Cheick Hamala Diabate (Mali / D.C.)

 When Malian master musician Cheick Hamala Diabate toured the United States for the first time in 1995, he brought 800 years of musical heritage with him. Coming from a long line of musical griots, he proved his expertise on the n’goni (West African stringed lute) as a child and studied the guitar with his famous uncle, Djelimady Tounkara. After attending the prestigious National Institute of Arts in Bamako and working with a legion of his country’s stars, he began investigating American traditions. Now living in Washington, D.C., he demonstrates how much the n’goni resembled the American banjo and may have been its ancestor. This deep interest led to collaborations with bluegrass/jazz banjo player Bela Fleck and blues guitarist Corey Hart. His 2009 album Ake Doni Doni (Take It Slow) is an invigorating combination of all of these idioms from both sides of the Atlantic. Along with working in a host of different ensembles, Diabate also choreographs U.S.-based African dance companies.

• http://cheickhamala.com/