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First published in print: Sunday, March 21, 2010

Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=913170&category=ARTS&TextPage=1#ixzz0iuzYzvM6

Banjo master Bela Fleck is a huge fan of Malian ngoni player Bassekou Kouyate. Kouyate, who appears on Fleck's Grammy Award-winning song "Throw Down Your Heart," toured with Kouyate and company over the last 10 weeks to help Kouyate launch his first headliner tour of the U.S. It's easy to understand why Fleck and Kouyate make a musical connection; the ngoni is a wooden string instrument covered with dried animal skin that sounds a lot like a banjo. Kouyate, who has performed with Taj Mahal and Bonnie Raitt, among others, walks a thin line between West African and American roots music on his Sub Pop Records release "I Speak Fula," issued last September. He and his band, Ngoni Ba, will make their Capital Region debut this week at The Sanctuary for Independent Media in Troy. 7 p.m. Wednesday. $10. The Sanctuary for Independent Media, 3361 Sixth Ave., Troy. 272-2390; http://www.mediasanctuary.org