Transcultural collaboration within the context of West African griot music: Exploring the role of the drummer and the case of the band Faso Kan

Ossi Raippalinna

The purpose of this text is to reflect on my experiences as an active member of a culturally diverse ensemble called Faso Kan. The primary source is the artistic work of Faso Kan during the years 2006-2020. The ensemble worked intensively during 2020-21, resulting in an album completed in September 2021. My main contribution to the album was adapting and arranging traditional West African rhythms for the drum kit and performing them in the studio. This study attends to cover different aspects of that process, particularly the drummer’s point of view. I will also cover the collaboration-based music-making approaches that I encountered while working with Faso Kan. Although Faso Kan´s repertoire consists mainly of traditional pieces from Burkina Faso, the working methods resulted in music representing several musical cultures. The study is primarily based on artistic work, but I will also reflect on the related experiences of other researchers and musicians.

A workflow based on oral tradition

I have rarely seen a griot making written notes for practicing music. Griot music is traditionally transmitted orally. The oral nature shapes the music-making process from the very first inspiration to the performance. Many griots have developed excellent skills to learn music quickly by ear and easily remember extensive amounts of music by heart. The performance style is fundamentally different, as griots rarely try to play a tune to reproduce precisely a previously composed music. One of the griot’s honorable skills is to adjust and variate the music every time it is performed. In a rehearsal situation with Faso Kan, it is typical to communicate musical material by singing or performing the melodies on an instrument. More precise explications are discussed and translated between French and Finnish. When it comes to rhythms, it is typical to simply play or sing the pattern using syllables from the djembe repertoire. Most members in Faso Kan understand the djembe “language.” In my experience, working orally is beneficial because if the skills are present, it quickly results in a complete recollection of the music. It is undoubtedly an excellent objective to internalize the repertoire, as it becomes easier to perform it with presence. Without a constant recording of the rehearsals, the result would not have been as structured. After every rehearsal, I sent the latest versions to all musicians. Based on the recordings, the members developed compositional ideas and brought them to the next session.

It was much more challenging for Faso Kan’s Finnish members to memorize the new songs instantly, which was very understandable. The Finnish members made their notes during rehearsals and developed them on their own based on the recordings. The individual practice was a must to be able to memorize the repertoire. For me, the critical notes were concerning the structure. When working towards an album with a big group and minimal time resources, it is a must to agree on arrangements and structures sharply. Being the drummer of the band, I did my best to communicate these clearly for everybody. I often wrote them on the whiteboard during rehearsals. Based on recordings, Jaakko made transcriptions for the wind instruments. That was necessary for them to be able to master their partitions quickly. NEXT PAGE

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