The new album Djiyo is out now!
The 15th studio album by Ablaye Cissoko and the 2nd in duet with Cyrille Brotto, Djiyo (which means "water") is like a river uniting the lands it crosses, harmoniously blending Manding and Western traditions.
Kimintang Mohamadou Cissoko was born in 1970 in Kolda, Upper Casamance. A descendant of a long line of griots, he began learning the kora at the age of eight. In 1985, Ablaye Cissoko moved to Saint-Louis, Senegal, and joined the Saint-Louis Jazz Orchestra, composed of African and European musicians. It wasn't until 2003 that he recorded his own compositions with Diam. Ablaye Cissoko then revisited a 12th-century West African legend, that of Kimintang the Red Griot. His album Le Griot Rouge gained him international recognition in 2005.
His meeting with New York-based German trumpeter Volker Goetze led to the 2009 album Sira. The duo blends modernity and tradition, jazz and African music, creating an album of remarkable purity. Beyond music, Ablaye Cissoko's goal is to "soothe the hearts of men." In 2011, he embarked on another collaboration with Moroccan multi-instrumentalist Majid Bekkas, resulting in Mabrouk, a seamless fusion of jazz, Arabic, Oriental, and African music.
In 2012, Ablaye Cissoko reunited with Volker Goetze for Amanké Dionti, an album emphasizing the contrast between urban and African soundscapes. The recording, captured in Paris' Bon Secours Church, adds a distinctive acoustic signature. Released in October 2012 with the support of the BNP Paribas Foundation, the album paved the way for more solo work. In 2013, Ablaye Cissoko released Mes Racines and composed the soundtrack for the documentary Popenguine.
In 2014, the 2010 album Saint Louis, previously only available in Senegal, was released internationally in digital format. Later that year, Ablaye Cissoko and Volker Goetze reunited for Djaliya.
Since 2015, Ablaye Cissoko has collaborated with Ensemble Constantinople, directed by Kiya Tabassian. Their partnership has resulted in two albums (Jardins Migrateurs - 2015, and Traversées - 2019) and over a hundred concerts worldwide.
Between personal projects, Ablaye Cissoko took a "jazz" detour with Simon Goubert, Sophia Domancich, and Jean-Philippe Viret in the African Jazz Roots project, releasing two albums in 2012 and 2017.
In 2021, Ablaye Cissoko met France’s rising star of the diatonic accordion, Cyrille Brotto. They released Instant in spring 2022 and performed nearly a hundred concerts between 2022 and 2024, including two North American tours. Their second album, Djiyo, will be released in January 2025, marking Ablaye’s debut in the UK.
