#mali mande music

[zhanteimi]

Kandia Kouyaté - Biriko

Mali, 2002, Mande music / Griot music Vocals so good Kandia’s got her own gravity well, and once you’re in her orbit, there’s no escaping this ngara. There are certain singers you hear and instantly know you’re listening to the soul of a country: Fairuz for Lebanon, Amália Rodrigues for Portugal, and Kandia Kouyaté for Mali. Undeniable talent singing from a specific tradition.

[globalgeography]

Guinea Bissau

Note on the flag: The orange and green are opposite of the Irish flag, although the two are frequently confused.

Government type: Republic (with Prime Minister and President)

President: Umaro Sissoco Embalo

Prime Minister: Geraldo Martins

Population: 1.6 million

Languages: Many languages are spoken in this nation. Most widely spoken is Guinea-Bissau Creole (Crioulo), which is mainly derived from Portuguese. Other languages spoken include: English, French, several dialects of Arabic, as well as other languages from the Bak branch spoken in several Western African countries such as Senegal and Gambia (Jola Fonyi, Mandinka, Noon)

Religion: 46% Islam, 30% traditional faiths, 18% Christianity, 4% None. All of the imported religions practiced in Guinea-Bissau are heavily syncretized with traditional practices, creating unique religious practices specific to the nation.

Ethnic groups: There is a large variety of ethnic groups as well. Balante and Fulani (and their respective subgroups) make up just under half the population. Malinke make up 14% and Mandyako are 12%

Industries: Guinea-Bissau is highly agrarian, with over half the nation living in rural areas. The majority of the rural inhabitants practice self-sufficient agriculture, with a small amount of farming dedicated to exports. National debt (particularly colonial inheritance) has severely damaged the GDP, and it is considered one of the poorest nations in the world (Encyclopedia Britannica). "The export of commercial items such as cashews, palm products, rice, peanuts, timber, and cotton has long played an important role in the country’s economy" (Encyclopedia Britannica).

Capital City: Bissau

Currency: West African CFA franc (XOF)

Land and Environment: Guinea-Bissau is mainly at sea level, with lots of tidal flow affecting the coastline and even farther inland. The archipelagos off the coast are also considered within the political border of the nation. There are a number of plateaus surrounded by drowned valleys called rias. These are drained by a number of large rivers leading west out to sea. While the tides have positive effects on farming in some respects (e.g., flooding the rice paddies), it also creates devastating erosion of unused arable land, which were often left un-worked because of colonial violence (Encyclopedia Britannica).

Brief History: As with much of West Africa, there are many gaps in the record about the first inhabitants of these lands, but the tribes that once lived there are thought to have merged with the Mande ethnic groups as the Mali empire expanded throughout the region in the 13th century. The Mali empire maintained control in the region by establishing a local kingdom, Kaabu, which oppressed the original inhabitants. The nomadic Fulani arrived a century later. The Portuguese arrived in the 15th century and immediately established the lands that would become Guinea as a hub for enslavement, kidnappings, and slave trade. Tens of thousands of Guineans were taken, both of Fulani descent as well as the Kaabu aristocracy. The capital city of Bissau was established specifically to be a slave port, and after the slave trade was outlawed in the 1830s, the city was nearly abandoned (BlackPast). At this point, the nation was known as Portuguese Guinea, but after a successful war of independence in 1974 they renamed themselves Guinea-Bissau. The Guinean combatants in the bid for independence subsequently carried out a coup, which led to many years of suppression and culminated in a civil war in the 1990s. In the modern day, despite continued political unrest and an economy that more and more relies on international drug trade and illegal slave trade with Senegal, Guinea-Bissau has also contributed greatly to West African music, mainly polyrhythmic gumbe, which first rose to prominence abroad in the 1980s.

[mbafoleye]

MOUSSA DIAKITE - GUITAR MAESTRO, VOCALIST AND SONGWRITER

Moussa Diakite was part of Mali's generation of pioneering musicians in the 1970s and 80s. Composing and performing music heavily influenced by the Wassoulou styles of Southwestern Mali.

