Yaya Diallo: West African Musician - Author - Teacher - Tour Guide - from Mali

New CD Release: Live at Club Soda

"Hypnotic dance music, with one foot planted in village music, the other kicking toward jazz and funk."
- Scott Stevens, World Music Director, KAOS-FM, Olympia, WA

"This KANZA sound/concept is DIFFERENT! .. very cool .. YES it rocks!! … GREAT music!!"
- Lord Litter, DJ/Promoter/Musician, Berlin, Germany

"This is great, infectious music … lively and smart spiritual grooves."
- Don Campau, Radio show host "No Pidgeonholes," KKUP, Cupertino, CA


Native to Mali, West Africa, Yaya Diallo, a leading custodian of African music and culture is the embodiment of a country renowned for its rich musical culture. Inspired by his intimate experience in traditional village live Yaya expresses his profound knowledge of West African healing arts on several music albums.

Yaya Diallo says music is as important as the blood in his veins – the essence of the African soul. He writes, "Playing music to benefit people was the fundamental value of our musical culture … At present we are witnessing the massacre of the African culture … The old initiates no longer have young people to educate …adoptive religion had as its objective the killing of the last savage and they have shouted ‘mission accomplished!' I doubt that it is.'

See the Yaya Diallo community forum at http://yayadiallo.proboards20.com to explore Yaya Diallo's music albums, books and articles. For the introductory Music Dish feature article including an interview titled From Africa to the World, Yaya Diallo Unleashes His Music go to http://www.musicdish.com/mag/?id=8801

Listen to three complete albums, Nangape (1980, reissue 2002), Dounoukan (1995) and the new Nov. 2003 release Live at Club Soda with Yaya Diallo and his band Kanza on New Music Canada, http://www.newmusiccanada.com/genres/artist.cfm?Band_id=7862 . The new release Live at Club Soda takes a dramatic shift form his earlier healing-orientated albums by transposing the traditional music to Occidental instruments including sax, violin, guitar and drum set along with lead vocals, backup singers and traditional African drums. The press release can be read at http://www.musicdish.com/mag//?id=8920 .

Recordings:

1980 Nangapè (LP)
1990 The Healing Drum: African Ceremonial and Ritual Music
1995 Dounoukan
1998 Dombáa Folee
2002 Nangapè (Reissue on CD)
2003 Live at Club Soda

Additional recordings include music for the sound track of the CBC film Senghor, (1982) and participation in a compilation album, Healing Music Project, Vol 2.

Books:

1985 At the Threshold of the African Soul: The Fulani-Minianka Way – A Village Voice
1989 The Healing Drum: African Wisdom Teachings
2001 At the Threshold of the African Soul (Reprint)


Onzou Records: http://www.onzou.com
Sales: CD Baby: http://www.cdbaby.com/yayadiallo3