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Putumayo World Music

Putumayo World Music
Founded 1993 (1993)
Founder Dan Storper
Genre world music
Country of origin United States
Location New York City
Official website www.putumayo.com

Putumayo World Music is a New York City-based record label, now specializing in compilations of music from various nations, regions, or musical styles which may be classified as world music.

In 1991, on his way home from Bali, Dan Storper stopped in San Francisco, California. In Golden Gate Park, he heard the Nigerian band Kotoja. He was impressed by the music and the way it gathered many different people. He made a compilation of music he had gathered on his journeys and gathered a positive response. This led him to give out his first release in 1993. Storper took the name of his record label, Putumayo, from Colombia's Putumayo Department where he travelled in 1974, which subsequently came from the name of Putumayo River. The word is said to be the name of a bird (heron).

Every release features the art of Nicola Heindl. Her art is both folky and modern, and, according to the Putumayo website, "represents one of Putumayo's goals: to connect the traditional to the contemporary."

Typically a Putumayo World Music compilation is presented as a theme under the title “Putumayo Presents:” The themes can be regional (South Africa, Caribbean, Asia), music types (reggae, folk, Latin, jazz) and other themes (lounge, groove, party).

The Putumayo Kids division was created in 2002. Since the release of the World Playground CD in 1999, Putumayo Kids has achieved honors from Parents' Choice Awards and the National Parenting Publications Association, and has grown to be one of the more important children's record labels.


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