Moussa Diakite & Wassado play modern Malian music inspired by the rich musical traditions of his West African homeland.

[afrofunk]

Sadio Kouyaté Et Le Trio Manding Du Mali ‎– Vol.3 - La Nouvelle Etoile (1979) [AIFF]

- Contact me for digital exchange!

[mrbopst]

My Event Pick for Style Weekly 9/20/16

[gradling]

Some Starter Resources on Medieval Western Africa

This summer, my RAship involved searching for digital resources for an undergrad global medieval literature class. I’ve also been having conversations about history with my dad while I’ve been at my parents’ place, and he mentioned that he felt cheated that he wasn’t taught anything about African cultures and civilizations until after he had graduated from university. Since I found some pretty cool resources, I thought I would share some of them, although it should be noted that I’m not a specialist in this area, and the purpose of my summer work was to find public-facing work rather than academic scholarship, so the resources below are just places to get started. People should feel free to add more!

Trans-Saharan Trade

Caravans of Gold - Exhibition

Northwestern’s Block Museum of Art has created an exhibition called Caravans of Gold, centering the connections among West Africa, North Africa, the Middle East, and Europe across the Sahara. The exhibition website itself is already extensive, including images and descriptions of many of the items on exhibit, video interviews of archaeologists and historians, maps of global trade networks, and an online version of the exhibition in the form of a multilingual mobile app. Caravans of Gold is currently (as of July 15, 2020) on exhibition at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, although the museum is currently closed due to Covid-19. Fortunately, the Aga Khan Museum, where Caravans of Gold was on exhibition until February 2020, has created a virtual tour of the exhibition, alongside an additional exhibition called Civilizations, a sculpture installation that is part of artist Ekow Nimako’s sculpture series called Building Black and which was inspired by Caravans of Gold.

Sahel: Art and Empire on the Shores of the Sahara - Exhibition

This exhibition, which covers 300-1861 CE, is not specific to the Middle Ages. The exhibition is from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which has included a video tour of the exhibition, a detailed exhibition guide, and approximately 180 objects as part of its website. The exhibition website also includes a section on music traditions, under which is a link to a Spotify playlist of contemporary renditions of the Mande epic The Sunjata. Which leads me to...

The Sunjata (Mali Empire)

The UC Berkeley ORIAS’ page for The Sundiata

This webpage is a collection of resources for learning about The Sunjata, its history, and its cultural context. The link it includes under “Sundiata Setting” is, unfortunately, broken, but its Archive.org page can be found here.

Hawa Kassé Mady Diabaté, Fodé Lassana Diabaté, and Professor Chérif Keita’s performance of The Sunjata

This performance, hosted by The Center for Sound Communities, is a full-length, 20-minute-long modern account of The Sunjata, performed by the Malian musicians Hawa Kassé Mady Diabaté and Fodé Lassana Diabaté. An English translation is provided by Professor Chérif Keita. One of the interesting things about this particular performance is that Professor Keita is one of Sunjata’s descendants, a fact that they make note of as a way to tie the traditional epic into a current context.

[opisasodomite]

Time for another weird opinion nobody asked for:

The Kora, a guitar-like stringed instrument used primarily by the Jeliw (hereditary bards and poets) of the Malinke and other Mande peoples, is the single best instrument ever invented and the musical tradition of Mali is better than literally anything else.

You can’t change my mind.

[haitilegends]

YVON LOUISSAINT

CHANTEUR DES FRÈRES DÉJEAN

Auteur: Adrien B. Berthaud

"De tous les temps, même dans les moments les plus difficiles, la résilience d’Haiti est forte. Sa musique, ses payses, ses artistes et son climat ont toujours su comment charmer, créer et faire réver. Quand nous pensons à Yvon Louissaint, ce nom évoque instantanément ‘Troubadour”car c’est ainsi qu’il commenca à se faire écouter au début des années 1960.

