Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba bring a taste of Africa

Among the variety of African instruments that claim to be an ancestor to the banjo is the ngoni. This diminutive stringed instrument looks somewhat like a lute, is perhaps the length of a mandolin or travel guitar, and has three metal strings and no frets. It seems hardly sophisticated enough for use in a modern band. However, in the hands of Mali's Bassekou Kouyate the ngoni produces a lot of sound and gives an intriguing lift to modern African music.

The ngoni sounds like a cross between a harp, a thumb piano, and a ukulele and is mostly played in a rhythmic style. On the CD "I Speak Fula," Kouyate and his band Ngoni ba fill the aural spectrum plucking and strumming along with guitar, bass, percussion and some very nice vocals by singer Amy Sacko.

African music is enjoying great popularity in Europe and America, the result of some excellent record companies like the recently profiled Cumbancha Records of Shelburne. I am sometimes surprised at the upbeat sound of the music considering the depth of misery on that continent. With all its wars, poverty, disease and environmental issues you'd think there'd be nothing but dirges emanating from that continent. But, Africans do indeed appear to be people with great hope and a very lively spirit and the music on this CD conveys a very hopeful message even if the words are unintelligible to non-native listeners.

While Ngoni ba's songs are sung in Fula, the native language of Mali, these are expressive vocals, very enjoyably delivered by Sacko whose voice is powerful and lovely. The band seems to be having much fun throughout.

They are currently on a 47-date North American tour and perform next Wednesday night at the Flynn Center's FlynnSpace in Burlington. Whether you play banjo or just enjoy African music, this is a band worth seeing live and this is a very rare opportunity to catch this act on a Vermont stage.