The ngoni is one of West Africa’s oldest instruments, a small lute that griots have played for centuries. Bassekou Kouyate turned it into the lead instrument of a modern band, giving it the power and presence of an electric guitar.
A griot family and Bamako
Bassekou Kouyate was born in 1966 in Garana, in the Barouéli area about 60 kilometres from Ségou in Mali, into the Kouyate family of griots. His father, Mustapha Kouyate, played the ngoni, and his mother, Yagaré Damba, was a praise singer. He began playing the ngoni at the age of 12, learning within the family tradition, where music is inherited along with history and responsibility.
In the late 1980s, he moved to the capital, Bamako, where he played with many musicians and sharpened his skills in a more cosmopolitan scene.
The ngoni and Segu Blue
The ngoni is a stringed instrument with a wooden body covered in animal skin. It is plucked, and its sound is bright and percussive. It is often described as an ancestor of the banjo. Kouyate formed Ngoni ba, a band built around several ngonis of different sizes, playing roles similar to lead guitar, rhythm guitar and bass. The idea gave the old instrument a new, fuller sound.
His debut album, Segu Blue, was released internationally in 2007 by Outhere Records. It introduced his playing to world music audiences and was widely praised.
Amy Sacko and electric experiments
The singer Amy Sacko is a central voice in the band, bringing the griot vocal tradition to their performances. In 2013, Kouyate, Amy Sacko and Ngoni ba appeared at the BBC Proms in London, one of the world’s best-known classical music festivals. Over time, he began using amplification and effects, playing the ngoni with the intensity of a rock guitarist while keeping its traditional melodies at the heart of the music.
Collaborations and family
Kouyate has played with many international musicians, and his work with Ngoni ba has shown audiences in Europe and America that the ngoni can hold its own alongside blues and rock instruments. Like many griot groups, Ngoni ba has included members of Kouyate’s family, continuing the tradition of music passed down within households. Bassekou Kouyate’s work proves that tradition can grow louder without losing its roots. The instrument his father played now fills festival stages around the world.