Il grandit à la ruelle Cameau, en plein coeur du bas peu de choses. Ennivré, exhalté par le mouvement des mini Jazz, il joignit “ Les Morphées Noires”au beau milieu de 1960. Peu de temps après, les musiciens de Shupa Shupa font appel à lui et l’embauchent comme guitariste. Il y resta avec Shupa Shupa jusqu’à son écroulement.

Après Le Shupa Shupa, il embrasse sa guitarre et chemine à nouveau son chemin de troubadour. Il donnait des sérénades un peu partout dans la capitale et avec sa guitarre, il animait des soirées privées, pétillantes d’esprits, joyeuses et romantiques. Un soir, tandis que Guy Durosier et ses compagnons animaient une fête privée, la musique de Yvon, aux abords de la maison où Guy et ses disciples s’exhibaient, a engendré une inégalable séduction . Par contre, Fitot Léandre, un invité de cette soirée l’invita à y rentrer. C’est ainsi que Yvon a lié connaissance avec Guy et son groupe. Jusqu’après son introduction a Guy et sa suite, il propose de faire une jam. Ce qui a caractérisé cette soirée n’est pas seulement le fait qu’une nouvelle étoile allait naître mais, un esprit de corps y régnait pendant cette brêve rencontre. La beauté des mélodies, les voix de Guy et de Yvon imbibées de tendresse ont crées une exhaltation, une transe jusqu’au délire.

En 1972, après André Toussaint, Carola Cuevas, Ansy Désrose, Guy présente au grand public de Cabane Choucoune, Yvon Louissaint, la nouvelle révélation de la chanson Haitienne. Ce soir là, on a cru même entendre vibrer le coeur de la Coupe; Yvon fut l’object de nombreuses marques d’estime. Depuis, il est dans le coeur et l’esprit de toute une population.

Les retombeés de cette rencontre à Cabane Choucone allaient porter ses fruits car, quand Guy Durosier laisse Haiti en 1973, le groupe ‘ Les Frères Déjean ‘ a fait de Yvon le symbole même de la joie et de l’espoir;Yvon est devenu une superbe étoile.

Avec Les Frères Dejean, Yvon enregistra, Sasa Ye Sa, une adaptation de Qu’est ce que c’est que ça de Henry Salvador par Guy Durosier, Bouki Ak Malis, Latibonit etc . Ses meilleures performances portent les empreintes des Frères Déjean. Cependant, ce n’était pas facile de controller Yvon. L’alcool, les femmes, certains stupéfiants l’empéchaient de faire face à ses responsabilités envers l’orchestre. Par contre, il fut mis en disponibilité par le responsable des Frères Déjean et fut remplacé par Harold Joseph.

En 1978, Macaya Records publia Zin/ Yvon Louissaint Et Les Antillais. Sur ce LP, Yvon chante Bel Mari Pou Li de Dodof Legros, Zin , Mal Pensee et un fameux pot-Pouri de boleros qui a beaucoup émerveillé les Haitiens de New York, des deux états avoisinants et de la mère patrie.

En 1979, Macaya publie un autre disque de Yvon que la compagnie a titré Se Sa. Dans ce LP nous signalons La Vie Musicien de Ibo Combo (Paroles de André Romain, adaptation d’une mélodie étrangère par Serge Simpson), puis, Se Sa et Bienfaiteur, deux compositions de Yvon .

En 1982, Yvon manifesta un élan généreux et candide á l’endroit des Frères Dejean en titrant son nouveau album ‘Yvon Louissaint’ Chanteur des Frères Déjean. Ce titre probablement traduit beaucoup plus que l’on imagine parcequ’il aimait profondément ce groupe. Imprimé sous le label Betami Music Production , le producteur fit choix des musiciens suivant pour accompagner Yvon. Ils sont: Jean Baptiste Edouard (piano), Claude Desgrottes (guitarre basse), Ricardo Frank (guitarre accompagnement), Harry Sylvain (batterie), Raymond Nozil (tambour), Jean Michel Ulcenat (tam tam), Lucien Serrant (Sax tenor), Gerard Laurelus et Eric Mazarin (choeur) et Yvon Louissaint (chanteur, guitarre solo). Pa Gen Zanmi Anko, Kilè Poum Retounen Lakay, Jardin D’Eden, Haiti et Ecris moi sont gravées sur ce disque (BTA 2834). Il dédia’ Ecris moi’ a sa maman qui probablement vivait encore en Haiti, à tous ceux qui ont cru où fait croire qu’il avait perdu la tête et à ses auditeurs.

