Here is a great little video of Toumani Diabate playing kora. It demonstrates the complexity of the musical arrangements for kora as well as Diabate’s incredible skill as an improvising musician.

This is a song about the great king Kelefa.

Singnyaro jang jang bourai singnyaro
(Good person’s title) (village @ Georgetown)
Ba ba duale jabitay m’batu faama
(His father’s prayers were accepted/the one jali praises)
Massaneh L’eesey
Darajo ate gogo b’ailelah sialah mu meh
Popularity no matter how much prevent dying not possible

This is a song about traveling to other lands and the things that can be found there. It is a modern and funny kora song.

N’MIN AA ARABO LUYAA
I want to go to the Arab’s land
SANO BE ARAABO LUYAA
There is gold in the Arab’s land
KONO BE ARAABO LUYAA
There is food in the Arab’s land

This is a really beautiful kora song. As with all of the kora songs on this site, this is only what I know, what I have been taught. I know that there are many more words to this song. If you have additional lyrics to this song I would love to know – please contact me about posting them here.

The song:

Allah L’aake
Silang wo jong ma kay
Kwo be kali baileh
Allah barro jong to baila

There are a couple of different rough versions of translation.

One is:

It is what God wills. Everything can be cancelled. What Allah does, no man can cancel.

Another:

Allah does it. Now. No man does it.

Hear Bakary Jobarteh sing Allah L’aake

These are the lyrics to the Mandinka kora song “Kelefa Ba” and its rough translation into English. This is only part of the song, as the original is epically long. If you have additional lyrics to this song I would love to know – please contact me about posting them here.

Verse 1

Jola Kelefa, Badora Jola Ialah
(The Jola Kelefa from Badora died)

Kelefa a la Tambo be Barria
(He left his spear in Barria)

Mingdolo Banta, Mingdolo Banta
(Roughly translated: His drinking days are done)

Kelefa Ba La Mingdolo Banta
(The great Kelefa, his drinking days are done)

Verse 2 and Interlude

Sou ole be dongna, sou ole be dongna
Jang fa tinyata, Sou ole be dongna
(The horses are dancing, the trick has failed)

Sada te Julu ba moi la
Satou Sada te Juluba moila
(If you are the useless person in town, the jalis won’t sing for you)

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The song is about Kurunti Kelefa, who was a great king. He was from the village of Badora, and died (left his spear) in another village – Barria. He was in a war time, and there was a conspiracy which failed, causing him to lose the war and his life.

Jali is the name of the West African Griot, or kora player, who recorded histories like this through song.

Hear Bakary Jobarteh sing “Kelefa Ba”

The Kora is a plucked harp-lute with a large calabash (gourd) body, a cow hide sound ‘board’, and twenty-one nylon strings. Each of the stings is attached to a ring of cow hide braided around a rosewood neck. These tuning rings hold their position only by friction, and can be moved up or down the neck to tension or slack the strings. Though the origins of the kora can be traced back to around the thirteenth century, the instrument as we find it today dates back to the late eighteenth century. Remarkably, it has changed little in the last eight hundred years, or so. One notable modification took place in the early 1950′s when the preference turned from strings made of finely twisted strips of antelope hide to nylon fishing line which remains the standard today.

The kora was traditionally played only by jelis of the Mandinka people – a cultural group whose homeland is situated, roughly, between Kouroussa, Guinea and Bamako, Mali in West Africa. Jelis are hereditary musicians, singers, public speakers, oral historians, praise singers, go-betweens, advisors, and chroniclers. They represent the collective memory of Western Africa. In effect, they are living libraries of their culture, possessing vast repertoires of compositions detailing family lineages, historical epics, and cultural commentary. Jeliya, the art of the jeli, is the field of music most closely associated with the ruling Mandinka elite, but it is appreciated by all members of Manding culture. Jeliya can be chamber music, played in the open courtyard of a patron, or concert music, played in the halls or stadiums of large cities. Although Jeliya is sometimes intended to animate dancing, deep Jeliya is for listening and is meant to inspire listeners to take moral and constructive actions.

Four named traditional heptatonic tunings are in general use. Tomoraba (great Tomora), also known as Siliba (the main road), is the original kora tuning and the one in which the oldest kora songs are played. The other three are: Tomora mesengo (little Tomora), Hardino, and Sauta. Tomoraba is predominant in the Casamance and western Gambia. Tomora mesengo and Hardino are predominant in eastern Gambia, with Sauta prevailing in Mali. Tomoraba and Hardino are somewhat similar to a western major scale. For example, the seven note scale of Tomora has three notes on standard pitch, two that are slightly flat and two that are somewhat sharp. In the Sauta tuning, the fourth degree of the scale is raised a half step. The qualifications – ba (big, great) and mesengo (small, thin, little) refer to the relative positions of the tonic in each of the tunings. Mesengo has a ‘thinner’ or higher pitch tonic, while ba, has a ‘bigger’ or lower pitch tonic. There is no real sense of absolute pitch in traditional kora music. The instruments are usually tuned to match the range of the vocalist, who may or may not be the player himself

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John Hughes is a nationally recognized instrumentalist, singer, dancer, instrument builder, and sculptor. He has studied the music song and dance of West Africa for twelve years, training with master drummers and dancers from Guinea and Mali, including Famoudou Konate, Sekou Sylla, and Youssouf Koumbassa.

http://www.JohnHughesMusic.com

An interview with koraplayer and singer Dembo Jobarteh

You call yourself a gambian griot. Where is The Gambia and what is a griot? The Gambia is a small country in West Africa. It is situated inside Senegal, along the shores of the river Gambia. Griots have lived there for hundreds of years. It’s a hereditary profession. We play instruments like kora, drum and balafon. In our songs we tell the history of our region or give praise to our benefactors and friends.

