Musicians from Mali make something loose with their colleagues from across the border. They are lining up to play with the virtuosos from the West African country. After the Americans (Ry Cooder), English (Damon Albarn), Spaniards (Ketama) and Cubans (Afrocubism), it is now the turn of the Brazilians to play table tennis with a Malian musician. Arnaldo Antunes and Edgard Scandurra cross swords with
… the Malian virtuoso Toumani Diabaté, the world's most famous player on the kora. Diabate takes on a serving role on this album. He only wrote one song, Kaira, which also sounds the most 'African' of all songs. The rest of the songs are sung in Portuguese. The repertoire can best be described as intelligent, tropical listening pop. Of course with the well-known summer swing that is so typical of Brazilian music. This may not be the best Malian collaboration, but A Curva Da Cintura is a must for fans of Brazilian music. (PdK)more