Né d’une famille de onze enfants composée de Carlos, Serge, Frantz, Lionel, Yves, Prévilon, Ernst, Wilner et Emmanuel, son histoire est aussi pétulante que triste. Serait elle un exemple de réflexions tristes et douloureuses pour ses fans et autres artistes comme il le souhaite?

Il venait juste de visiter les clubs, Granada et Le Récif dans une température estimée par les métérologues d’être en dessous de zéro degré, quand il perdit connaissance dans une des rues de Brooklyn. Il n’accordait aucune attention au froid intense qui régnait; il était trop ivre pour fusioner avec la réalité de ce soir là. Les passants s’en foutaient pas mal de lui et aucun d’eux ont eu la décense de composer le 911 quand il tomba sur le pavé. A leurs yeux, il n’est qu’un ivrogne qui a trop bu mais, pour nous autres; il est une vedette; notre idole à nous ,en dépit de tout. Yvon resta trop longtemps dans la neige, sur le pavé, si bien que ses deux mains furent congelées. Par contre, neuf de ses droits furent amputés par les médecins quand il fut transporté à l’hopital (Brookyn Jewish Hospital) par deux officiers de la police de New York qui patrouillaient le quartier. Tout cela s’est passé le 20 Janvier 1985. Sa résilience fut tellement profonde que même après la chirurgie, il continuait à jouer la guitarre. Cependant, il ne pouvait pincer les cordes comme jadis.

Pendant une de ses visites au studio de Moman Kreyol, il nous raconta son histoire et comment que certains de ses amis le fuyaient. Pour soulager ses peines il écrivit la chanson suivante:

A chak fwa ke mape panse

Sa ki rive mwen nan lavim

Dlo koule nan Ziem kou lapli

Paske sa pa te dwe rivem

Mwen Konn lavi

Mwen Konn lanmo

Mwen Kwe nan syel

W Komprann late

Nan bay tout moun laverite

Yo fem mande charite

Gade Kijan mwen pedi de men mwen

Mwen pas tuye

Mwen pa vole

Nan komba pou la libete

Des muzisyens a respecte

Mwen pedi guitam

Ki vre don pam

Kompay mwen

Lajwa ki nan kem

A la fin de l’été 1987, presque deux ans après que ses doigts furent amputés, il reçut l’invitation de Alfred Michel du Bossa Combo pour célébrer avec lui au Manoir Restaurant. Ce soir là, il fit preuve d’un bon musicien et exhiba un peu de sarcasme et la joie de vivre. Avec Bossa, il interpréta Historia de un amor et un pot pouri qui contient La maison sur le port et En la casa de Isabella.

En 1988, Michga Records a imprimé son dernier disque” Yvon Louissaint Chante/ Salut Temple Sacré. Cette fois ci, il est accompgné aux claviers par Robert Charles Raymonvil (Charlot) tandis qu’il chante et joue sa guitarre.

Que de fois la vie m’a trompé dit-il dans une entrevue. ‘Je sortais du Manoir Restaurant et de l’autre coté de la rue, j;ai vu deux anciens amis qui conversaient ; je fus ravi de les rencontrer à nouveau. La joie de les voir était si grande que j’ai commis l’imprudence de ne pas bien regarder avant de traverser la rue. Alors, avant que je dises un mot, une voiture qui faisait la course avec une autre m’a frappé et m’envoya à quelques mètres de haut. Par la suite, je fus tombé sur le sol en me heurtant la tête. Je suis resté figé, un peu muet sur le sol. Je buvais un peu, il faut l’avouer mais, je n’étais pas ivre. Après cet incident, j’ai decidé de rentrer dans un hopital pour y être soigner. C’était en 1990, après mon séjour à Miami’.

