Wednesday July 8 12:00 PM
River to River Festival
Zuccotti Park New York, NY
Madou began playing kora at the age of three, and became the seventy-first generation of korists in his family. He was initiated by his father on an eight-stringed kora. From Sidiki, Madou learned the repertoire, technique and magic of the kora. He developed as a djeli through the years by accompanying his parents as they traveled and performed. At the age of six, he played his first concert, at the Centre Culturel Français of Bobodioulasso, Burkina Faso. In 1992, Madou became the youngest ever to perform solo kora on Malian Television. Since 1997, he has filled his brother Toumani’s former position as lead kora for some of the best singers and musicians in West Africa, including Kandia Kouyaté, Ami Koita, Baaba Maal, Salif Keita, Sekouba Bambino Diabaté, and many others. He has numerous recording credits and has performed over one thousand concerts and more than forty festivals throughout Africa, North America, Europe, and Australia. Madou currently lives in Bamako with his wife, singer Safiatou Diabaté. He is highly respected for his command of the traditional kora repertoire and is also on the cutting edge of “Jazz Manding”, a modern direction, combining jazz sensibilities and foreign influences with the Malian sound. Today, he is considered one of the best kora players in all of West Africa. (Source)
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