In the liner notes, French cellist Vincent Segal refers to "after-midnight sessions," those times when musicians get together in a room and play late into the night. And so we get this album, an intimate, exquisite after-hours collaboration between Segal and Ballaké Sissoko, a Malian musician renowned for his prowess on the kora, a long-necked harp lute. Recorded at Salif Keita’s Studio Moffou in Bamako, Mali, Chamber Music is as soothing and enveloping as a warm summer night. This peaceful union of classical and world music would make an ideal soundtrack for an imaginary film set on the plains of Western Africa under vast starry skies.