http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.33693&variant=artist-playlists&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rssThe word on the street is that Mali's premier kora player Toumani Diabate comes from a line of -- get this -- 71 kora players. Most Americans can't trace their roots back more than two generations, but that kind of li! neage -- whether it's accurate or not -- only indicates how seriously Mali takes its music and its history. Diabate was born into a family of hereditary musicians and his story mimics those of nearly any instrumental virtuoso: he learned kora thanks to a parent (his father, Sidiki, who was known as the king of the kora); he began studying at age five and performed for the first time when he was just 13; he's now an acknowledged world master of the instrument. Studying the kora, an 18-stringed lute, is no laughing matter: Diabate was schooled in songs dating back to the 15th century, and his repertoire is vaster than even he could describe. While he's not as well known in the west as artists like Ali Farka Toure or Youssou N'Dour (mainly because he tours much less), his albums are nonetheless classics of the genre. In 1988 he traveled to London to record his first solo album, <I>Kaira</I> and each release since then has sparkled with his trademark delicacy, intelligence and sheer, unadulterated skill. While he's collaborated with the new flamenco group Ketama twice (for the Songhai series), Diabate's not a prolific recording artist, and he was in danger of falling off the world music radar at the turn of the 21st century. But in 2005 his career was resurrected when producer Nick Gold enabled a series of recordings that led to three new albums, the first of which was <I>In The Heart of the Moon</I>, an album of improvised duets with Ali Farka Toure. - Sarah BardeenMalien720Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:55:45 -0800 http://static.realone.com/rotw/images/logo_rhapsody_113x22.gif http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.33693&variant=artist-playlists&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss The word on the street is that Mali's premier kora player Toumani Diabate comes from a line of -- get this -- 71 kora players. Most Americans can't trace their roots back more than two generations, but that kind of li! neage -- whether it's accurate or not -- only indicates how seriously Mali takes its music and its history. Diabate was born into a family of hereditary musicians and his story mimics those of nearly any instrumental virtuoso: he learned kora thanks to a parent (his father, Sidiki, who was known as the king of the kora); he began studying at age five and performed for the first time when he was just 13; he's now an acknowledged world master of the instrument. Studying the kora, an 18-stringed lute, is no laughing matter: Diabate was schooled in songs dating back to the 15th century, and his repertoire is vaster than even he could describe. While he's not as well known in the west as artists like Ali Farka Toure or Youssou N'Dour (mainly because he tours much less), his albums are nonetheless classics of the genre. In 1988 he traveled to London to record his first solo album, <I>Kaira</I> and each release since then has sparkled with his trademark delicacy, intelligence and sheer, unadulterated skill. While he's collaborated with the new flamenco group Ketama twice (for the Songhai series), Diabate's not a prolific recording artist, and he was in danger of falling off the world music radar at the turn of the 21st century. But in 2005 his career was resurrected when producer Nick Gold enabled a series of recordings that led to three new albums, the first of which was <I>In The Heart of the Moon</I>, an album of improvised duets with Ali Farka Toure. - Sarah Bardeen http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30344646&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss World/Reggae Tue, 6 Oct 2009 09:53:23 -0700 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 30344646 ply.30344646 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30344646&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.25801090&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss World/Reggae Wed, 3 Jun 2009 07:50:33 -0700 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 25801090 ply.25801090 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.25801090&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.25361212&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss Rock/Pop Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:08:49 -0800 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 25361212 ply.25361212 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.25361212&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.20273735&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss World/Reggae Fri, 15 May 2009 11:37:07 -0700 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 20273735 ply.20273735 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.20273735&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.15715509&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss World/Reggae Sat, 20 Dec 2008 12:47:36 -0800 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 15715509 ply.15715509 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.15715509&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.12852936&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss World/Reggae Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:08:45 -0800 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 12852936 ply.12852936 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.12852936&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.10495101&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss World/Reggae Sat, 27 Sep 2008 11:31:31 -0700 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 10495101 ply.10495101 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.10495101&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.9170353&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss World/Reggae Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:08:38 -0800 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 9170353 ply.9170353 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.9170353&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.8642484&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss World/Reggae Thu, 26 Nov 2009 11:26:36 -0800 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 8642484 ply.8642484 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.8642484&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.8628885&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss Latin Sun, 13 Sep 2009 09:19:39 -0700 Playlists Featuring Toumani Diabate on Rhapsody Online 8628885 ply.8628885 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.8628885&variant=play&rws=%2Ftoumani-diabate%2Fplaylists.rss