Le 18 Novembre 1991, Lionel Lamarre du Star Forum, émission de télevision haitienne à New York lui rendit........ LIRE LA SUITE:

Adrien B. Berthaud

http://adrienberthaud.com/Yvon_Louissaint/

-----------------------------------

🎶"Yvon Louissaint - Hola Soledad (live recording)"

https://youtu.be/BX8OIHCq7u4

🎶 "Yvon Louissaint - Eliminacion de Los Feos (live recording)" on YouTube

https://youtu.be/N__XLktBUs4

🎶 "Yvon Louissaint _ Pot Pourri"

https://youtu.be/iVXnQTzf9FU

🎶 "Yvon Louissaint - Eliminacion de Los Feos (live recording)"

https://youtu.be/N__XLktBUs4

🎶 "Yvon Louissaint et les Antillais - Zin.." on YouTube

https://youtu.be/ZH2VK3iYUe8

🎶 "YVON LOUISSAINT--Céça"

https://youtu.be/sfqM4BCJ9lc

🎶 "Les Freres Dejean L'artibonite" on YouTube

https://youtu.be/HRbiydD0FUE

🎶 "les freres dejean bouki ac malice"

https://youtu.be/6W_ZBUa91jw

---------------------------------

#Video

Watch "YVON LOUISSAINT " LIVE https://youtu.be/KgolfYb8wrE

-----------------------------------

#Discography

Yvon Louissaint at Discogs

https://www.discogs.com/artist/2264846-Yvon-Louissaint

Yvon Louissaint at KonpaInfo

https://www.konpa.info/result.php?search=Yvon%20Louissaint&so0=contains&col=pfx%2Cbnd%2Csfx&_ds=1&n=100&p=0&asc=15

HAITI⭐LEGENDS #YvonLouissaint #Chanteur #FrèresDéjean #BoukiAkMalis, #Latibonit #ShupaShupa

#LesMorphéesNoires #BossaCombo #Vocalist #MiniJazz #WorldJazz #Haitilegends #CabaneChoucoune

#MacayaRecords #Zin/ #YvonLouissaintEtLesAntillais

#MichgaRecords

#HolaSoledad

#RolandoLaSerie

#Historiadeunamor

[cavegirl66]

°°° Abdoulaye Diabate °°° °°°°°° Louanze °°°°°°° Abdoulaye Diabaté is a singer and guitarist who was born to a griot family in Kela, Mali in 1956. He has at least twenty years of experience in contemporary and popular music Abdoulaye Diabaté was raised in the Manding tradition to a djali family (traditional musicians and story tellers)

[zhanteimi]

L'Orchestre Kanaga de Mopti - L'Orchestre Kanaga de Mopti

Mali, 1977, Mande music / afro-funk Mande music is intrinsically wonderful, and this recording is no exception. Every genre has its golden age(s), and Mande music’s was definitely the 1970s, though there’s been a resurgence of it in the 21st-century, if you know where to look. This album is steeped in culture, from the rites of marriage to the masked dances of Ramadan, and it celebrates all…

[jhl800]

Radio Commune Mixcloud #18

A mix of warm soul groves, mande music, MPB, psych-pop, and more. Artists Origins include Mali, The United States, Brazil, Algeria, Sudan, Iran, and Peru. Enjoy!

1. Le Kéné-Star- Kénédugu fanga 2. Pari Zangeneh- Baroun Barouneh 3. Djamel Allam- Mara Dioughal 4. The Orient Express- Layla 5. The Search Party- Speak to Me 6. Nelson Angelo E Joyce- Pessôas 7. Kamal Keila- Taban Ahwak 8. Black Sugar- This Time 9. Telegraph Avenue- Lauralie 10. The Free Design- Bubbles

Full post here

[generalorgblog]

Djembe

Es un instrumento musical de percusión africano; también llamado yembé, dyembe, tam tam, sanbanyi, entre otros, dependiendo de la región. Se dice que el Djembe fue creado por los artesanos de la tribu “Numu”, probablemente 1.300 años (A.C); (Gonzálo L.; Ceballos.)

