Acclaimed world musicians Amadou Diagne and Cory Seznec
Head to Dorset on album tour
Performing as Touki, Amadou Diagne from Senegal and French-American Cory Seznec return to Dorset this March for two special concerts with Artsreach, the county’s touring arts charity, following the release of their latest album; expect a multi-instrumental tour-de-force, with powerful beats, driving grooves, and silky vocals.
“An intoxicating mix of infectious grooves and toe-tapping melodies…
this is an album verging on the essential” RnR
West African multi-instrumentalist and composer Amadou Diagne is a member of L’Orchestra National du Senegal and regularly performs as a percussionist in concerts, cultural events and on television for the top West African stars. Since moving to England, Amadou has forged his own musical identity and released acclaimed solo albums featuring the kora, guitar and percussion, which have received air play on BBC Radio 3 and across the world.
Influenced by blues and ragtime, Cory Seznec discovered fingerstyle guitar and clawhammer banjo whilst growing up in the US. Now based in Paris, numerous travels and encounters in countries including Ethiopia and Kenya have helped shape his playing. After 10 years on the road with renowned roots band Groanbox, his style is now more syncopated, polyrhythmic, and cross-pollinated.
Touki’s sound infuses East and West African styles and traditions with Appalachian banjo, folk motifs, and orchestral arrangements. Amadou powerful percussion and Cory’s guitar-picking and rapid-fire banjo-frailing provide a rhythmic foundation, while vocals, kora and violins add beautiful texture and emotional depth. For this tour, Amadou and Cory are joined by Michael Ward-Bergeman, an accordion virtuoso, singer and percussionist who regularly performs with the likes of Yo-Yo Ma, and whose compositions feature in the latest Coppola film.
“A thrilling global folk album” Songlines
Recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios, Touki’s latest album, Plastic Man, focuses on climate change, environmental activism and spirituality, drawing together West African fables, personal stories and the social, economic and political challenges facing both developing countries and western ones. This is music that asks ecological, spiritual, and political questions – join this sensational band for an unforgettable musical journey as they return to tour Dorset with Artsreach following two previous sell-out tours.
Touki with perform live in Portesham (01305 871117) on Friday 28 March, and Langton Matravers (01929 423834) on Sunday 30 March. Full details and tickets can be found by visiting www.artreach.co.uk
Fri 28 Mar, 7:30pm. Portesham Village Hall. 01305 871117
Sun 30 Mar, 7:30pm. Langton Matravers Village Hall. 01929 423834
