Mali - January 2007 - OUMOU SANGARÈ

Mali

After Christmas, I had a bit of time in Brussels before heading off on New Year's Day to Mali. This West African country is the home of the famous town Timbuktu. We weren't there, but instead in the capitol Bamako. We did manage to squeeze in a day trip to Ségou, the next city over. We went because our friend, saxophonist Fabrizio Cassoll, was working on the new album of Wassoulou singer Oumou Sangaré. She is famous all over Western Africa, and even more in Bamako. We were guests at her lovely hotel Wassoulou, and were even treated to a concert our last weekend. She had never heard me sing, so invited me to come sing something onstage. So I sang a short aria, which brought her to tears. She said that if she'd have known she would cry, she wouldn't have asked me! We are so glad we met "The Voice of West Africa." What a generous and strong woman! One of the things that has impressed me most about Mali is the way women dress. Despite poverty, people still look like a million bucks in their beautiful, colorful clothes. I didn't take many pictures here, either, as I felt people would not appreciate being subjects of my tourist pictures - objectifying them. Mali is a Muslim nation, and the the people are elegant, refined and reserved. I felt like a boring dove there, underdressed and drab. Kind of tells you, doesn't it? Eventually, I'll scan in a picture of Oumou and me!  Here is a picture of a woodworker, working on one of the beautiful sculptures and masks they make here.