11/04/2008

BASSEKOU KOUYATE & NGONI BA won BEST AFRICAN ARTIST and ALBUM OF THE YEAR with their debut album 'Segu Blue' at the BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music

BASSEKOU KOUYATE & NGONI BA won BEST AFRICAN ARTIST at the BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music

Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba were announced the winners at the seventh annual BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music. The ceremony at London Dingwalls on Thursday 10 April was hosted by BBC Radio 3's Mary Ann Kennedy.

Bassekou Kouyate made a surprise appearance to collect his two awards and highlights of the BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music will be broadcast Friday 11April, on BBC Radio 3, 7.00 - 8.45pm.

Last night was the crowning glory of what has been an amazing year for Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba. It started in 2007 with the release of the critically acclaimed debut album 'Segu Blue' followed by two European tours which included performance at leading festivals and a television appearance on BBC2's Later with Jools Holland.

06/05/2008

New Album from Lowri Evans

She has started recording her new Welsh album and is hoping to launch it at this year's Small Nations Festival on July 12th.

09/04/2008

EARLY BIRD TICKETS SOLD OUT

The first 150 "early bird" tickets sold out. Tickets are available through our new Swansea box office.

28/03/2008

OUR 2008 LEAFLET HAS GONE TO PRESS

It will be mailed to everyone on our postal list next week. If you would like to receive a copy please send your postal address to Dick. Alternatively, you can download 2008 leaflet in.pdf (5 MB) and 2008 leaflet outside.pdf (5 MB).

28/03/2008

BOX OFFICE OPENS ON 7 APRIL

The first 150 tickets sold are at the "early bird" price of £50. Our new box office will be in Swansea: see tickets for details

14/03/2008

SENSATIONAL DOUBLE AFRICAN HEADLINE!

Our two main headline acts not only come from the same area, but are both called Kouyate, the ancient Manding name for musicians. Together they represent the best of modern West African music. Bassekou Kouyate (Friday) with his Ngoni quartet and singer Amy Sacko (The Tina Turner of Mali) is the ancient tradition at its most inspiring. Kora player N'Faly (Afro Celt Sound System) with his band Dunyakan (Saturday) is the 21st century version of the tradition.

25/03/2008

A MESSAGE FROM MARYAM KOUYATE

There's nothing I would rather do usually than talk about N'faly and my family! N'faly is my brother in law, I'm divorced but was married to his brother ( actually more of a cousin relation in Western terms but very much brother in Mandingue ones!). He and his family have become my own family and it's a very special bond.

We work together very well as well, and I feel very happy that we have been developing his career very successfully, so it's become a new profession for me as well. I'm also considered a griotte (albeit with little musical talent) but through marriage, a man can't become one, he's either born one or he's not! N'faly's father, who held a rare grade of griot and owner of the Konkoba mask, had a profound influence on him. As did his mother, a Dioubaté, a griot family as well; she died just last year and it was very difficult for him. N'faly's uncle (husband to his older sister) was the renowned Sory Kandia Kouyaté, and so N'faly had several really profound figures who have influenced his music--and life.

Bassekou was just at Busara in Zanzibar with N'faly on the same bill. He's been doing very well of late and also performing quite a bit like us. All Kouyatés are musicians from the griot caste. In fact, griot, or djeli in Mande terms, means blood in the Mandingue languages, and they are considered the blood of society which holds it all together. N'faly also likes to call griots "walking libraries" a term I like very much! I think that the ascendancy of the Kouyaté family dates back to around the 10th or 12th century. Originally the Kouyatés or griots served the kings (ordinarily the Këitas, you've probably hear how Salif's parents didn't want him to be a musician at all, because he was considered a king and not of the musician caste!). The griot is also very important in weddings, births, even resolving disputes (there's no one who can defend you better than N'faly as I know so very well).

Bassekou comes from Mali, I think, so probably speaks Bambara, whereas N'faly speaks Malinké, but they are the same language, just diffferent dialects. Certain words are different. I was married in Abidjan myself and many people speak Djula there which is more of a market language but very similar, for example iniké could be iniché but very similar and understandable. Also Bassekou is rather more traditional in some ways and more blues oriented, also he plays the ngoni. N'faly plays kora and balafon and his music, esp. with Dunyakan, is more fusion oriented reflecting N'faly's desire to bring all things together, music cultures and people! N'faly is really involved in respecting the culture but also the future, and all influences. I think also that N'faly's experiences with the Afrocelts have influenced his music in some great ways. Bassekou's music is more rootsy, in short, both absolutely lovely musics and with much culturally in common but also very different in style and form!

Mali is very near to N'faly's birthplace in Guinea anyway, Siguiri, only about 300 miles. But if you look at the map, it's all the same region, the boundaries come from governments, colonialization, etc, they're all part of the Mandingue as is Burkino Faso, Senegal, etc.

So you were exactly right when referring to the Manding empire.

African music's lovely that way, that's why when someone says something like, oh yes, I've heard the kora (or the ngoni or whatever), I'm always thinking, well, you've heard the piano or guitar played a million different ways, same with African music! Bassekou, N'faly, and also Seckou Keïta played at Busara and all had wonderful and completely different sounds! It's like the (sometimes slow) evolution of African music in the world that people like Peter Gabriel started is now evolving of its own force. People are slowly starting to recognize and know instruments like the kora or balafon, djembé or ngoni, etc., on their own terms, not merely as background exoticism for something. I think it's great!

Bassekou performs with his wife, and I think she's known as the Tina Turner of Mali. N'faly also performs with his wife Muriel, who was raised in France, became infatuated with African music and drumming, moved to Brussels to study with Mamady Keïta, and eventually met N'faly when he moved to Europe! So many people think that, as they do with me, that we started liking African music because of our relationships, but actually our profound love of African culture and music came first and had serious impacts on our lives. Muriel studied with Mamady and in fact, recently travelled with him to Guinea; she's on a very high level as drummer and teacher and very well respected. She is very talented, a true professional musician, and also performs in an all female group of drummers, FoliLaka. She also sings in the group. But in the group, while he is fiercely proud of her, they would rather emphasize their music not personal connection and don't make a big deal out of it; I think it comes out anyway!