History of Music in Gambia
Gambia is one of the West African countries that closely linked musically with its neighboring country, Senegal. Griots (which is known as...
https://worldhitz4u.blogspot.com/2014/01/history-of-music-in-gambia.html
Gambia
is one of the West African countries that closely linked musically with its
neighboring country, Senegal. Griots (which is known as Jelis), is a type of
hereditary praise-singer, and common throughout the region, a legacy of the
olden Mande Empire. Gambian Griots often play the kora, a 21 string harp.
source of picture: www.accessgambia.com
The
recent ethnic Mande in Gambia are known as the Mandinka, and they comprise
around 36 percent of the country’s population. The region of Brikama has
produced some very renowned artists, including Foday Musa Suso. Suso initiated
the mandingo Griot Society in New York City in the 1970s, bringing Mande music
to the New York avant-garde scene and partnering with Bill Laswell, Philip
Glass and the Kronos Quartet.
Gambian
famous music started in the 1960s, when the Super eagles and Guelewar formed,
while hip bands were playing American, British and Cuban music. The Super
Eagles went to London in the year 1977, appearing on Mike Raven’s Band call.
They played merengue and other pop genres with an African flourish, including
Wolof lyrics and minor stylistic elements. After the concert, the band started
jamming out some folk tunes and an unknown man heard, told the orchestra that
that was the pattern they should be playing. This inspired the group to come
back to their country’s musical roots, and they spent two years touring around
the Gambia and studying traditional music. The reformed band was known as Ifang
Bondi, and their pattern was Afro-Manding blues.
Gambian
Laba Sosseh was an important presence in the African and New York salsa scene.
Sosseh, who relocated to Dakar, Senegal as a teenager, spent his whole career
outside the Gambia.
Civil
unrest caused Ifang Bondi and most Gambian musicians to settle to countries
such as Netherlands, decimating the nascent music industry. Now, Jaliba Kuyateh
and his Kumareh band is the most famous promoter of Gambian Mandinka music.
There is also a thriving Gambian hip hop scene.
The
former Ifang Bondi artist Juldeh Camara has been working with Justin Adams
since the year 2007 and has been travelling all over the world. Also Ifang
Bondi, Musa Mboob and Ousman Beyai have begun a new orchestra XamXam that began
with a project in the Gambia to produce new music by taking six artists based
in the United Kingdom to the Gambia to work with top musicians from four
different tribal backgrounds. Ousman Beyai moved to the United Kingdom where he
worked with Musa Mboob to set up the live band XamXam.