Customer Reviews

Mande Variations

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The West African kora is one of the most seductive instruments on the planet - a sublime concoction of calabash gourd, cowskin and fishing line. And Toumani Diabaté, from a hereditary family of musicians in Mali, is its greatest exponent.
With filigree, rippling melodies, the music is soft, elegant and profound.
As the title suggests, this is a sort of classical kora album revisiting some classic tracks, but also laying down improvisations which sound experimental even if you've never heard a note of kora music before, such as his homage to his friend and fellow musician Ali Farka Touré.
Never has the Malian kora harp sounded so beautiful as in this new record by its greatest living master.
Toumani is said to descend from 70 generations of kora players, stretching back to the golden age of the medieval Mande empire.
He's always experimented alongside the traditional Malian modes, and his collaborators have included Björk and Damon Albarn and winning a Grammy in tandem with Ali Farka Touré for "In the Heart of the Moon" was just his latest exploit.
And now comes this CD.
Blissfully devoid of any amplification, electronic tampering, or accompaniment, it weaves a spell which is powerfully reinforced by the sheer quality of its recording.
The instrument sings with extraordinary resonance, in an acoustic so sensitive that we hear every creak of its wood and sinew; the music itself is rapt and reflective, and the tracks are luxuriously long.
What's most interesting is the way his stylistic inflections are starting to resemble those of North Indian raga music.
The new album, entitled "The Mandé Variations", has no backing musicians, no overdubbed Western stars like Björk, just the unadorned sound of the kora, an exotic-looking 21-string harp made from a halved calabash shell covered with cow-hide and "spiked" with a wooden pole.
This, cooed the letter, would make it appealing to me because it was more "classical".
As with all powerfully affecting music ("classical" included), Diabaté's is rooted in primitive things.
For a start there's the rich, resonant thrumming of the kora, which must be among the most sheerly seductive sounds of any instrument in the world.
Then there's the pleasure to be had from the dizzying virtuosity of Diabaté's playing.
He'll take the end of a melodic phrase and spin it into a whirling Catherine-wheel figuration out of sheer joie de vivre.
Two titles, "Elyne Road" and "Cantelowes", are named after streets in London although the music takes you to another place, another world.

In the Heart of the Moon
Boulevard de l'Independance
Savane
Stereo Spirit
Aman Iman: Water is Life
Segu Blue
Rokku Mi Rokka
Afriki

Toumani Diabaté, the kora guru of Africa, has outdone himself with this collection of solo instrumental pieces. The virtuosity in fingering the kora, the richness of the rhythms and range of melodies is unmatched by anything this Malian musician has done previously. I enjoyed his earlier solo collection, "Kaira", produced twenty years ago and his "New Ancient Strings" (1999), with which he and the younger Ballake Sissoko paid homage to their fathers' musical genius. Yet now, with this CD he has reached a level of maturity, depth and musicality not previously achieved. For fans of the West African kora, this is a must in their collection; for the "newbies", this is a great introduction into a mesmerizing aspect of Malian music and treat to enjoy over and over again. It will very likely become addictive. This is music to lose yourself in.

Toumani Diabaté comes from a long line of Malian musicians. His father was the most famous kora player of his time and Toumani often pays credit to him through his music. Nonetheless, the younger Diabaté has refined the abilities of the instrument and enriched the playing techniques over the years. Elements of these could already be detected in the award winning "In The Heart of the Moon", a collaboration with the legendary guitarist, the late Ali Farka Touré. Toumani, being largely self-taught, has been open to experimenting with this traditional instrument, without abandoning its unique sound and complex harmonies. As he traveled the world, he absorbed and learned from other musical cultures, such as Indian classical music, flamenco and blues. The compositions on this CD harmoniously integrate such influences with melodies and rhythms of the past. All are his, or presented in his adaptation. Soft melodies that seem to tell gentle stories alternate with more vivacious and energetic pieces. Not surprisingly, a special homage is included for Ali Farka that he would have treasured. Toumani's extraordinary technical skill lets him expand the fingering to incorporate the bass line as an accompaniment creating the impression that two koras are playing. Furthermore, recently Toumani has been experimenting, successfully as the pieces here exemplify, with two differently strung koras, one for the traditional melodies and harmonies, the other for his more "modern" compositions. The photos in the included booklet show the details of the finger settings. The explanations of the background to the two kora stringings and insights into the stories behind each piece are written by the musician himself. A beautiful gift to yourself or for people you care deeply about. [Friederike Knabe]

I brought this home and listened to it four times running; then ordered 4 more CDs by Toumani Diabate.

It's hard to believe that this is only one person playing. The rhythms are complex, but every note glows.

The only other performer I have ever heard with this level of musicianship is Andres Segovia.

