Mamadou and Vanessa: Mali Blues

Mamadou and Vanessa perform original, poignant music from Mali. Their sound, influenced by West African rhythms and southern American blues, features the traditional 14-stringed kamele ngoni (hunter's harp) and the karinye, a traditional percussion instrument.Master kamele ngoni player Mamadou Sidibe is from the Wassoulou region of Mali, West Africa. He has toured with Malian greats Oumou Sangaré and Coumba Sidibé throughout Europe and Africa. Vanessa Sidibe, from New York, is an accomplish...

The Red Poppy Art House warmly welcomes Arouna Diarra and Biko Casini for an evening of traditional music from Burkina Faso. Inspired by the pulsing melodies and infectious dance grooves of the balafon, Biko traveled to Bobo-Dioulasso (Bobo), the artistic city of Burkina Faso, to study the djembe in 2007. Arouna, who comes from a family of musicians in Bobo, moved to Asheville, NC in 2012 where he established himself as the bandleader of Mande Foly. Upon meeting in Asheville, the two began p...