African guitarist Habib Koite and his band Bamada performing at Berea College April 23

“This concert will be like nothing else that has been performed on the stage of Phelps Stokes,” says Randall Roberts, Berea’s Convocations coordinator.

The 8 p.m. concert in Phelps Stokes Auditorium “Music of Mali:  In the Mouth of the Crococile” is part of the 2008-09 Stephenson Memorial Concert Series.  Admission is free and open to the public.

Habib takes some unique approaches to playing the guitar with unusual tunings and styles that range from traditional to music that sounds closer to the blues or flamenco.  And unlike the traditional griots of his heritage, his singing style is restrained and intimate. Mali has rich and diverse musical traditions, which have many regional variations and styles particular to the local cultures.  Habib brings together different styles, creating a new pan-Malian approach that he says reflects his open-minded interest in all types of music.

“I’m curious about all the music in the world, but I make music from Mali.  In my country, we have so many beautiful rhythms and melodies. Many villages and communities have their own kind of music.  Usually, Malian musicians play only their own ethnic music, but me, I go everywhere.  My job is to take all these traditions and to make something with them, to use them in my music.” 

After first learning from his parents, Habib studied music both informally and later formally at the National Institute of the Arts in Bamako, Mali.  He initially gained attention in Africa after forming Bamada in 1988.  Habib and the group undertook their first tour outside Africa in 1994 and with the release of their first album “Muso Ko” in 1995 which reached #2 in the European World Music Charts, his popularity began to spread around the world.  Habib’s second album “Ma Ya,” was released in 1998 to wide acclaim.  In North America, the release on Putumayo World Music in 1999 quickly helped establish Habib as one of the world’s most exciting new figures.

Habib has been featured in hundreds of newspapers and magazines including Rolling Stone and People in the U.S., has been featured on NPR, WXPN’s World Café, PRO’s The World, the House of Blues Radio Hour “Mali to Memphis” special, and on prestigious international programs such as CNN WorldBeat.  In June 2007 he was the subject of a two-page photo spread in Vanity Fair magazine.  In 2001, Habib Koite and Bamada became one of the few African artists to appear on Late Night with David Letterman, the same year he released his third album on Putumayo, titled “Bayo.”  Habib Koite and Bamada’s transfixing performances have endeared them to an ever-growing audience and in 2003, they released a double CD of live material “Foly!”

The songs of from his newest project “Afriki” which means “Africa” in the Malian Bambara language, explore new music directions, and  is about the strengths and challenges of the African continent.  “People in Africa are willing to risk death trying to leave for Europe or the USA, but they are not willing to take that risk staying to develop something here in Africa,” says Habib.  “Life can be really good or really bad wherever you live.  People need to understand that.  Even though Mali is poor, we still have good quality of life:  You can walk outside and smile and someone will smile back.  I have thought about it a lot, and I am not sure if poor countries have a worse quality of life.”

For more about Habib Koite and his music, visit http://www.contrejour.com/artists/habibkoite/