Multi-instrumental bandleader
Issa Dembele´s primary instrument is the balafon, but he also masters bara, djembe, dundun, djabara, and griot singing, which are all part of the cabaret ensemble. I asked him how he and his nine siblings had learned to play music and dance? He told me that their father was the chief of griots in his natal village. They grew up in an atmosphere where playing and dancing were essential parts of everyday life and carried many levels of importance for society. Their father or older siblings did not give them lessons, but the boys carried the instruments to the events, sometimes walking up to ten kilometers. Before the show started, the boys would play together and imitate what they heard and saw earlier. At the age of 10 or so, he moved to a bigger town, and the boys could play together for hours daily and even get paid for it. In the “cabaret,” they could spend the whole day playing before the older musicians came and took over for the afternoon and evening show. In Issa´s family, everybody masters several instruments because to get to play as a young musician, they often had to grab another instrument after being replaced by an older musician (and return a younger player from that instrument). If no instruments were available or the feeling was right, the musicians often danced with the public. This multi-instrumental approach, combined with the ability to dance the repertoire they performed, allowed for a deep understanding of the event. (Issa Dembele, 2021)