All instrumental, solo music by an incredibly talented and unique Kora player. The Kora is a West African stringed instrument which has also been called the lute-harp (by those who need a point of reference). You really have to hear it to believe and appreciate it. I'm an accomplished acoustic and electric guitar player, heavily influenced by a wide variety of classical misic. For long lasting, non-intrusive listenability, I highly recommend this, especially for musicians of stringed instruments, including of course the piano. The melodic and rhytmic counterpoint is phenomenal and unique. I get drawn into it similar to the way that Mozart's Nachtmusik or Vivaldi's Four Seasons do, it's meditative. His earlier album is very similar, Kaira. Fame did not spoil this talent. I bought them both at the same time. Make no mistake: this is very fine art.

I saw Toumani Diabate with Bela Fleck live last night at Yoshi's in Oakland, California. I had never heard of Toumani or the kora, so I was really only excited to see Bela Fleck. I was completely and totally blown away by Diabate's performance, both solo and with Bela. Just totally blown away. He described the kora as a harp lute - it has 21 strings between a large body and a 4' long neck, and is played with only 4 fingers (two on each hand). Its a majestic looking instrument, and yet it still took me by surprise with how beautiful and complex his playing was.

He played two of the songs from this album live / solo, and they were shockingly good. The reproduction on the album is basically just as good - well mic'd and clear. The songs are complicated and energetic, yet very relaxing to listen to. I can't recommend it highly enough. I'm off to purchase his Grammy winning "In The Heart of the Moon" now.

Toumani Diabaté comes from a long line of Malian kora players, the kora being a 21-string harp crafted from a halved calabash gourd and cow skin, with nylon strings. This is only his second solo album from a large discography - the first one was in 1988. He has however recorded duet albums, like the lyrical New Ancient Strings with another talented kora player Ballake Cissoko and more recently a gently mesmerising In The Heart of The Moon, with the late Ali Farka Toure. He then assembled the enormous Symmetric Orchestra to record Boulevard de L'independence, a funky but somewhat noisy dance extravaganza where his usual subtlety was set aside.

Now he comes full circle back to his roots with a fascinating and gorgeous Mande Variations for solo kora (albeit with a few overdubs), a suite of original compositions, including a tribute to Ali Farka Toure. This is true griot-based music (despite the brief allusion to the Good Bad & the Ugly at one point), but don't think because he plays a primitive instrument the music is likewise. It is sophisticated, elaborate music - perhaps the sound equivalent of the most exquisite Berber carpet - washing over the listener with lush melodies and rhythms that are expanded with extraordinarily virtuosic improvisations. He is certainly at his brilliant best here - clear, confident, subtle and mesmerising, confirming once again his place as one of the masters of this beautiful and distinctive instrument.

About 20 years ago I saw and heard Toumani Diabate live at the Freight and Salvage venue in Berkeley. I was first in line and sat in the center of the first row, no more than 6 feet from the Kora as he played. That was an unforgettable experience. My favorite CD of his is SONGHAI with Ketama and Danny Thompson. The last song on SONGHAI, Ne Ne Kiota is one of the most beautiful I've ever heard. I have an old LP of his father, Sidiki Diabate, the kora master of his time. Think I'll listen to that now. IGNORE THE PREVIOUS ONE STAR REVIEWER, CONSIDER THE SOURCE.

During a stay at a friend's house, I was introduced to the intoxicating music of Toumani Diabate. I can't even count the number of times I have played The Mande Variations, probably hundreds. The heartfelt connection from a musician to his instrument has never been more beautifully expressed than the music from this album. Reviews with the words, "addictive", "amazing" and my own, "intoxicating" are all true. I have this album on my iPod and brought it with me to Burning Man to be played at a theme camp on stadium speakers. In about 10 minutes, hundreds of people were drawn to this music, it is that powerful. There is a utube video of him playing, eyes closed and you watch a musician totally in the zone and in the moment of bliss. This music is bliss. This man is magic and a gift to us all.

This is a fantastic album from Toumani Diabate which brings out the beauty of the kora. Diabate is a master at this instrument and he weaves magic into his tunes. It is easy to drift away into a fantasyland while listening to his soothing yet fully alive music. Also, for people familiar with Indian music, the instrument (or perhaps Diabate's playing) sounds a little like the santoor (dulcimer) even though it is very different in design. Si Naani, Elyne Road, Kaounding Cissko and Cantelowes are my favorites. You can't go wrong with this album.

This is another great complation of music. Toumani Diabate is one of my favorite artists. His humility comes through in all his music and this CD is no exception. I play this and other of his work during parties, family gatherings etc and someone ALWAYS says how deep and meaningful it is, as well as beautiful - even those whose only concept of music is classic rock!!