Ablaye Cissoko & Cyrille Brotto

Over the past twenty years, Ablaye Cissoko has become one of the most highly regarded players of the kora, the West African double harp. He also sings, entirely in the tradition of the ‘griots’ or storytellers from whom he descends. In 2023, he began a remarkable collaboration with French accordionist Cyrille Brotto with the album Instant. ‘A gem’, according to Songlines Magazine. ‘The accordion adds a melancholic, almost Celtic undertone to Cissoko’s elegant arpeggios.’

Now the duo presents the album Djiyo, which means ‘water’ and sounds exactly like that: a connecting stream. A beautiful blend of kora, voice and accordion.

Senegal-born Ablaye Cissoko previously formed a surprising duo with trumpeter Volker Goetze, with whom he made three albums. He has also collaborated with Randy Weston, Eric Bibb and the Constantinople Ensemble, among others. Cyrille Brotto specializes in the diatonic accordion and has been a familiar face in French folk music for years. As a duo, they forge the link between southern French folk and the Mandingo tradition from West Africa.

Ablaye Cissoko kora/voice, Cyrille Brotto accordion