Friday, May 1, 2009 8 pm
Merrill Auditorium, Portland, Maine
Toumani Diabaté – the self-taught grand prince of the kora, West Africa’s twenty-one–string harp – has brought the traditional music of his native Mali to the attention of the world audience, including interesting collaborations with the likes of Björk and American bluesman Taj Mahal. His playing, while strongly rooted in the Malian tradition, is also open to a wide range of other influences, such as jazz and flamenco. Mali comes to Portland when Diabaté takes the stage with his Symmetric Orchestra, combining myriad elements in perfect balance. Ebullient, scorching salsa intermingles with ancient griot songs from across what was once called the Mandé Empire, and through it all, Diabaté’s sparkling kora weaves a golden thread through the passionately felt tones and rhythms.
Friday, May 1, 2009 Time TBA
Merrill Auditorium Green Room
FREE
Master artist, griot, and ambassador of African music and culture Toumani Diabaté speaks on the history of the kora, African music and instrumentation, and the background of his ensemble the Symmetric Orchestra, who bring to the modern world a flavor of the Malian Mandinka empire of thirteenth-century west Africa.
Friday, May 1, 2009 6:30–7:30 pm
Merrill Auditorium Green Room
FREE
The musical influence of Africa has come full-circle with forms such as jazz and blues and even hip-hop, rooted in the African-American tradition, now influencing and being assimilated by contemporary African musicmakers. Innovator Toumani Diabaté and his Symmetric Orchestra – who create music out of west African sounds peppered with jazz, blues, and salsa – are a perfect example of this phenomenon. Join an ethnomusicologist for this trip around the world, following the influences of African music and learn how African music itself has been influenced by the results. Diabaté will perform with his orchestra at 8 pm following this event.
“A modern virtuoso rethinking an age-old instrument.” New York Times
