Percussions.org

[François Kokelaere]

Still a page of the history of djembé which is turned with the death in this December 2001 of Gbanworo Keïta.

Sad December which sees leaving one largest djembé fola these last decades. Guinean, originating in Faranah where it was noticed within the communal troop, it played then with the Federal Ballet of Conakry I to be then retained in 1964 around Harry Belafonte for the creation of the National Ballet Djoliba.

At the time of the fusion of the national ballets, it shared a few time in the limelight with Famoudou Konaté and became first soloist of the African Ballets at his start. In 87, it is retained for the first grinding of the National Ensemble of the Percussions of Guinea with three of its colleagues of the Ballets Africains : Noumoudy Keïta, Laurent Camara and Lamine "Lopez"
Soumah.

In 88, Noumoudy and Lamine became titular Percussions of Guinea, Gbanworo and Laurent reinstated their ballet of origin. He was the percussionnist most in the public eye for the ballets of 88 with his first warning of health into 99 of which he never completely gave himself. It appeared very decreased at the time of the Biennale of Percussions from May 99 in Conakry where Bruno Genero, one of his pupils, made a touching homage to it.

Gbanworo will remain in our memories and our hearts like a character attaching, direct, endowed much with a whole personality. A striker frightening, powerful, terribly effective on the scene, charismatic, to the generous play. As a adventurer aguerri, it was one of the rare beaters of Malinké origin to have be been able to play the rhythms of various Guinean ethnoses.

World percussion has just lost one of its larger representatives; pure produced one time Guinean ballet, resulting now completed where the musicians were framed within a structure which made the best of between-them. Each one of those which leave us, leash an immense vacuum and makes to us slightly more measure the pit which separates these old from the new generation...

François Kokelaere

Discography:

Volume 1 of the National Whole of Percussions of Guinea

Volume 1,2 and 3 of
the African Ballets at Buda Music