Kélétigui Diabaté

Last updated
Kélétigui Diabaté
Born 1931
Mali
Died 30 November 2012 (aged 8081)
Bamako, Mali
Occupation(s) Musician
Instruments Balafon, guitar, saxophone
Years active 1950s-2012

Kélétigui Diabaté (1931 30 November 2012) [1] was a Malian musician, described as an "undisputed master" of the balafon, [2] and as "one of the greatest figures in Malian contemporary music". [3]

Mali republic in West Africa

Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa, a region geologically identified with the West African Craton. Mali is the eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of just over 1,240,000 square kilometres (480,000 sq mi). The population of Mali is 18 million. 67% of its population was estimated to be under the age of 25 in 2017. Its capital is Bamako. The sovereign state of Mali consists of eight regions and its borders on the north reach deep into the middle of the Sahara Desert, while the country's southern part, where the majority of inhabitants live, features the Niger and Senegal rivers. The country's economy centers on agriculture and mining. Some of Mali's prominent natural resources include gold, being the third largest producer of gold in the African continent, and salt.

Balafon type of wooden xylophone originating in Mali

The balafon is a kind of xylophone or percussion idiophone which plays melodic tunes, and usually has between 16 and 27 keys. It has been played in Africa since the 12th century according to oral stories; it originated in Mali, according to the Manding history narrated by the griots.

Biography

Diabaté was born in 1931 into a family of well-known musicians, and learned to play guitar and saxophone as well as the balafon. In the late 1950s, he helped form the Orchestre de la Garde Républicaine (Première Formation), which toured West Africa. He became a founding member, as guitarist, of L'Orchestre National "A" de la République de Mali, also known as Formation A, which was set up at Mali's independence in 1960. An album by the band was belatedly released in Germany in 1970. [3]

West Africa Westernmost region of the African continent

West Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo, as well as the United Kingdom Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. The population of West Africa is estimated at about 362 million people as of 2016, and at 381,981,000 as of 2017, to which 189,672,000 are female, and 192,309,000 male.

Germany Federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe

Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central and Western Europe, lying between the Baltic and North Seas to the north, and the Alps to the south. It borders Denmark to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, France to the southwest, and Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands to the west.

He then joined Les Ambassadeurs, the band led after 1972 by singer Salif Keita. [4] He developed his style of playing after performing in concert with American jazz musicians, including vibraphonist Lionel Hampton and singer Ella Fitzgerald, while on a tour of the US in 1978 sponsored by the Rockefeller Foundation, [3] and thereafter often used two balafons together, offset by a semitone. [2]

Salif Keita Malian singer

Salif Keïta is an afro-pop singer-songwriter from Mali. He is notable not only because of his reputation as the "Golden Voice of Africa" but also because he has albinism. He is a member of the Keita royal family of Mali.

Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, United States, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and developed from roots in blues and ragtime. Jazz is seen by many as "America's classical music". Since the 1920s Jazz Age, jazz has become recognized as a major form of musical expression. It then emerged in the form of independent traditional and popular musical styles, all linked by the common bonds of African-American and European-American musical parentage with a performance orientation. Jazz is characterized by swing and blue notes, call and response vocals, polyrhythms and improvisation. Jazz has roots in West African cultural and musical expression, and in African-American music traditions including blues and ragtime, as well as European military band music. Intellectuals around the world have hailed jazz as "one of America's original art forms".

Lionel Hampton American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader and actor

Lionel Leo Hampton was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich to Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, and Quincy Jones. In 1992, he was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame, and was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 1996.

He reunited with Salif Keita in 1989, performing on Keita's album Ko-Yan , and appeared on albums by many other musicians, including Zap Mama, Ketama and Bonnie Raitt. [3] From 1993, he performed with the Symmetric Orchestra, led by the unrelated kora player Toumani Diabaté. [4] Between 1998 and 2009, he played with guitarist Habib Koité's band Bamada, taking part in the group's touring project with the Art Ensemble of Chicago, The Art Ensemble of Africa. He also recorded his own album, Sandiya, in 2004, with the Belgian label Contre-Jour. [3]

<i>Ko-Yan</i> album

Ko-Yan is the second studio album from Malian artist Salif Keita. It was released in 1989 by Mango and produced by François Breant.

Zap Mama band

Zap Mama is the music act of Belgian artist Marie Daulne. Zap Mama sings polyphonic and Afro-Pop music; a harmonic music with a mixture of infused African vocal techniques, Urban, Hip-Hop with emphasis on voice. The worldwide success of Zap Mama, and an ensemble of female polyphonic singers, inspired influences in American Hip Hop, Nu-Soul, Jazz and elements of Pop. The evolving musical compositions created a diverse band of singers and musicians for Zap Mama.

Ketama were a Spanish musical group in the new flamenco tradition. Fusing flamenco with other musical forms, they created a style that lies somewhere between flamenco and pop salsa. Their music drew as much criticism as praise because purists did not like the change from traditional flamenco, but the group won over the young public. They continued to fuse other music in, and their 2002 album, Dame la Mano, added hip hop and house music.

Diabaté died in Bamako in November 2012 at the age of 81. [1] He had been performing until a month before his death. [3]

Bamako Capital city in Bamako Capital District, Mali

Bamako is the capital and largest city of Mali, with a population of 2,009,109. In 2006, it was estimated to be the fastest-growing city in Africa and sixth-fastest in the world. It is located on the Niger River, near the rapids that divide the upper and middle Niger valleys in the southwestern part of the country.

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References