The history of the West African kora, a 21-string harp, goes back several hundred years — back to the days when Mande griots, hereditary musicians who tell the history of their people, played for the ...

Much like the surname “Smith” or “Jones” here in the U.S., the name “Cissoko” (also spelled “Sissoko”) is a common family name throughout the West African countries of Mali, Senegal,… For those of you ...

The kora of renowned Malian musician Ballaké Sissoko was broken by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, the instrumentalist claims. The West African musician was traveling to Paris from ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Malian musician Ballaké Sissoko alleges his "cherished, custom-made kora" was "completely destroyed" on a flight this week ...

Ten fingers for twenty-one strings, and magic takes place, surely, calmly. Ballaké Sissoko enlaces us in his suave and crystalline sonority and his kora, magnified by his talent as a melodist and an ...

When Ballaké Sissoko and Vincent Ségal perform at the North Beach Bandshell this Sunday, they’ll do so under the cover of a shadow of nativism and xenophobia that has engulfed the United States. The ...

More than a quarter of a century later, Lucy Duran, professor of music at the London School of Oriental and African Studies, persuaded Joe Boyd to commission a belated sequel for release on his ...

Outrage poured in from around the world when news broke that a musician’s priceless instrument was destroyed by Transportation Security Administration officials in the United States. Ballaké Sissoko ...

Most bands that visit NPR headquarters for our Tiny Desk Concerts need to adjust their setup and sound to accommodate the setting's limitations. At the very least, the musicians have to cram into a ...

She was barefoot, as always, and wandered on stage wearing a brown dress and cardigan, looking as disinterested as if she were on her way to the shops. Cesaria Evora has always been an anti-star, ...

Last February, Sissoko’s historic instrument was disassembled on a flight home to Paris. Bolstered by a new kora, his latest album revives their borderless journey In the Malian language Bamanankan, ...

Expanding on the adage that less is more, Malian kora master Ballaké Sissoko and renowned French cellist Vincent Segal have taken an ascetic minimalistic approach on Musique De Nuit. This melding of ...