On Saturday we had a fabulous night at the Savana Jazz club in San Francisco, at their "Back to the Roots of Jazz" show. I had no idea what to expect, of the club or the show, but it completely surpassed all my expectations. The club itself is very small and intimate, a real 'hole in the wall' kind of place, which made the experience more personal and fun (we also somehow had the best seats in the house, which didn't hurt either). The club owner had invited several musicians from West Africa to perform a mix of solos and group performances with traditional instruments including the xylophone, the ngoni, and the drums.
By far the most impressive was a young musician from Senegal who played the cora, a 3,000 year-old string instrument. He was simply amazing and from the moment he plucked the first string, seduced the entire audience.
The highlight of the night was the "fusion" performance. Whodda thunk the club's modern house jazz band and W.African musicians with traditional instruments could make such incredible music together? Somehow the piano, double-base and electric guitar teamed up real well with the calebasse drum and the cora. Add in the classic Blues singer rasping out "my baby done gone" while the beautiful African dancer shakes her bobaraba. Ohhh, what a night! I included a couple short videos I took below which don't do any justice to the real performance. (Sorry, didn't get the beautiful dancer on video, just the skinny male dancer.)
By far the most impressive was a young musician from Senegal who played the cora, a 3,000 year-old string instrument. He was simply amazing and from the moment he plucked the first string, seduced the entire audience.
The highlight of the night was the "fusion" performance. Whodda thunk the club's modern house jazz band and W.African musicians with traditional instruments could make such incredible music together? Somehow the piano, double-base and electric guitar teamed up real well with the calebasse drum and the cora. Add in the classic Blues singer rasping out "my baby done gone" while the beautiful African dancer shakes her bobaraba. Ohhh, what a night! I included a couple short videos I took below which don't do any justice to the real performance. (Sorry, didn't get the beautiful dancer on video, just the skinny male dancer.)
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