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard. Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”, and you’ll be counselled on the best-suited activities for your level according to your score. Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service, told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it”. She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it! Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts! In addition to the breaking news articles on our site, with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more. There’s Spotlight on France, Spotlight on Africa, the International Report, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We also have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our excellent staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with! To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone. To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. Teachers take note! I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in all your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. NB: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload! This week’s quiz: On 13 December, I asked you a question about the then-new US security strategy, which presented Europe as lacking in "self-confidence" and facing "civilizational erasure" due to immigration. You were to re-read our article “EU Council president rejects political influence in US security plan”, and send in the answer to this question: What did the EU Council president, Antonio Costa, say about the difference in the idea of “free speech” between Europe and the United States? The answer is, to quote our article: "The United States cannot replace Europe in what its vision is of freedom of expression,” Costa said. "There is no freedom of speech if citizens' freedom of information is sacrificed to defend the techno oligarchs in the United States." In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by RFI Listeners Club member Jayanta Chakrabarty from New Delhi, India. Jayanta’s question was: “What inspiring act have you witnessed that could motivate a nation or society?” Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us! The winners are: RFI English listener Khizar Hayat Shah from Punjab, Pakistan. Khizar is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations on your double win, Khizar. Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Faheem Noor, the president of the World United RFI Listeners Organization in Nankana Sahib, Pakistan, and RFI Listeners Club members Solomon Fessahazion from Asmara, Eritrea, as well as Deekay Dimple from Assam, India. Last but not least, there’s RFI English listener Liton Hossain Khan from Naogaon in Bangladesh. Congratulations winners! Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Scherzo” from the Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 57, by Dmitri Shostakovich, performed by the Quintetto Chigiano; “What’s Going On?” by Marvin Gaye, Al Cleveland, and Reynaldo Benson, performed by Marvin Gaye; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “ Pithecanthropus Erectus” by Charles Mingus, performed by Mingus and his ensemble. Do you have a music request? Send it to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr This week’s question ... you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, tune into Alison Hird’s report on alternative retirement living on the “Spotlight on France” podcast number 138 (Reinventing retirement, saving a Paris cinema, counting the French), which will help you with the answer. You have until 23 February to enter this week's quiz; the winners will be announced on the 28 February podcast. When you enter, be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number. Send your answers to: english.service@rfi.fr or Susan Owensby RFI – The Sound Kitchen 80, rue Camille Desmoulins 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux France Click here to find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize. Click here to find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club, or form your own official RFI Club.
Transcribe →Buy European
Jan 2401:02:58Tap to summarizeThis week on The Sound Kitchen, you’ll hear the answer to the question about Romanian defence strategy. There are your answers to the bonus question on “The Listeners Corner” with Paul Myers, and a tasty musical dessert on Erwan Rome’s “Music from Erwan”. All that and the new quiz and bonus questions too, so click the “Play” button above and enjoy! Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music … so be sure and listen every week. World Radio Day is just around the corner, so it’s time for you to record your greetings for our annual World Radio Day programme! WRD is on 13 February; we'll have our celebration the day after, on the 14 February show. The deadline for your recordings is Monday 2 February, which is not far off! Try to keep your greeting to under a minute. You can record on your phone and send it to me as an attachment in an e-mail to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Be sure to record your greeting from underneath a blanket. Then the sound will be truly radiophonic – I mean, you want everyone to understand you, right? Don’t miss out on the fun. 2 February is just around the corner, so to your recorders! Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all! Facebook: Be sure to send your photos for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure to subscribe to see all our videos. Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you! Our website “Le Français facile avec rfi” has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bilingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard. Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”, and you’ll be counselled on the best-suited activities for your level according to your score. Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service, told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it”. She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it! Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts! In addition to the breaking news articles on our site, with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more. There’s Spotlight on France, Spotlight on Africa, the International Report, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We also have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our excellent staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with! To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone. To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. Teachers take note! I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in all your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. NB: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload! This week’s quiz: On 6 December, I asked you a question from Jan van der Made’s article and interview with Claudiu Nasui, a former Romanian economy minister and a current member of parliament in the pro-European Save Romania Union party. You were to re-listen to, or re-read, Jan’s “On NATO’s eastern flank, Romania finds itself at the crux of European security”, and send in the answer to this question: What does Nasui think is the core issue for defence spending? What does he think the EU needs to do? The answer is, to quote Jan’s article: “It’s also about spending efficiency. We should buy more European – like the SAM-T and other weapon systems – to achieve economies of scale. For cheap, efficient weapon systems, you need economies of scale, which we won’t get if we don’t buy European. So it’s about more than just investing money – how you invest matters.” In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by RFI Listeners Club member Debashis Gope from West Bengal, India. Debashis asked: “What is the most precious thing in life?” Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us! The winners are: RFI English listener Khondaker Rafiq ul Islam from Naogaon, Bangladesh. Khondakar is also this week’s bonus question winner. Congratulations on your double win, Khondakar. Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Najimuddin, the president of the RFI International DX Radio Listeners Club in West Bengal, India; Bithi Begum, a member of the Shetu RFI Listeners Club in Naogaon, Bangladesh, and RFI Listeners Club member Debashish Gope from West Bengal, India. Last but not least, there’s RFI English listener Abdul Mannan from Chapainawabganj, Bangladesh. Congratulations winners! Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Vavavoum” by Romane and Stocchelo Rosenberg, performed by the Rosenberg Ensemble; the Romanian Rhapsody No. 1 op. 11 by George Enescu, performed by the WDR Symphony Orchestra conducted by Cristian Măcelaru; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “Doktharake Julideh” by Mohammad Reza Shajarian and Sa’di, performed by Mohammad Reza Shajarian and the Aref Ensemble. Do you have a music request? Send it to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr This week’s question ... you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read Paul Myers’ article “Senegal outwit Morocco to claim 2025 Africa Cup of Nations”, which will help you with the answer. You have until 16 February to enter this week's quiz; the winners will be announced on the 21 February podcast. When you enter, be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number. Send your answers to: english.service@rfi.fr or Susan Owensby RFI – The Sound Kitchen 80, rue Camille Desmoulins 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux France Click here to find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize. Click here to find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club, or form your own official RFI Club.
Transcribe →Adieu to the Chinese pandas
Jan 1700:23:30Tap to summarizeThis week on The Sound Kitchen, you’ll hear the answer to the question about the pandas in the Beauval Zoo. There are your answers to the bonus question on “The Listeners Corner” and a tasty musical dessert on Erwan Rome’s “Music from Erwan”. All that and the new quiz and bonus questions too, so click the “Play” button above and enjoy! Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music … so be sure and listen every week. World Radio Day is just around the corner, so it’s time for you to record your greetings for our annual World Radio Day programme! WRD is on 13 February; we'll have our celebration the day after, on the 14 February show. The deadline for your recordings is Monday 2 February, which is not far off! Try to keep your greeting to under a minute. You can record on your phone and send it to me as an attachment in an e-mail to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Be sure to record your greeting from underneath a blanket. Then the sound will be truly radiophonic – I mean, you want everyone to understand you, right? Don’t miss out on the fun. 2 February is just around the corner, so to your recorders! Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all! Facebook: Be sure to send your photos for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure to subscribe to see all our videos. Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you! Our website “Le Français facile avec rfi” has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bilingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard. Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”, and you’ll be counselled on the best-suited activities for your level according to your score. Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service, told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it”. She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it! Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts! In addition to the breaking news articles on our site, with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more. There’s Spotlight on France, Spotlight on Africa, the International Report, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We also have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our excellent staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with! To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone. To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. Teachers take note! I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in all your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. NB: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload! This week’s quiz: On 29 November, I asked you a question about two Chinese pandas – Huan Huan and Yuan Zi – who were in the Beauval Zoo here in France, and had just gone back to China. You were to re-read our article “France says goodbye to star pandas going back to China” and send in the answer to this question: How many cubs did Huan Huan give birth to while here in France? The answer is, to quote our article: “Huan Huan gave birth to three cubs – the first to be born in France. The eldest, Yuan Ming, a male, was sent back to China two years ago, but twins born in August 2021 will remain at Beauval at least until 2027.” The twins’ names are Hunalili and Yuandudu. In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by RFI English listener Sadequl Bari Liton from Naogaon, Bangladesh, “How do you spend your weekly holiday?” Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us! The winners are: Nafisa Khatun, the president of the RFI Mahila Shrota Sangha Club in West Bengal, India. Nafisa is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations on your double win, Nafisa. Also on the list of lucky winners this week are A. K. M. Nuruzzaman, the president of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh, and RFI Listeners Club members Samir Mukhopadhyay from West Bengal, India; Kanwar Sandhu from British Columbia in Canada, and last but not least, Habib Ur Rehman Sehla, the president of the International Radio Fan and Youth Club in Khanewal, Pakistan. Congratulations winners! Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “In the Hall of the Mountain King” from Peer Gynt by Edvard Grieg, performed by the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Nicolò Foron; the traditional Chinese “Sun Quan the Emperor”; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer; “L'auzel ques sul bouyssou” (“Bird sitting in the Bush”) by Estienne Moulinié, sung by Claire Lefilliâtre with Le Poème Harmonique conducted by Vincent Dumestre. Do you have a music request? Send it to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr This week’s question ... you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read Paul Myers' article “France launches recruitment for 10-month voluntary national military service”, which will help you with the answer. You have until 9 February to enter this week's quiz; the winners will be announced on the 14 February podcast. When you enter, be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number. Send your answers to: english.service@rfi.fr or Susan Owensby RFI – The Sound Kitchen 80, rue Camille Desmoulins 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux France Click here to find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize. Click here to find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club, or form your own official RFI Club.
Transcribe →The Louvre in the news again
Jan 1000:44:17Tap to summarizeThis week on The Sound Kitchen, it’s the answer to the question about the recently closed gallery in the Louvre Museum. You’ll hear about my recent trip to Copenhagen, where I met listener Hans Verner Lollike, there are your answers to the bonus question on “The Listeners Corner”, Ollia Horton’s “Happy Moment”, and it’s all topped off with a tasty musical dessert on Erwan Rome’s “Music from Erwan”. All that and the new quiz and bonus questions too, so click the “Play” button above and enjoy! Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music … so be sure and listen every week. World Radio Day is just around the corner, so it’s time for you to record your greetings for our annual World Radio Day program! WRD is on 13 February; we'll have our celebration the day after, on the 14 February show. The deadline for your recordings is Monday 2 February, which is not far off! Try to keep your greeting to under a minute. You can record on your phone and send it to me as an attachment in an e-mail to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Be sure to record your greeting from underneath a blanket. Then the sound will be truly radiophonic - I mean, you want everyone to understand you, right? Don’t miss out on the fun. 2 February is just around the corner, so to your recorders! Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all! Facebook: Be sure to send your photos for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure to subscribe to see all our videos. Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you! Our website “Le Français facile avec rfi” has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bilingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard. Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”, and you’ll be counselled on the best-suited activities for your level according to your score. Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service, told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it”. She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it! Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts! In addition to the breaking news articles on our site, with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more. There’s Spotlight on France, Spotlight on Africa, the International Report, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We also have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our excellent staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with! To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone. To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. Teachers take note! I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in all your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. N.B.: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload! This week’s quiz: On 22 November, I asked you a question about the world’s most visited museum – the Louvre here in Paris. The museum was back in the news, due to an architectural audit that turned up structural weaknesses in some of the beams in the building. You were to re-read our article “Louvre Museum in Paris shuts gallery over structural safety fears”, and send in the answer to these two questions: What is the name of the gallery that has been closed, and what artworks are in that gallery? The answer is: The Campana Gallery, which houses nine rooms dedicated to ancient Greek ceramics. In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question: What are your unique relationship rules? Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us! The winners are: RFI Listeners Club member Kashif Khalil from Faisalabad, Pakistan. Kashif is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations on your double win, Kashif. Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Nuraiz Bin Zaman, a member of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh, and RFI Listeners Club member Nasyr Muhammad from Katsina State, Nigeria. Last but not least, RFI English listeners Murshida Akhter Lata, the co-chairman of the Source of Knowledge Club in Naogaon, Bangladesh, and Miss Shuno, a member of the International Radio Fan and Youth Club in Khanewal, Pakistan. Congratulations winners! Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Barkley’s Bug” by David Grishman, performed by the David Grishman Quintet; Traditional Greek music produced by Visual Melodies; the “Rondo” from Frédéric Chopin’s Piano Concerto no. 1, performed by Krystian Zimmerman and the Polish Festival Orchestra; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer; “Happy” by Pharrell Williams, and “Guinnevere” by David Crosby, arranged and performed by Miles Davis and his ensemble. Do you have a music request? Send it to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr This week’s question ... you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read Paul Myers' article “Nigeria power past Mozambique into quarterfinals at Africa Cup of Nations”, which will help you with the answer. You have until 2 February to enter this week's quiz; the winners will be announced on the 7 February podcast. When you enter, be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number. Send your answers to: english.service@rfi.fr or Susan Owensby RFI – The Sound Kitchen 80, rue Camille Desmoulins 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux France Click here to find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize. Click here to find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club, or form your own official RFI Club.
