Live review: Trio Da Kali at Rich Mix London

By Cara Stacey

It has been a few years since Trio Da Kali wowed audiences at the BBC Proms in 2013 and much has happened for the ensemble since. This February the trio have returned to tour the UK with last night’s concert at Richmix being their sole London date in a string of performances. For those unfamiliar with their work, Trio Da Kali is comprised of master songstress Hawa Kassé Mady (daughter of the great Kassé Mady Diabaté), Lassana Diabaté on balafon, and Mamadou Kouyaté on ngoniba.
Hawa Kassé Mady’s exceptionally strong and beautiful vocals opened up the concert, with a wandering solo song, and throughout the rest of the set, she wove beautifully ornamented, expressive stories for those present. Often when a vocalist has such presence (acoustically, musically, and otherwise), the accompanying musicians can fall into the background somewhat. Trio Da Kali maintain a perfect balance between Hawa’s sung melodies, the astounding virtuosity of Lassana Diabaté on his dual-manual balafon, and the resonance of Mamadou Kouyaté’s bass-heavy ngoniba. Throughout the two sets, the audience warmed up and drew near to dance, to listen, and to sing occasionally when Hawa encouraged them to do so.
Sonic space was maintained throughout the concert and some of the best moments were when Diabaté had the stage. The blur of his sticks flying across the balafon was reminiscent of Toumani Diabaté’s kora showmanship but Lassana Diabaté demonstrated how he can skilllfully highlight and develop melodic themes from the other instruments (ngoniba and vocal melody), often dissolving into racing lines and even citing Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five” at some point in the flurry of notes.
The bass sound of Mamadou Kouyaté’s ngoniba perfectly completes the trio’s sound. His own virtuosity was audible as soon as he took the stage, though perhaps it would have been nice to hear more of it. The resonance of his instrument was beautifully captured by the sound in the Richmix space, and he and Diabaté casually alternated roles between accompanying short bipartite rhythmic cycles, and more improvised tuneful fills.
The Trio’s version of “Jarabi" was the highlight of the evening- a delicate arrangement of a much-loved song of love. Much of their skill and musicianship can be heard on their latest offering, an EP entitled “Trio Da Kali”, but hearing this ensemble live is a must!

Photo by Kudaushe Tawanda