Toumani Diabate - Kaira

The classic kora album. Diabate creates magic on the 21-string West African kora, a cross between a harp and a lute. The kora typically accompanies a singer, but Diabate builds on influences from acoustic guitar, drums, and Western music, and this instrumental work more than stands on its own. Songs are kora classics. “Kaira (Peace),” written by his father in the 1940s, helped establish the kora as a solo instrument. “Alla L’Aa Ke (God’s Work)” is 100 years old. The music follows no established rhythm, though the pace is relaxed and easy. Micro-melodies materialize and vanish, their places taken by new ideas.

ABOUT TOUMAINI DIABATE:
In 1965, Diabate was born into one of Mali’s leading musical families. His father, Sidiki, was widely regarded as the “King of Kora” (a kora is a 21-string instrument that combines the concept of a harp and a lute). Diabate became known as the Prince. At age 5, he’d taught himself to play, and by age 13, he was performing in public. While a teenager, he joined the National Ensemble. From this traditional basis, Diabate has become well known not only as a kora virtuoso, but also as an accompanist to one of Mali’s most popular singers, Kandia Kouyate. Intrigued by the acoustic guitar, Diabate often experimented with non-African music. In 1987, he met and played with Ketama, a Spanish flamenco group, and the combination of their guitars and his kora worked so well that two albums were recorded (under the name Songhai).