Transcribe →Your 2026 Resolutions
Jan 300:43:50Tap to summarizeThis week on The Sound Kitchen you’ll hear our annual listener New Year’s Resolution show, co-hosted by my daughter Mathilde (as always!) There’s plenty of good music, too, to keep you in the holiday mood. Just click on the “Play” button above and enjoy! Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday – here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz and bonus questions, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music … so be sure and listen every week. There’s no quiz this week – check in next week, 10 January, for the answer to the question about the gallery in the Louvre Museum that had to be closed. Thanks to everyone who sent in their Resolutions – may you make good progress in keeping them! And many thanks to this week’s co-host, my daughter Mathilde Daguzan-Owensby, and for the contributions to the show from Olivia Morrow and Evan Coffey. And of course, hats off to the Magic Mixer Erwan Rome, who made this show sing! Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Be Our Guest” by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman; the traditional “Auld Lang Syne” performed by the Glenn Miller Orchestra; “A House with Love in It” by Sid Lippman and Sylvia Dee, sung by Nat King Cole; “Winter Wonderland” by Felix Smith, performed by the Chet Baker Quartet; “Let it Snow” by Sammy Cahn, sung by Leon Redbone; “Sleigh Ride” by Leroy Anderson, performed by the Sam Bush Ensemble, and “We Wish you the Merriest” by Les Brown, sung by June Christie. From the entire RFI English service, we wish you a Happy 2026!
Transcribe →My Ordinary Hero
Dec 2700:09:35Tap to summarizeFeast your ears on listener Rasheed Naz’s “My Ordinary Hero” essay. All it takes is a little click on the “Play” button above! Hello everyone! This week on The Sound Kitchen, you’ll hear a “My Ordinary Hero” essay by listener Rasheed Naz from Faisal Abad, Pakistan. I hope you’ll be inspired to write an essay for us, too! If your essay goes on the air, you’ll find a package in the mail from The Sound Kitchen. Write in about your “ordinary” heroes – the people in your community who are doing extraordinarily good work, quietly working to make the world a better place, in whatever way they can. As listener Pramod Maheshwari said: “Just as small drops of water can fill a pitcher, small drops of kindness can change the world.” I am still looking for your “This I Believe” essays, too. Tell us about the principles that guide your life … what you have found to be true from your very own personal experience. Or write about a book that changed your perspective on life, a person who you admire, festivals in your community, your most memorable moment, and/or your proudest achievement. If your essay is chosen to go on-the-air – read by you – you’ll win a special prize! Send your essays to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Or by postal mail, to: Susan Owensby RFI – The Sound Kitchen 80, rue Camille Desmoulins 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux France I look forward to hearing from you soon! Here's Rashid Naz’s essay: Heroes are not always found in stories or movies. Sometimes they live among us, quietly working to make our world a better place. My “ordinary” hero is a community leader in our town, someone who has taught me that real heroism comes from serving others with kindness and courage. Our community leader, Mr. Ahmed, is not rich or powerful, but he has a heart full of compassion. He organizes clean up drives, helps poor families, and encourages young people to stay in school. Whenever there is a problem - a sick neighbor, a broken road, or a family in need - he is the first to step forward. His actions remind us that small efforts can bring big changes. What I admire most about him is his humility. He never seeks fame or reward. When people thank him, he simply says, “We are all responsible for our community.” Those words inspire me. He believes that leadership means service, not authority, and he proves it every day through his actions. To many people, he might seem like an ordinary man. But to me, he is a true hero - a symbol of dedication, honesty, and hope. Because of him, I’ve learned that anyone can be a hero, not by wearing a cape, but by using their heart to make a difference. That is why my “ordinary” hero is our community leader Mr Ahmed, a man whose quiet strength and selfless service continue to inspire us all. Be sure and tune in next week for our annual New Year’s Resolutions program! Talk to you then!
