Toumani and Sidiki Diabate to Perform at Arts Centre Melbourne, 3/5

Grammy Award winning kora (21-string Malian harp) virtuoso Toumani Diabete and his eldest son Sidiki, a griot (a member of a West African musical hereditary caste), master kora player and hip-hop star are preparing to give a rare one night only performance at Arts Centre Melbourne's Hamer Hall on March 5. Born into an exceptional musical family - 71 continuous generations of kora players - Toumani was a self-taught child prodigy who has been described by the Observer as "one of the world's most pre-eminent musicians in any genre."

Diabate has brought the unique 21-string West African harp to global attention. He was born in Bamako, the capital of Mali, in 1965 into a family of griots (hereditary musician/historian caste) whose lineage stretches back 71 generations, father to son. His father, also Sidiki, was a kora player of legendary fame in West Africa -dubbed King of the Kora - who became famous for his virtuoso "hot" and idiosyncratic style of playing, echoes of which can be heard in Toumani's style. Sidiki's first wife, Toumani's mother, was the singer Nene Koita. The kora is the quietest of instruments but is played with verve and attack, exquisite intimacy and always with a flowing pulse and groove.

Diabate wowed WOMADelaide audiences in 2008, performing with his Symmetric Orchestra, but this year will be joined by his eldest son Sidiki.

Toumani Diabete's influences are sourced from many cultures - Indian classical music, Spanish flamenco, and radical free jazz. His collaborations are just as unique - he has played with Bjork, Gorillaz/Blur frontman Damon Albarn, bluesman Taj Mahal, and guitar wizard Ali Farka Touré.Diabaté received a Grammy award for best traditional world music album in 2011 for his joint album with Ali Farka Toure's.The duo's first album together, also won a Grammy following its 2005 release. In 2008 Toumani was appointed UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador in for using his music to spread awareness on HIV and AIDS

The Hamer Hall concert will be a series of virtuosic duets in support of the father and son's album Toumani and Sidiki Diabate. Mali's recent tragedy was one of the main impulses behind Toumani's decision to record an album of duets with his son, Sidiki. He wanted to present the 72nd generation of Diabate griots to the world, but also reaffirm his belief that Mali's most precious assets are its music and culture, its traditional faith and the bonds that bind its many different peoples.

Twenty-three-year-old Sidiki is considered to be a musical genius, with formidable technique and a distinctive style. He personifies the kora's entry into the digital age; when he was a teenager he enrolled in the National Institute for the Arts in Bamako, taking up drums and learning digital recording techniques and in 2013 he was voted Mali's best beat-maker. As well as remaining true to the classical traditions of the kora, Sidiki sites contemporary western stars such as Kendrick Lamar and Kanye West as influences

"For me to play with my dad is like a dream. Yes I'm a hip-hop artist, but I love and respect my roots as a kora player, I want to know more. It's my chance to learn directly from my father. It's extra special because he is my idol,' Sidiki said.

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