Born into a family of traditional African jalis (musician-historians), Salieu Suso began training on the 21-stringed kora at the age of 8, and began his…
Artist Profiles: Salieu Suso
Tag: kora
Artist Profiles: Papa Susso
Papa Susso is a master kora (African harp/lute) player and jali (oral historian, also known as griot) from The Gambia, West Africa. He hails from…
Artist Profiles: Malamini Jobarteh
Malamini Jobarteh was a jali and one of Gambia’s greatest musical and cultural icons. In the late 1970s Alhaji Bai Konte and Malamini Jobarteh toured…
Artist Profiles: Dembo Jobarteh
Dembo Jobarteh was a member of a well know jeli family (known as Jobarteh in Gambia and Diabate in Mali). His father played the kora…
Spellbinding Meeting of the Celtic and African Harps
Catrin Finch and Seckou Keita – Soar (bendigedig, 2018) Two exceptional musician representing distinct traditions and harps celebrate the magnificent osprey bird on their album…
Artist Profiles: Sona Jobarteh
Maya Sona Jobarteh was born in London in 1983. She is the first professional female kora player. Sona is part of the Jobarteh/Diabaté family of…
Sekou Kouyate to Showcase at Visa for Music in Rabat
Guinean kora innovator Sekou Kouyate is set to perform on November 23, 2017 at 21:30 at Salle la Renaissance in Rabat, Morocco. This concert is…
Melodic Kora Designs
Kane Mathis – Counterpoints (2017) American composer and multi-instrumentalist Kane Mathis has been a student and player of the West African kora for many years.…
Ballaké Sissoko and Vincent Segal Announce Fall 2017 West Coast Tour
Ballaké Sissoko and Vincent Segal will be touring the West coast of the United States this fall. Malian kora maestro Ballaké Sissoko and French cellist…
Artist Profiles: Kane Mathis
Kane Mathis has been making annual trips to The Gambia, West Africa to study the 21-string harp called Kora played by the bards of the…