Transcribe →Merry Christmas!
Dec 2000:09:33Tap to summarizeThis week on The Sound Kitchen, there’s a special Christmas programme from us to you. Just click on the “Play” button above and enjoy! Hello everyone! Merry Christmas! This is Alberto Rios’ poem, which you heard him read on the programme. Christmas on the Border, 1929 1929, the early days of the Great Depression. The desert air was biting, but the spirit of the season was alive. Despite hard times, the town of Nogales, Arizona, determined They would host a grand Christmas party For the children in the area—a celebration that would defy The gloom of the year, the headlines in the paper, and winter itself. In the heart of town, a towering Christmas tree stood, A pine in the desert. Its branches, they promised, would be adorned With over 3,000 gifts. 3,000. The thought at first was to illuminate the tree like at home, With candles, but it was already a little dry. Needles were beginning to contemplate jumping. A finger along a branch made them all fall off. People brought candles anyway. The church sent over Some used ones, too. The grocery store sent Some paper bags, which settled things. Everyone knew what to do. They filled the bags with sand from the fire station, Put the candles in them, making a big pool of lighted luminarias. From a distance the tree was floating in a lake of light— Fire so normally a terror in the desert, but here so close to miracle. For the tree itself, people brought garlands from home, garlands Made of everything, walnuts and small gourds and flowers, Chilies, too—the chilies themselves looking A little like flames. The townspeople strung them all over the beast— It kept getting bigger, after all, with each new addition, This curious donkey whose burden was joy. At the end, the final touch was tinsel, tinsel everywhere, more tinsel. Children from nearby communities were invited, and so were those From across the border, in Nogales, Sonora, a stone’s throw away. But there was a problem. The border. As the festive day approached, it became painfully clear— The children in Nogales, Sonora, would not be able to cross over. They were, quite literally, on the wrong side of Christmas. Determined to find a solution, the people of Nogales, Arizona, Collaborated with Mexican authorities on the other side. In a gesture as generous as it was bold, as happy as it was cold: On Christmas Eve, 1929, For a few transcendent hours, The border moved. Officials shifted it north, past city hall, in this way bringing The Christmas tree within reach of children from both towns. On Christmas Day, thousands of children— American and Mexican, Indigenous and orphaned— Gathered around the tree, hands outstretched, Eyes wide, with shouting and singing both. Gifts were passed out, candy canes were licked, And for one day, there was no border. When the last present had been handed out, When the last child returned home, The border resumed its usual place, Separating the two towns once again. For those few hours, however, the line in the sand disappeared. The only thing that mattered was Christmas. Newspapers reported no incidents that day, nothing beyond The running of children, their pockets stuffed with candy and toys, Milling people on both sides, The music of so many peppermint candies being unwrapped. On that chilly December day, the people of Nogales Gathered and did what seemed impossible: However quietly regarding the outside world, They simply redrew the border. In doing so, they brought a little more warmth to the desert winter. On the border, on this day, they had a problem and they solved it. Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: The traditional “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” sung by the Gracias Choir conducted by Eunsook Park, and “Santa Claus Llego A La Ciudad” by J.Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie, sung by Luis Miguel. Be sure and tune in next week, 27 December, for a “My Ordinary Hero” essay by your fellow listener Rasheed Naz.
Transcribe →