Mamar Kassey

Close your eyes and let Mamar Kassey's music transport you into the heart of modern Niger. Their music is a wonderful combination of traditional and modern sounds that is at once beautifully authentic and completely original. The instrumentation is just right — flute, bass, molo and komsa (two- and three-stringed lutes), calabash, chorus and contigui (single-stringed lutes), kalangou (hand drum), and guitar. There are soulful vocals as well.

Afro-pop is at its best in the hands of Mamar Kassey and his band. Led by charismatic frontman Yacouba Moumouni, the nine members of Mamar Kassey have quickly become the most significant cultural and musical ambassadors of Niger. Their debut CD, Denke Denke is described by Afropop Worldwide as "...a revelation. It contains the rich variety of sound textures and gnarly grooves you expect from neighboring Mali, but also the percussion pump and harmonized guitar arranging associated with juju, from also-neighboring Nigeria. These 13 tracks — no two alike — would be priceless just for filling in gaps in the Afropop mosaic. But aside from revealing long-mysterious Niger, Mamar Kassey emerges as one of the most exciting roots pop outfits anywhere in Africa."

Mamar Kassey's music is the outcome of the combined efforts of men and women who are convinced that Niger should make its voice heard on the world music scene.

— Courtesy Calabash Music