Ballaké Sissoko | |
|---|---|
 Sissoko (left) performing with3MA during a concert inCartagena, Spain. | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 1968 |
| Origin | Mali |
| Genres | World |
| Instrument | Kora |
| Labels | Indigo Records,Six Degrees Records |
Ballaké Sissoko (born 1968) is aMalian player of thekora. He has worked withToumani Diabaté andTaj Mahal, and is a member of the group 3MA with Driss El Maloumi andRajery.
Ballaké's father, Djelimady Sissoko, was a notable musician from the Gambia in his own right[1] who moved to Mali and was funded by the government to be part of the national orchestra.[2] Sissoko started playing music at a young age, as most born into thejeli orgriot caste do.[3] In 1981, when he was 13, Sissoko's father died, and he took his father's place within the Ensemble Instrumental National du Mali.[2] He also performed with several prominent female singers before coming to fame through his duet withToumani Diabaté in 1999.[4] In 2000, he formed the trioMande Tabolo with an n'goni player and a balafon player.
His 2005 album,Tomora, featuresToumani Diabaté on kora, singersAlboulkadri Barry andRokia Traoré andFanga Diawara, violin soloist of the Mali National Instrumental Ensemble.
His recordChamber Music released in October 2009 was the result of a collaboration withVincent Ségal, a classical cellist known for his work withBumcello, and was released by French labelNo Format! and the U.S. labelSix Degrees Records.
He released a solo album,At Peace, in 2013. Cellist Vincent Ségal produced the album and plays on several tracks.
In 2023, Sissoko premiered a Concerto for Kora by the Lebanese composer Zad Moultaka at the Radio France concert hall in Paris.[5]
As of 2024, since 2022 Sissoko has been collaborating in duo concerts with South African guitaristDerek Gripper, who has transcribed kora music to play on his ownclassical guitar,[6][7] with an album to be released circa April 2024.
On returning from a 2020 US tour, Sissoko checked in his €5000 custom-made kora at the airport in New York for the flight back to Paris. On his arrival he discovered that the instrument had been dismantled byU.S. Customs and Border Protection agency.[8][9] According to Sissoko's manager, Corinne Serres, "Even if all the components that had been dismantled remained intact, it would take weeks for a kora of this calibre to return to its former state of resonance.".[10] The customs agency, however, denied opening the kora case which should not have triggered an alarm in the security scanners.[11]
Sissoko's 2021 albumDjourou, also released by No Format, takes its name from these events.[2]
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