Mali’s finest – Afel Bocoum and Toumani Diabaté – pay homage to the great Ali Farka Touré in a magical night in Pirineos Sur.
Toumani Diabaté and his kora
During the afternoon our hotel in Formigal had slowly but surely become filled with the warm and animated atmosphere of a downtown club in Bamako as the impressively big musicians from Afel Bocoum and Toumani Diabaté’s groups arrived. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind; the evening’s performances would be one of the high points of this year’s festival.
Probably wearing several layers of fleece jumpers underneath their traditional robes, Afel Bocoum and his group Alikbar took to the stage. Alikabar means “messengers of the great river”, as Afel explained to us just before his gig, and the floating stage on the Lanuza reservoir inspired him greatly. “I need water, just like my country”. Playing a bright red guitar, Ali Farka Touré’s nephew and disciple is a man with a message and a mission. Every song began with a short speech, highlighting various problems faced by Mali: the plight of his people, the Peul, who have had to leave their villages and move to Bamako as they can no longer live from livestock; he also talked about the need for education; the precarious state of the Niger river, so important for people’s livelihood in the rural zones…
A man with a message and also a great musical talent enjoyed by all, both audience and artists who ended the concert dancing in joyous celebration.
Next came Toumani Diabaté. The grand maestro of the kora, the traditional 21-string African harp, was a close friend and collaborator of Ali Farka Touré. Their last recording together, just a few months before the Malian legend succumbed to bone cancer in 2006, the wonderful Ali and Toumani, was one of the Future Beats 25 in Radio Gladys Palmera. An ambassador for African music and for his instrument, Toumani is also an inspired musician who enjoys new challenges. Performing with his band, Symmetric Orchestra, with whom he has performed and recorded for the past ten years, the concert was a celebration of African tradition and creativity. After an hour and a half of simply superb music, Toumani returned alone to the stage for an encore, a solo on the kora which left many of those in the audience in tears. An emotional way to end our stay in the Pirineos Sur festival.
Marushka
