Album Notes

This recording of "Bambaraka" was made in October 1996 in the town of Sale, close to the Moroccan capital during a two part ceremony whose unique form the participants intend to develop and continue in times to come. The musical encounter of two consecrated masters, Oumarou Namazarou - Peul Flautist from Niger, and Si Mohamed Chaouqi - Tbel Drum and Guimbri player from Morocco, translates a feeling of belonging to a common history, which marked ancient trans-Saharan migrations. The real history of the movement of black populations towards the North of the Sahara survives in the memory of the Moroccan Gnawas who claim and celebrate its heritage. It is upon the individual initiatives of Byron Wallen and Martin Colliver who share production of the album that these two african master musicians can be reunited.