MBOLON African Music Festival (Two Nights!)

ELASTIC STARS Productions & Do604 proudly present… MBOLON FESTIVAL: collaborations celebrating the music of Africa

For two nights, this Mali-originated music festival debuts for the first time on Canadian soil. DOORS 8PM on both evenings with talks and music starting around 8:30PM. Each evening will end with a 20 minute improvised collaboration with members from all participating bands.

SATURDAY. NOV.16th - NIGHT #1 LINEUP

Opening remarks from Ismael Konate

KUNDA AFRICAN CULTURE, MUSIC AND DANCE: Founded & headed by Kocassale Dioubate, Kunda has its' home bases between two beautiful havens : Vancouver in B.C., Canada, and Dubreka / Conakry in Guinea, West Africa. Kocassale is a ‘griot’, or ‘ djeliba’, (a musician, praise-singer, story-teller, entertainer, counselor, keeper of tribal history and tradition,) of the Mandingo tribe – a role which is inherited through lineage, a tradition and culture which has been passed down through the family for hundreds, or thousands, of years.

ELASTIC STARS: Vancouver's psyched out Nostalgia-Pop outfit, Elastic Stars, is the result of frontman Colin Cowan deciding to branch off from many other bands as a bass player such as Destroyer, and Dada Plan. The stellar live band is Jenn Bojm (bass + vocals), Daniel Ruiz (drums), Roisin Adams (keys + vocals). The music is heavily inspired by Senegal & Nigeria's 1970's Psychedelic Sounds.

SUNDAY. NOV.17th - NIGHT #2 LINEUP

Opening remarks from Ismael Konate

KURAI MUBAIWA - SOLO MBIRA: Kurai Mubaiwa was born in 1976 in the village of Mutimbanyoka, in Murewa district, Zimbabwe. He is the lead musician with the group ZimbaMoto and Zhambai Trio. As a solo act, Kurai also tours the world performing and teaching, singing, marimba and mbira at festivals as WOMAD, ZimFest and Montreal Jazz Festival.

GORD GRDINA - SOLO OUD: Juno award winning Oud/Guitarist with a unique sound combining mainstream jazz, free/improv and Arabic music. (Haram, Peregrine Falls, The Gordon Grdina Quartet)