The Whole Music Experience

Top Album Best of Ravi Shankar, Arc Music  2. Javier Perianes, Debussy Meets Chopin, Harmonia Mundi 3. Godwanda Dawn (South African and Indian), Arc Music 4. William Byrd Ensemble, In the Company of William Byrd, Scribe Records 5. Angela Hewitt and Andrea Oliva, Bach's Flute Sonatas, Hyperion  6. Stile Antico, The Phoenix Rises, Harmonia Mundia 7. La Nuova Musica, Handel/Vivaldi Dixit Dominus, Harmonia Mundi 8. Ballake Sissoko, At Peace, Six Degrees  9. Jerusalem Quartet and Sharon Kam, Brahms Clarinet Quintet, Harmonia Mundi 10. Orchid Ensemble, Life Death Tears Dream, independent release

World/ Classical Ballaké Sissoko At Peace Six Degrees Records West African kora, cello, guitar, and balafon (a West African xylophone) comprise Malian kora player Ballaké Sissoko’s At Peace .   After the success of his duo project with French cellist Vincent Segal, Chamber Music , the musical partnership remains strong.   However, At Peace is clearly Sissoko’s spotlight recording with Segal, Moussa Diabate (guitar), Aboubacar Diabate (guitar) and Fassery Diabate (balafon) coming aboard as guests.   During a time when Mali experiences war and oppression, At Peace comes as a sweet breath of air.   During a time when the brightest stars of Mali (the country’s musicians) have been shut out, this music ripples throughout the world.   To put it mildly, the warring factions banned music and musicians in Mali.   However, that hasn’t prevented the musicians from gathering and recording CDs and videos which you can find on YouTube. The...

Ballakè Sissoko Vincent Segal Chamber Music Six Degrees Records When we think of the cello, we hear a somber, melancholic sound, mostly attached to European classical music. And when we hear the shimmering sound of a West African kora, the mood that arrives, (though no less sedate than the mood of a cello), feels spiritually uplifting. So pairing these two instruments might seem awkward at first. That is until you hear the beautiful marriage of tones and timbre. While I’m not sure that I would call Ballakè Sissoko (kora) and Vincent Segal (cello) album Chamber Music groundbreaking, certainly it represents one of the most spellbinding albums to come along. The moods of the cello and kora appear to balance each other out, leaving listeners somewhere between melancholy and relaxation. I find this music healing, even powerfully so. Personally, I find Chamber Music deeply relaxing, so relaxing in fact, that I want to crawl back in bed and absorb its warm tones, rather than ty...