Music from the country of Niger. Field recordings from Agadez to Niamey, from Hausa film soundtracks, Zarma spiritual music, to contemporary instrumental synth from Niamey.
Afelan Tisseway In 2012, I had the chance to meet with Tambatum, renowned poet (read: Tisseway) of the Azawakh region in Niger. It was my first trip to Niger to meet with Mdou Moctar, and he was insistent that visit him. I recorded about an hour of recording, with a…
Houmeissa by Hama Hama, real name Mouhamadou Moussa, make some undeniably forward thinking music. He first started playing when he was gifted a Yamaha PSR-64, an interesting and now very hard to find keyboard, that had the ability to make programmed beats and play in "Arabic Scales" or quarter tones.…
Oyiwane by Troupe École Tudu The debut album from Troupe École Tudu "Oyiwane" is now available, restored and remastered for the first time outside of Niger! Troupe École Tudu (previously) take their name from a small neighborhood of Agadez, Niger. In 1985, the city hosted a musical competition between various…
Mamoudou Amadou Seini Lingo & Group - Song for Water Djinn Seini Lingo & Group - Captain Salama I come to Niamey looking for the supernatural. Fresh off speaking at a conference for the centennial of Jean Rouch, I'm inspired by this body of work, and I dedicate a week…
Azna de L'Ader - Adawi Azna de L'Ader - Jan Marké There is something mysterious about the musical archive. It holds a lot of promise. Where live performance - the way music was existed for millennia prior to physical medium - is immediate and experiential, media rendered to medium (physical,…
We've just wrapped up the new album from Agadez wedding band Etran de L'Aïr. Recorded in 2014, and featured previously here on the blog, it's been a long time coming. Even longer, if you consider the history of the band. The music scene in Agadez is still dominated by weddings.…