Prospect Park, Brooklyn was the place to be on Sunday August 3rd 2008, [click to watch video footage] – as popular African guitarists took the stage and wowed the listening audience with different sounds from Africa.

Here is a photo slide of the event:

The Guitar series was a seven hour celebration of music which began at 2 pm and ended at 9pm at Celebrate Brooklyn, one of the free musical events that takes place in New York annually. The festival began at 2.30 pm with Extra Golden who fused Kenyan Benga with indie rock, then followed up by Yossi Fine and African Bass, Daby Toure, Habib Koite and then Oliver Mtukudzi. The main three acts at the show were Oliver Mtukudzi and the Black Spirits from Zimbabwe, Daby Toure from Mauritania as well as Habib Koite from Mali.

Daby Toure is a Mauritanian France based musician, and former band member of the widely popular Toure Kunda and Toure Toure group. He left that group because of his love for western music and later signed on under Peter Gabriel’s label. His music has been described as a mixture of roots, blues and commercial pop but the sounds I heard on Sunday was a fusion of Rock music with the sounds from Mauritania. Daby Toure’s voice has been compared to Youssou Ndour in terms of its melodic beauty and his style of performance. He calls his music a form of escape via melodies. I got a chance to meet with him briefly after his set and one of the ideas we touched on is the disconnect between the new generation and old generation as a result of acculturation. We also talked briefly about the feelings of alienation that is often prevalent amongst Africans in the Diaspora. Some might go as far as saying that his mixture bridges that gap of alienation and creates a musical home in which old Africans and the new Africans can connect. If you are a fan of Rock music with African fusion, Daby Toure should be on your must listen list.

Habib Koite is a well known musician from Mali, West Africa who has been compared to the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughn. He is considered as being one of Mali’s biggest pop stars and has appeared on popular American based television shows like Late Night With David Letterman. He is known for his unique way of playing his guitar by tuning it to a pentatonic scale and playing on open strings. Habib draws his musical inspiration from different regions of Mali and integrates Rock, Folk with Malian sounds. I found his sounds on Sunday to be more blues oriented and moody. Listening to him, you could easily imagine yourself in a smoky bar somewhere in New Orleans. He sings mostly in French, English and Bamara. He is definitely a national treasure.

Oliver Mtukudzi, called Tuku by friends and foes is another well known musician from Zimbabwe. He outsells Dr. Thomas Mapfumo, though he began his musical journey by playing Chimurenga, a brand of music originated by Dr. Mapfumo. Oliver Mtukudzi has gone ahead to produce his own brand of music called Jit which bears the same name as the popular Zimbabwean movie from the 80’s in which he featured in. Jit is a mixture of South African Mbaqanga, Pop, Chimurenga and Korekore (native drums from his ethnic group – Shona). Tuku uses his music to talk about economic issues and social issues that plague the Zimbabwean community in Zimbabwe as well as the Diaspora. He has been accused often for being quite soft on political issues unlike his musical counterpart Dr. Mapfumo who is currently in exile in the states. His music infuses optimism and positivity in a brighter and better future. He was definitely worth the wait, as I heard the multicultural audience sing word for word the lyrics of his songs. He didn’t sing any song from his most recent cd (his only ‘political’ CD) but rather stuck to the oldies but goodies.

It is remarkable that this event hosted by Celebrate Brooklyn is made possible via small donations by attendees. I definitely had a lot of fun at the event and I can’t wait for next year’s.

Watch a video footage of the event.

Related posts:

1. Putumayo to Release African Party
2. Salif Keita: Nou Pas Bouger (You Can’t Move Us)
3. Music: African Chanteuses at New York City’s Central Park
4. 10 Questions for Soulfège – Afro Fusion Musical Group
5. Georges Octors (b. 1923), Congolese Violinist & Conductor in Belgium
6. Review: Soulfege Latest Album – Take back the Mic
7. Mali: Toumani Diabaté Plays the Kora with London Symphony Oct. 29