20/07/2024
Yesterday the world lost a great artist, the Malian kora master Toumani Diabaté, who passed away 58 years old. A great loss for us dedicated to the greats sound of universal beauty – from where ever it may be. Great art & great music emanates from all over.
Toumani was one of the greatest masters of the kora, a 21-string instrument used by the griots of Western Africa, incl. Senegal and Mali. Coming from an ancient Griot family he developed a highly advanced playing style for the kora as a solo instrument as it can be heard on numerous CD as well as YouTube recordings. Solo recordings as well as recordings with other Malian players, e.g. the guitarist Ali Farka Touré.
A number of recordings feature Toumani and his son Sidiki:
He also engaged in interesting and rather audacious collaborations with artists coming from very different traditions as e.g. in the following improvised performance with American bluegrass banjo player Bela Fleck:
Some few years ago he encountered the Persian kamancheh master Kayhan Kalhor. Last year they issued a joint CD.
Yesterday Toumani left this world. We should remember and pay tribute to his works, recordings and heritage (links below in comments):
His contributions were recognized for bridging the gap between ancestral traditions and modern music, making a lasting imprint on Mali's cultural landscape.
