Malian Band Tartit to Perform at Sahara Soul in London

Tuareg band Tartit, from the Timbuktu region of Mali, is scheduled to perform on Saturday, September 27, 2014 at Barbican in London. Tartit formed in 1992 in a refugee camp in Mauritania, where their music was a means of survival in the face of the economic, social and political difficulties in the region.

Tartit’s compositions include traditional Tuareg ballads, dances and call-and-response songs. The female members of the band play the imzad (one string instrument played only by Tuareg women) and are supplemented by the teherdent (traditional lute played only by the men) or the electric guitar. These instruments are accompanied by chants and percussive handclaps.

The group plays Tuareg desert music in its most traditional form, as it was originally made: led and driven by women. Tartit were the first Tuareg band to receive international attention in the mid nighties. They personify the Saharan desert music which inspired the Tuareg guitar-based bands such as Tinariwen who followed, bringing Tuareg music to the world.

Tartit’s discograhy includes Abacabok, Ichichila, Live From the Sahara, and Amazagh: Troisieme Festival Voix de Femmes

Barbican Hall, Barbican, Silk Street, London EC2Y 8DS
Tickets: £15 – 25 (plus booking fee)
For more info & tickets: www.barbican.org.uk