Unkanou

Maitre-Djembe 2
  • Famoudou Konate
  • From The Album: Maitre-Djembe 2
  • Written By:
  • Released In: 0
  • Runtime: 5:04
  • Times Played on iTunes: 47 times
  • Media Type: MP3 Audio File
  • Bitrate: 160kbps

about Famoudou Konate

Famoudou Konaté is one of only a handful of Initiated Masters of the Malinké Djembe Tradition. In over 40 years of tours and performances as Guinea's leading djembefola, he has elevated the djembe orchestra from its traditional roots to worldwide popularity. Among Guinean drummers, he is universally recognized for his unsurpassed knowledge of the repertoire of the Malinké people, the creators of the djembe and its core tradition.

Famoudou was born in 1940 in Sangbarala, a village in the Hamana region. Hamana is the Malinké heartland in Guinea, and is also the birthplace of the Dundunba family of rhythms which are Famoudou's specialty. A percussive prodigy, he was drumming in community festivals and ceremonies by age eight, and was in demand throughout the region as a djembefola by the age of fourteen.

Recruited into Guinea's Les Ballets Africains in 1959, he was Lead Djembe Drummer for Les Ballets until 1985, performing with astounding virtuosity and creating many of the musical arrangements now common in ballets and performance groups world-wide. Famoudou toured the world performing to acclaim for 26 years, establishing Les Ballets as West Africa's foremost performing company.