Clasificación Sachs-hombostel: Es de la familia de los instrumentos membranófonos, según la tabla de clasificación se encuentra en el grupo 23 de Frotación ( Por lo que el cuero se pone en vibración por el efecto de la frotación del palo el cual se ejecuta de manera medio libre, con el cuerpo del instrumento), (Cuadro Hombostel – Sachs; IUDEM); (Sorrentino María O).

Tamaño: Tiene una altura de 65 cm y un diámetro de 30.5 a 31 cm  y la medida de la boca inferior es de 19 cm aproximadamente.

Cuerpo: Con sistemas de tensión tradicional de sogas y anillos de metal.

Material: Hecho con madera, y el parche es de cuero de cabra.

País de origen: Continente africano Mali también llamado (Malinke ó Mande) de ahí se expandió a (Senegal, Costa de Marfil, Guinea, Nigeria, entre otros); (Gonzálo L.; Ceballos).

Uso del Instrumento: Se utiliza en ceremonias, rituales, bodas y actividades diversas,  acompañando con ese ritmo polirritmico, la danza y el canto de la población, dónde     “…cada ritmo utilizado avisa a la población lo que está sucediendo” (Gonzálo L.; Ceballos).

[thetransatlanticphenomenon]

Last night's sweet&eclectic playlist is here! We featured some music from all over our #transatlantic musical 🌍🎶🎵🎧 arena and we laughed and cried with the tunes. We featured a song by @cecilia_laincomparable , 'Estamos Solas, Guitarra' 🎸and at this moment, Cecilia is a nominee for the Premio Nacional de Artes Musicales 2020! Last year, Cecilia was also named Figura Fundamental de la Música Chilena! Aka Cecilia is a Rockstar Superstar!!! 👩‍🎤🎸 Image description (📸 credit) 1. Cecilia (ChillanActivo blog) 2. Eloise Lewis & Her Room at Trio (Last.fm) 3. Sadio Kouyaté (discogs) 4. Matilde Casazola (discogs) *Leny Eversong "Na Baixa do Sapateiro" [BRAZIL] *Los Hermanos Carrion "Las Cerezas" [MEXICO] *Luz Eliana "Mi Mundo Esta Vacio Sin Tu Amor" [CHILE] *Cecilia "Estamos Solas, Guitarra" [CHILE] *Estala Nuñez "Una Lagrima" [MEXICO] *Silvana Di Lorenzo "Me Muero Por Estar Contigo" [ARGENTINA] *Juanello "Espejismo" [MEXICO] *Sabú "Pequeña Y Fragil" [ARGENTINA] *Nara Leão "Flash Back" [BRAZIL] *Diego Verdaguer "El Pasadiscos" [ARGENTINA] *Matilde Casazola "Tanto te Ame" [BOLIVIA] *Trio Los Panchos "Solamente un vez" [MEXICO] *Trio Venezuela "Elena" [VENEZUELA] *Tamba Trio "Mas Que Nada" [BRAZIL] *Trio Select "Marteau" [HAITI] *Eloise Lewis and her Goombay Trio "Mango" [BAHAMAS] *Sadio Kouyaté et le Trio Manding du Mali "Marigoundo" [MALI] *L'Orchestre National de Mauritanie "Kamlat" [MAURITANIA] *Mestre Cupijó e Seu Ritmo "Caboclinha Do Igapo" [BRAZIL] *Mestre Cupijó e Seu Ritmo "Ventinho Do Norte" [BRAZIL] *Tee Mac ft. Marjorie Barnes "Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo" [NIGERIA] *Four Yanks "Msenge" [SOUTH AFRICA] #chile #premionacional #cecilialaincomparable #communityradio #kcsbfm (at KCSB-FM 91.9 in Santa Barbara) https://www.instagram.com/p/CEuRuNUgPtW/?igshid=100aevdfqety1

