BALA-BILA

Balla Kouyate & Matchume Zango at the East-West Crossroads

BALA-BILA brings together two African master musicians--Balla Kouyate on balafon, calabash, bass guitar and voice, and Matchume Zango on timbila, mbira, percussion and voice--through a live concert framed as an intercultural musical conversation between the two artists. Kouyate, from the West African country of Mali, and Zango, from the East African country of Mozambique, are leading exponents of their respective principal instruments–balafon and timbila.

BALA-BILA brings together live in concert for the first time these two traditional instruments and these two revered contemporary masters at the height of their careers. This living-room-style concert features Kouyate and Zango as composers and multi-instrumentalists sharing the joy, beauty and complexity of their music but also provides a unique opportunity for the audience to get to know Kouyate and Zango as human beings, artists, ambassadors, and global citizens as they explore their connection to each other, their art, and their cultural patrimony.

Both the balafon (representing Mali, Burkina Faso and Côte d'Ivoire) and the timbila (Mozambique) are part of the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (tim-bila is plural, and m-bila is singular). Kouyate and Zango are leading exponents of their respective instruments, and known for preserving, advancing and contemporizing their rich musical traditions

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Balla Kouyate is a renowned balafon player and “djeli” who is originally from Mali and currently based in the U.S. Kouyate teaches at the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music, has collaborated with artists such as Yo Yo Ma and Andjelique Kidjo, and is recognized by the U.S. National Endowment for the Arts as an NEA National Heritage Fellow.

Matchume Zango is a master timbila player, percussionist, composer and producer from Maputo, Mozambique. He has a Masters Degree in Music Performance from the University of Cape Town, and has toured extensively throughout the world and collaborated with local and international artists. Zango has received funding support from international donor agencies, and has built Nzango Artist Residency, a recording studio and artist residency where he collaborates with local and visiting artists.

$25 advance | $30 day-of

*fees not included ($2 facility fee per ticket + cc processing fees)