Mouneïssa is the 1998, first international cd release from Malian

Malian

Malian may refer to:* Something of, from, or related to Mali, a country in West Africa.* A person from Mali or of Malian descent. For information about the Malian people, see Demographics of Mali and Culture of Mali. For specific persons, see List of Malians....

 singer/songwriter Rokia Traoré

Rokia Traoré

Rokia Traoré is a Victoires de la Musique award-winning Malian singer, songwriter and guitarist. Born in Mali as a member of the Bambara ethnic group, her father was a diplomat and she travelled widely in her youth. She visited such countries as Algeria, Saudi Arabia, France and Belgium and was...

. Its release followed a time of meeting with and guidance from Ali Farka Touré

Ali Farka Touré

Ali Ibrahim “Farka” Touré was a Malian singer and guitarist, and one of the African continent’s most internationally renowned musicians. His music is widely regarded as representing a point of intersection of traditional Malian music and its North American cousin, the blues...

, as well as the support of La Maison de la Culture d’Amiens pour Label Bleu, :fr:Label Bleu which produced the record for the Indigo label. The record is very traditional in its musicality and lyricism and touches upon many folk elements of the Malian people.

Coming from a long history of Malian musicians, Rokia is able to combine poetic

Poetic

Poetic may refer to:* Poetry, or a relation thereof.* Too Poetic, a deceased rapper and hip hop producer....

 metaphor

Metaphor

A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent a less tangible thing or some intangible quality or idea; e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels." Metaphor may also be used for any rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via...

 with the different musical elements of her country. For the first time, the balaba (the large balafon

Balafon

The balafon is a resonated frame, wooden keyed percussion idiophone of West Africa; part of the idiophone family of tuned percussion instruments that includes the xylophone, marimba, glockenspiel, and the vibraphone...

 of her region, has been paired with the ngoni (instrument)

Ngoni (instrument)

The ngoni or "n'goni" is a string instrument originating in West Africa. Its body is made of wood or calabash with dried animal skin stretched over it like a drum. In the hands of a skilled ngoni instrumentalist, the ngoni can produce fast rapid melodies...

 (the instrument favored by Bambara griots).

Release and availability

Originally released in 1998 on HDCD, this recording is currently out of print and more expensive to acquire than the average used cd.

Track listing

1. "Laidu" – 6:22
2. " Mouneïssa " – 5:39
3. "Finini" – 5:06
4. "Dianguina" – 5:17
5. "Sabali" – 5:04
6. "Tchiwara" – 3:41
7. "Fatalité" – 4:40
8. "Sakanto" – 4:28
9. "Sé" – 5:35

Personnel

• Rokia Traoré - Chants
• Andra Kouyaté – N’goni
• Baba Sissoko
  Baba Sissoko
  Baba Sissoko is a musician and vocalist. Sissoko is a master of the talking drums...
  
   – N’goni, petites percussions
• Oumar Diallo (musician) – Guitarre basse
• Abdoul Wahab Berthé – Guitare basse
• Samba Diarra – Balafon
• Dimba Camara – Percussions (guita)
• Souleymane Ann – Percussions

Production

• Executive producer: Michel Orier
• Collection director: Christian Mousset
• Production assistant: Martine Patrice
• Recording/Mixing studio: Studio Gil Evans
  Gil Evans
  Gil Evans was a jazz pianist, arranger, composer and bandleader, active in the United States...
  
   d’Amiens
• Recording/Mixing engineer: Philippe Teissier Du Cros
• Recording/Mixing assistant: Pierre Guinot
• Digital Editing: Jean-Pierre Bouquet (L’Autre Studio)
• Front cover and layout: Christophe Rémy
• Color photos: Antonin Potoski
• Black & white photos: Dominique Lagnous
• Liner notes: Fara C
• Translations (French): Mariam Lainé
• Translations (English): Stéphanie Carwin
• English song summaries: Philippa Wehle

• Special thanks: Ali Farka Touré, la Mission de Coopération et d’Action Culturelle de la France au Mali, l’Office de Radio Télévision du Mali, l’Institut National des Arts du Mali, toute l’equipe Label Blue/Indigo et le Centre Cultural Français de Bamako. Avec l’aimable contribution de Massambou Wellé Diallo.

External links

• Label Bleu official website http://www.label-bleu.com/flash.htm
• Rokia Traoré official website http://www.rokiatraore.net/
• Music of Mali on Wikipedia Music of Mali
  Music of Mali
  The Music of Mali is dominated by forms derived from the ancient Mande Empire. The Mande people make up most of the country's population, and their musicians, professional performers called jeliw , have produced a vibrant popular music scene alongside traditional folk music...