Kélétigui Diabaté – Koulandian
https://amf.didiermary.fr/keletigui-diabate-koulandian/
He has been called the “bibliothèque de la musique Africaine” (library of African music) by younger African musicians, multi-instrumentalist Kélétigui Diabaté (1931-2012) was the unsung hero of West African music. Kélétigui was the first balafon player to use two instruments tuned a semitone apart to facilitate playing jazz! [...]
Djeli Moussa Diawara – Haidara (remastered)
https://amf.didiermary.fr/djeli-moussa-diawara-haidara-remastered/
Here’s the full 2010 remastered version of Haidara, the Guinean korafola Djeli Moussa Diawara recorded in Abidjan in 1982 for his 1st album.
Read the stories about the album on Wikipedia. […]
Kamele N’goni…
https://amf.didiermary.fr/kamele-ngoni/
J’assiste depuis un certain temps à l’éclosion “soudaine” dans le monde musical, d’un instrument hautement traditionnel, voire mystique, le Kamele N’goni (ou Kamale Ngoni).
Cet instrument traditionnel fait partie d’une […]
Mah Damba – Jarabi
https://amf.didiermary.fr/mah-damba-jarabi-diva-mali/
“Jarabi”, sung by Mah Damba with Korafola Djeli Moussa Diawara, appears on the compilation “Divas from Mali,” released in 1997.
Just close your eyes…
Listen to the Diva and the Griot…
Bazoumana, the Djeli and his N’goni
https://amf.didiermary.fr/bazoumana-djeli-ngoni/
Bazoumana, or Banzumana, Sissoko (1890-1987) – aka the « old lion » – was a n’goni player, a Malian national treasure as well as a djeli (jeli) or griot.
"The quintessential n’goni player was the late Banzumana Sissoko, perhaps the most revered and beloved Malian griot of the century. Until his death in 1987, he […]
Djeli Moussa Diawara – Yékéké (Paris 2010)
https://amf.didiermary.fr/djeli-moussa-diawara-yekeke-paris-2010/
Following the remastered version of “Yasimika (Abidjan 1982)”, “Yékéké (Paris 2010)” contains 9 tracks, recorded a few years before the release of this album, but never officially published.
It also contains new recordings of his 4 original songs from 1982, reworked in a studio in Paris with Guinean musicians. […]
Kora Jazz Trio – Folly
https://amf.didiermary.fr/kora-jazz-trio-folly-mezzo/
Kora Jazz Trio was a three piece African musical group, founded in 2002 by Djeli Moussa Diawara, Guinean Korafola, with Abdoulaye Diabate (piano) and Moussa Sissokho (percussion), best known for producing a music that is a mix of American jazz with traditional African music. They released 3 studio albums Part I (2003) Part II (2005) […]
Oumou Sangaré – Moussolou
https://amf.didiermary.fr/oumou-sangare-moussolou/
Acclaimed for its outstanding production, Moussolou, Oumou’s first album sold over 250,000 copies in West Africa and established her as a major star in Mali and beyond. Its title translates as “Women” and many of the songs deal with her experiences as a woman in a male-dominated country that still embraces polygamy. Utterly modern and […]
Victor Démé – Djon Maya
https://amf.didiermary.fr/victor-deme-djon-maya/
15 years ago, I met Victor Démé and his musicians, when they came for showcases in Paris. As a blogger and music journalist-like, I had been following the launch of his first album, and reporting on my late blog KoToNTeeJ. This song Djon Maya was on heavy rotation on all radios.
We spent quite some […]
Dawda Jobarteh & Toumani Diabaté – Tabara
https://amf.didiermary.fr/dawda-jobarteh-toumani-diabate-tabara/
This is pure traditional Kora playing by Dawda Jobarteh & Toumani Diabaté.
The kora is a stringed instrument used extensively in West Africa. A kora typically has 21 strings, which are played by plucking with the fingers. It combines features of the lute and harp.
In the late 20th century, a 24/5-string model of the kora […]
Karantamba – Ndigal / Galgi
https://amf.didiermary.fr/karantamba-ndigal/
Bai Janha, alias “Sweet Fingers,” composer, arranger, guitar player of Guelewar & Ifang Bondi, is undisputedly the most important musician to have come from Gambia. This unreleased recording presents Bai Janha with his psychedelic Karantamba, a school for young musicians, captured in Thiès (Sénégal) at “Sangomar” Club on 16th of August 1984. [...]