What do you hope to achieve with your music? For many years I worked as a professional musician on the beach. I met lots of tourists. Some of them found my music unattractive, too different from their own. Others became friends. They told me that it’s hard to find recordings of traditional Gambian music. I was sorry to hear this because our music has a lot to offer. So I really hope that through my cd more people will become interested in The Gambia, griots and our culture. How did you record your music? We recorded everything live on mini disc at my home. For Listen All I invited my sister Jessy and her friend Majo Sakiliba to sing a few songs. Later I asked Fatoumata Suso and Sirra Suso. I was very happy with the result. But then, late at night, a knock on the door. Babucarry Jobarteh, who’s married to my cousin Norma, came in. He said no matter what, if you make a cd I need to be on it. The result of it all is a mix of traditional songs from The Gambia and my own compositions.

For Gambia Banco I invited my brother Musa and my friend Keba Saho to play the drums on some tracks. We added songs with Babucarry, Fatoumata, Sira, Majo and Jessy. I also decided to add a few tracks in which the kora takes a prominent place. The cd contains five traditionals and six own compositions.

Why didn’t you record in a studio? As a griot I want to hold on to the good things from the past. I want to show you my country, our music. Pure, like we make it at home. No technicalities to sweeten our voices, no fusion with other styles. No tricks to make it commercial. If you listen closely you’ll even hear the crickets on the songs we recorded at night. To ensure constant quality the discs were edited and mastered in The Netherlands.

Most of your songs are in Mandinka. Do you think people will understand their meaning? Music is universal and I believe people will feel our emotions. Take a song like Cheddo. It was written in the time of slavery. If you listen to it now you’ll still feel the sadness. Or Allah La Ke, which means that God will never fail you. It’s cheerful and will make you happy, even if you don’t understand the lyrics. But I realise that many people are definitely interested in the meaning of my songs. That’s why on Gambia Banko you’ll find five songs in English, and I’m planning to do the same on my next cd.

Do you play live? Yes, but mostly in The Gambia. If you are planning to visit please give me a call or send an e-mail. Maybe we can meet. I love to perform for visitors from abroad.

What else do you do? I’m the manager of the Gambian Griot School of Music and Dance. It’s situated at my home in Fajikunda, a suburb of Serrekunda. Here I teach kora and Mandinka drums. And I spend many hours playing kora. For I’d like to become even better than my uncles, Amadu Bansang Jobarteh and Malamini Jobarteh.

From http://www.kaira-arts.co.uk

Virtuoso Kora Player and Praise Singer (a Griot), Jali Fily hails from Ziguinchor in the beautiful lush region of Casmance, Southern Senegal.

Fily is a Mandinkan Griot. The Mandinka, a social group of approximately 4 million, live in and around Senegal, Mali and the Gambia. The Griots are professional hereditary musicians who once advised and entertained the emperors and Kings of Mali.

These oral historians have for over 4,000 years handed down the knowledge, culture and history of the Mande people. Griots are seen as spiritual people. Griot, meaning blood (djeli), being the blood that runs through the corporeal body – the essential omniscient part of life – were thought to be all seeing and all knowing in the eyes of society.

When you ask Fily how he became such an exponent of his music he replies “It’s in my blood.” Fily was born into the famous family of Griots – CISSOKHO – and was taught to play the KORA (a 21 string African Harp) at the age of 6 by his father Jali Kemo CISSOKHO and later by his older brother Solo CISSOKHO. His mother, singer Bintou Konte CISSOKHO, gave him the historical stories and songs. Soon after he performed at local ceremonies in the region. At the age of 13 he formed his own group COUTE DIOMBOULO and later performed as a solo artist throughout Southern Senegal. His compositions and skilful mixing of the rhythms of South and North Senegal took him to the capital DAKAR where he sang and played the KORA in a more commercial setting with other groups, superbly blending traditional skills with modern sounds.

He was first invited to Europe in 2002, to tour with the family group JALIKUNDA (founded by his brother Solo CISSOKHO, winner of the BBC3 World Music Award 2004). Recent UK appearances have included the WOMAD, Glastonbury and Larmer Tree Festivals. Solo performances include The Oxford Zodiac (supporting the Kathryn Tickell Band), The Oxford Water Festival (“His music moved people to tears”) and Modern Art Oxford. He also performed on David Attenborough’s BBC TV Documentary “Elephants” (music by Will Gregory of Goldfrapp fame).

Now resident in the UK he has been working with the support of Oxford Contemporary Music, Oxford Brookes University, Right Angle Productions (Oxford Experimental Digital Music Workshops) and others. Jali Fily is experienced in one to one, hands on tuition and also group workshops for schools, universities and festivals. His sympathetic and adaptable approach provides empathy with all age groups ranging from pre-school to adult. He is available as a solo artist but also interested in working with other world musicians. His versatility enables him to deliver not only his traditional music but to fuse easily with classical, afro, cuban, blues and jazz.

Fili is currently completing his second CD “Doumadjioulo” with a number of other Senegalese musicians.

His acclaimed first solo album is available from Kaira-Arts (sales).

“My aim,” he says, “Is to bring KAIRA (peace) to all through my music.”