Sunday 16 November 2008
Mamadou Diabate ( solo ) View Playlist
Douga Mansa is a feast of absolutely solo, West African instrumental virtuosity and improvisatory flair. ‘Live’ in the studio, Mamadou Diabate plays kora - a 21-string harp/lute. As a griot/jeli, music and oral history have been his family’s calling for centuries. Mamadou was born in 1975 in Kita, Mali. His hometown is a major cultural centre. So is his adoptive one: New York. Mamadou is at once conservative and innovative, true to a tradition which ‘has always put a premium on holding on the old way, whilst constantly innovating and developing the art.’ He tours Australia late December to mid-January.
After his John Coltrane and Miles Davis Latin side of... projects, trombonist Conrad Herwig offers a brilliant take on the music of another jazz genius. One critic says of Herwig's The Latin Side of Wayne Shorter, 'if you know a person who thinks jazz is difficult to get, lacks melody, or you can't dance to it, this CD will change their mind.' It was recorded 'live' at the Blue Note in New York. Herwig is technically phenomenal, but 'technique' is definitely not his obsession—expression is. Herwig has said, repeatedly, 'all of us need to listen to vocalists' Here, you really need to listen to the incredible playing of his special guests , trumpeter Brian Lynch and pianist Eddie Palmieri. 
10pm AEDT