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Ancient To The Future: Fatoumata Diawara At Carnegie Hall
ByFor this concert Diawara was accompanied by a rock-solid rhythm section, including Wayne Matthews on drums, Sam Dickey on bass, and Victor Campbell on keyboard. Also accompanying her was the excellent and understated guitarist Yacouba Kone who played with Diawara on her last album. Diawara took up guitar in her mid-20s and has become an extremely accomplished player. In interviews, she has talked about how her guitar playing has been essential in her evolution as an artist. Diawara played some sparkling lead guitar and fiery solos. She exuded such an unbridled joy when she played. Her vocals and music are strongly rooted in Mali's musical traditions but sound very familiar to western ears. She has a gorgeous voice that has been aptly described as sensuous. Diawara is a remarkably captivating performer, whether on screen, in her albums or in live performance. This event was no exception.
The set drew mostly from her 2018 album Fenfo . It opened with "Kokoro," a mournful African folk-blues that spoke to the importance for Africans to maintain their identity and preserve their cultural heritage. Another highlight was "Kanou Dan Yen," a beautiful song that perfectly fuses traditional Malian sounds and a more western pop sensibility. "Negue Negue" was an Afrobeat rocker inspired by the late Fela Kuti. Diawara paid tribute to Fela as a towering figure in African music whose immense influence spans well beyond his native Nigeria. All the songs in the set were her own compositions and sung in Bambara, her native tongue, except for an extended and raucous version of "Sinnerman," an African American spiritual made famous by Nina Simone, one of Diawara's heroes. "Sowa" was the only song featured from her debut album Fatou a mid-tempo blues that was a plea to mothers not to give their children up for adoption. It was a vehicle for some of her most stunning vocals. During the set, Diawara talked about her concerns for children in her homeland and worldwide, a consistent theme in her work and activism. She also spoke eloquently of the need for women to assert themselves and become leaders, as well as our common humanity. "We are all migrants." Diawara is an incredibly dynamic and engaging performer who deftly works the crowd. She was received with great enthusiasm by this rather diverse audience. For the encore, she invited some 20 people in the audience to come up on stage and dance. It was a fitting end to a magnificent performance and a joyous event.
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About Fatoumata Diawara
Instrument: Vocals
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