BBC - Radio 3 - Womad2004

BA CISSOKO (GUINEA)

Guinean kora master Ba Cissoko and his troupe are all musicians with feet firmly grounded in age-old traditions and eyes steadfastly fixed on new musical horizons. Cissoko was born in 1967 in Guinea Bissau to the famous musician Kandara Cissoko , one of the founders of the Ballet Djoliba, a Guinean dance troupe who put the music of their country on the world map. After moving across the border to Guinea Conakry in 1989, Cissoko began to hone his kora playing skills with M'bady Kouyaté, partriach of the Kouyaté clan, and one of the great griots of west Africa's Manding culture.

Cissoko found a natural affinity and empathy who two of M'Bady 's sons, Kourou and Sékou, who now play bass, kora and electric kora in his group. It was this trio who blew up a storm at the international MASA trade fair in Abidjan , Ivory Coast , in 1998, and later came to France to work with the famed Congolese producer Ray Lema . Now supplemented by the vibrant young talent of percussionist, Ibrahim Bah, a Conakry street child barely out of his teens who spent his youth playing djembe on the beaches of the capital city, Cissoko and band blend together the ancient and delicately entrancing sound of the kora with a well built reggae rock foundation.

Their sound is a solid as the roots of one of west Africa's huge baobab trees, and as fresh a sea breeze which wafts ashore from the Atlantic to clear out the polluted arteries of downtown Conakry .

Courtesy of Andy Morgan, July 2004

Read other people's comments then

Tell us what you think:

Johan, Malmö
Heard this band for the first time at TV when they performed at Falun Folk Festival, and then I went to see them at this year´s Roskilde Festival, great band!

mariam, new york
i am ba cissoko biggest fan since day one back in guinea where we are all from...so proud to have this group be part of guinea's musical scene..luv

aziz from morocco
peace. thank bbc. what i can say for ba-cissoko. was so fascinated.when i descovred them first time.special music,with traditional instruments.also with western instrements.they're so special in their music. good luck for them. and thanks bbc,always the best show us the best.

Jon Price. Albany. West Aust.
Attended B.C's Aust. premiere held in our little seaside town last evening. Most exciting event for quite a while and a highlight of our annual "regional" participation in our State capital's "Perth International Arts Festival'. The town is still rockin!

JB Montreal
They performed 4 July at the Montreal Jazz Festival, gratuit! A wonderful group - electified the crowd.

Keith Marshall from London
Absolutely superb. Original, musical, dynamic, with a strong groove underlying everything.

Lakshmi Hughes
Thank goodness for WOMAD

ZachP United States
I love and appreciate Ba Cissoko's approach for bringing the Kora into the 21st century. As a student of the Kora myself, Ba Cissoko proves that the instrument can be as everybit versatile as the guitar. Ba Cissoko are master song writers and I greatly anticipate thier next album.

Eric Young, Prague
just heard the latest In Concert broadcast from WOMAD, Ba Cissoko stole the program, the show, the BBC, and me too! Amazing music and noise pyrotechnics. Haven't been so inspired in many many years. More Ba Cissoko please!

Evelyne from France (86 Poitiers)
Thank you very much for you beautiful programs on BBC Radio 3, on network. In France we don't have such a choice in music and quality of diffusion. Fortnately you are here to enjoy me. Excuse me for my english. I suppose I'll improve it in listening you

Mick Coleman - Swansea
Regular attendee but found myself increasingly irritated this year by the behaviour of performers/artists. Is there some kind of "finishing school" that acts that are about to become well known go to that says if you are going to please a festival audience go into a "How are you Reading" routine and include a compulsory audience participation section, along with an endless percusssion blatt towards the end of the set. Saw this formula time and time again this year and got really irritated by it, particularly when utilised by artists I've seen before at Womad on smaller stages who just did their sublime stuff. Sorry to gripe but it just takes away from thei music in my opinion

Katy Rose
Whats's happened to the Siam tent.It seems to have lost something this year especially at night. Why have they changed it ?

warren from Reading
Another fantastic performance from the Dohl Foundation. A mind blowing weekend from all the other performers even though i had to work for most of it on a market stall. Hi to everyone who said hello to me and took the piss out of my RED ELEPHANT HAT. I have to say its the most friendly show on the circuit, can't wait til next year.

peter from crookham
This was one of the best momments of the festival for me,the whole croud were screaming for another encore sadly to no avail,but they were absolutly fantastic.

redjaine
Friends went to the loo before the gig started...bag lady had to stay by the stage. So glad they did!!! The best gig of the weekend. Excellent. Thank you so much (How pissed are they that they missed it????)

TUT G LUAK USA
I wonder that you guys did the greatefully job, and it seems to me that AFRICA on your hands. Please remember Africa is a greate country and place of soul,hope,and place for live and thank God bless you.

andrew jones
not at womad this year, sure it's still as good as ever, but have lost a bit of interest since the closure of whirlygig, the lack of world influenced british music, i.e. asian dub foundation, faithless, afro celt etc. Maybe, i sound a little blinkered, but it's the crossover that leads me into world music.