[mbafoleye]

Moussa Diakite with the Salif Keita Band, The Dakar Festival, Senegal 1993

[btvcityarts]

American Music is Black Music

By Rebecca Schwarz, Art from the Heart Coordinator Recently I have been writing about music, and how it can help us move with and through powerful feelings including what may seem to contradict – the happy / sad.  Each year on June 19th the end of slavery is celebrated. This year is the 155th Juneteenth. In honor of this freedom holiday, and keeping the focus on music, I recognize here that the inspired – and deeply inspiring – lineage of uniquely American music, is very much Black music. I am grateful for the ways that music helps us feel energized, or calmer, and supports us in challenging moments. University of California Berkeley’s Greater Good Magazine which focuses on “Science-based insights for a meaningful life” reports “After 15 years of research, we know that gratitude is a key to psychological well-being. Gratitude can make people happier, improve their relationships, and potentially even counteract depression and suicidal thoughts.” Gratitude also seems to help our hearts – in both the physical and emotional senses. I am grateful for music’s ability to help us feel part of a shared identity, to celebrate, and to focus.

As I focus on different songs I hear histories and lived experiences. The arts are among the most long-lived parts of a culture (the word culture is in large part defined by the arts). 

Music helps us listen for American historical roots. For instance, listen to the African ancestry and powerful traditions of story and beautiful melodies in the video below. The griots and griottes of the Mande of Mali and other countries in West Africa are the story holders and tellers of the community – they “maintain genealogies, sing praises, compose songs, play instruments, narrate history, and serve as spokespersons.” The 800 plus years of history of the ancient Malian empire is kept alive in songs passed down through the generations. (Disney used the story of Sundiata – the unifier of Mali – passed down through the griot tradition, to create the Lion King). “In the Heart of the Moon” documentary (runtime 14 minutes) you can see some of the duets of Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabaté and learn more about the Griot tradition. (For more beautiful Malian music: Oumou Sangaré is a leader among the many women artists)

Listen for the similarities in American music, in the related rhythms of Lightnin Hopkins’ blues. 

And Elizabeth Cotton’s blues. 

African American artists and rhythm and blues are foundational for all American pop music that follows – jazz, rock, everything beyond. Black artistic contributions continue to invent and innovate, meeting the moment and moving it forward. 

And, American music, like the country, is a mixture of many. Musical influences from around the world, and from Native Americans are also present. The documentary Rumble highlights the many familiar – but not necessarily seen as native – contributions of Indigenous Americans to American music. Here is the preview.

This podcast (runtime 34 minutes) tells and plays the history of Black and American music. It is from the New York Times’ 1619 project that centers “the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans”. The story begins with Yacht music (who knew that was a thing?), and takes the listener back from working songs and spirituals, to racist minstrel shows that helped normalize prejudice in the north, to jazz, Motown, and beyond.

“There’s a history to this, a very painful history. And in the most perversely ironic way, it’s this historical pain that is responsible for this music… It is strife. It is humor. It is sex. It is confidence. And that’s ironic. Because this is the sound of a people who, for decades and centuries, have been denied freedom. And yet what you respond to in black music is the ultimate expression of a belief in that freedom, the belief that the struggle is worth it, that the pain begets joy, and that that joy you’re experiencing is not only contagious, it’s necessary and urgent and irresistible. Black music is American music. Because as Americans, we say we believe in freedom. And that’s what we tell the world. And the power of black music is that it’s the ultimate expression of that belief in American freedom.”

Next time you are listening to music that is helping you, freeing you from the ordinary, or the difficult, and brightening your day – try taking a moment to feel the gratitude. Feeling the gratitude for the many contributions Black artists have made is good for our individual, and collective, well-being. Today on Juneteenth and every day. 

[channelperiwinkle-blog]

Vieux Farka Toure - “Samba Si Kairi”