Bako Dagnon
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Bako Dagnon

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"La mama du Mali"

Drapee dans son eternel boubou bleu et rose, Bako Dagnon est depuis vingt-cinq ans une des grandes dames de la musique malienne. Mais, contrairement a Oumou Sangare, l'autre diva des rues de Bamako, son nom n'a jamais franchi les frontieres de son pays. Seuls les aficionados se souviennent de sa participation dans les annees 1970 au prestigieux Ensemble instrumental du Mali, elle descend, bien evidemment d'une grande lignee de griots et de griottes. Initiee par sa mere, des son plus jeune age, a l'histoire et aux traditions de l'Empire mandingue, elle en est, desormais la memoire vivante et il n'est pas rare que des musiciens reconnus, comme Ali Farka Toure, viennent la consulter. Apres cinq CD diffuses uniquement au Mali, Bako Dagnon a enregistre avec l'aide du pianiste Francois Breant, qui collabora longtemps avec Salif Keita, un nouvel album, Titati, absolument stupefiant ou eclate, sur des arrangements intelligents et subtils, un des plus beaux chants de l'Afrique actuelle. - Le Monde 2


"Titati"

Bako Dagnon publie enfin Titati, son premier veritable album en quarante ans de carriere, apres avoir sorti cinq cassettes lors des deux decennies passees, malheureusement introuvables depuis belle lurette, meme sur les
etals sinueux des marches de Bamako. Impeccablement produit, ce disque largement acoustique est respectueux de la tradition dans laquelle elle a grandi et qui l’inspire. Les arrangements de Francois Breant, flutes et cordes discretes, soulignent a merveille l’authenticite et la profondeur de son chant incantatoire. Immense cantatrice
encore meconnue en dehors des frontieres maliennes, Bako Dagnon renove ici la riche tradition lyrique malienne grace a une elegance naturelle inouie. Le verbe econome et le poids d’une tradition pluriseculaire sur ses epaules,
elle n’a de cesse de repeter qu’“une chanson ne se finit jamais”. On ne peut qu’opiner en ecoutant en boucle cet album magnifique. - Les Inrockuptibles


"Bako Dagnon - Titati"

Allure altiere et sourire mysterieux d'une souveraine, Bako Dagnon est une griotte du Mali en activite depuis plus de trente ans. le disparu Ali Farka Toure la consultait souvent pour sa connaissance de la culture mandingue et de l'histoire des ving-sept ethnies qui composent le pays. Le timbre vigoureux, le chant epique, Bako publie son premier veritable album a dimension internationale, un disque realise a Bamako par Francois Breant (contrebasse, claviers), producteur remarque des 1987 avec le distingue Soro de Salif Keita. Breant a compose pour le chant ensorceleur de la cantatrice un ecrin d'une grande beaute, ou les guitares, harmonica, violon, flute et percussions rivalisent de finesse et de lyrisme. Bako Dagnon chante ce soir a 20h30 a Paris, au theatre de l'Atelier.

Bouziane Daoudi - Liberation


"Bako Dagnon"

Born in the southwest region of Mali, Bako Dagnon has become a repository of some of the country’s greatest music traditions. The singer was first noticed in the 1972 Youth Biennale in Bamako. Her extraordinary knowledge of the cultures and traditions of the 27 ethnolinguistic communities that make up Mali invited regular
consultations by the likes of Ali Farka Toure. Dagnon brought out five domestic albums in her 35-year career. In November 2007, she released her first international CD
Titati.

Titati

One of Mali’s best kept secrets might no longer be one. Thanks to these 12 sumptuously-produced tracks, Bako Dagnon could, indeed should, arrive in the pantheon
of great West African singers – at last! For, there are few Malian artists with a finer knowledge of the bottomless well of musical permutations born in this country than this woman from the remote village of N’Golobladji. Dagnon allies this erudition – acquired in the baptisms and marriages she attended with her mother as a young girl – with a powerful voice and innate sense of rhythm. The title track, about love, is arguably the finest example of her texture and it is ably shouldered by a tight acoustic set and the bluesy harmonica of Frenchman Pascal
Mikaelian. The symbiosis is prominent in one of my favourite songs on Titati, the gripping “Lassidan”.

The song’s bass player Francois Breant also happens to be the album’s producer and his seasoned imprints are all over the recording. Breant’s talent as as
arranger and artistic director has surfaced regularly in the past three decades with his input in works by Thione Seck, RFI Discoveries winner Idrissa Soumaoro and the
1987 record Soro by Salif Keita. And, ironically, it is Keita’s voice that we are most reminded of by several
songs, especially one of the album’s best “Ikerifaye”. Poised and natural, Dagnon reveals an expressive depth that does honour to Mali’s griot heritage, maintained both
by male and female vocalists in the country.

Yes, Breant shows he has lost none of his sense of
adaptation and timing with this release, which is essentially made up of direct takes in Bamako’s Bogolan Studios. One does not tire of Dagnon’s powerful inflexions
here as she recounts classic tales from the nation’s traditional repertoire. In a short span of time, the elegant vocalist visits a thick slice of Malian folklore: she describes the realities of life as a troubadour (“Toubaka”); women’s beauty (“Sansando Minata”); a hunter who impregnates the king’s wife (“Donsoke”); the importance
of truth (“Telemba”); or being a blacksmith (“Noumou”). In “Bounteni” there is also the moving homage to Bakary Soumano, a friend of her father’s who was one of the nation’s most outstanding griots. Credit must also go to Ibrahima Sylla, the executive producer, whose Syllart Productions label has been at the heart of many of West Africa’s greatest gems over the past three decades. Sylla has once again unearthed a voice that incarnates the best in the continent’s musical panorama and ennobled it with the best of acoustic and technical accompaniments.
Oh, and just a word of thanks to Simon Veyssiere for yet again bringing quality music to my attention.

Daniel Brown
- Mondomix


Discography

Titati (Syllart/Discograph) (2007)

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Bio

Her first record under her own name, Titati symbolizes the junction of two cultures, between Africa and the West. Ali Farka Toure consulted her regularly, praising her knowledge of Malian history. Here, she showcases her sharp sense of melody and her unique voice.