Songhai

In 1987, the Granada neo-flamenco trio Ketama and Malian kora master Toumani Diabaté improvised a few notes in a London restaurant. They were so taken with the result that they decided to make a record. The recording took place in 1989 in a Madrid studio, with guest appearance by English double-bass virtuoso Danny Thompson. If the term "world music" means anything, it applies to Songhaï. Musicians from radically different horizons play together for their own pleasure, without denying their musical past. Ketama's flamenco guitars, sometimes tinged with rumba, are in perfect symbiosis with Diabaté's kora, a Sahelian version of the blues. As for the double bass, it adds depth to the group. The second album accentuates this approach, with the addition of the voice of an African griot and a more traditional flamenco line.

Please enable Javascript to view this page competely.