Madou Sidiki Diabaté : Hommage à Toumani Diabaté

This coming February 14, Madou Sidiki Diabaté, who will be arriving directly from Mali, will pay special tribute to his late brother Toumani Diabaté during an exclusive concert at Le Gesù in Montréal. It promises to be an especially memorable evening for lovers of the kora, a traditional 21-string African harp. Toumani Diabaté, who was considered as one of the greatest masters of this quintessential West-African instrument, was also an international ambassador of Mandinka music. He was a true legend who artfully blended griot musical traditions with modern influences, securing his place in the history of world music.

Born in Bamako in the 1980s, Mamadou Sidiki Diabaté (known as Madou) is a Malian griot from a prestigious lineage of musicians, which includes his parents Sidiki Diabaté and Mariam Kouyaté, as well as his brother Toumani Diabaté. He was introduced to the kora and tamani at a very early age and, in 1991, he opened for his parents’ concert at Festival Africolor in Paris, launching his career on the international stage. He trained at Bamako’s Institut National des Arts (INA) and has collaborated with such artists as Salif Keita, Kandia Kouyaté and Babani Kone. In addition to his virtuosity as a traditional kora player, he is recognized as a pioneer of the Kora MIDI, opening up new horizons in West African music.