Bassekou Kouyate emancipated the ngoni (West African lute) from an accompaniment instrument to a virtuoso solo instrument. His band Ngoni Ba consists of amplified ngoni's in different formats and his wife, the singer . On the album Jama Ko sons Madou and Moustafa Kouyate are part of the new line-up. Jama Ko means 'a great gathering of people'. For centuries, major events in Mali have been framed
… with a lot of music. It doesn't matter if you are a Muslim, Christian or Animist, rich or poor, from which tribe ... everyone can come together and celebrate life. The songs on Jama Ko call for peace, unity and tolerance. Recording for the album began exactly on the day the Malian president was deposed by a coup d'état. An uncertain situation followed for Mali, which had to contend with Muslim warriors occupying the north, introducing Sharia law and banning all music. Jama Ko's message became all the more urgent, with passion and fervor performed by Kouyate, Ngoni Ba and guest singers like , and . An impressive album with funky and virtuoso Mali blues. (SvdP)more
