Bethany & Rufus To Join African Music Greats In Mali
bwsmile
have made the hop across the Atlantic to Bamako, Mali, where they have
been invited to perform at the 3rd Edition Daoula Festival on Saturday
March 7th from 11:00PM - 3:00AM (Mali time). The Daoula Festival
"Rencontres Autour du Cotton (Meeting around Cotton)" is committed to
helping raise awareness of the problems faced by the African cotton
sector. The festival, now in its third edition, takes place March 6-8
and welcomes artists from all backgrounds, including Bono, Tiken Jah
Fakoly, Quincy Jones and Dee Dee Bridgewater.
"It is a tremendous opportunity for us, and we are planning to record,
both sonically and visually," noted Bethany Yarrow. "Our journey of
singing these old folk songs - most of them African American - back in
West Africa, which is, ultimately, their origin."
Bethany & Rufus will be performing alongside some of Africa's greatest
musicians, including Kassé Mady Diabaté, Nahawa Doumbia, Toumani
Diabaté, Cheick Tidiane Seck, Didier Awadi, Oumou Sangaré and Hadrien
Féraud. They will be joined by Hatian Voodoo percussionist Bonga Jean
Baptiste and singer and flautist Yacouba Moumouni, leader of jazz-pop-
ethnic band Mamar Kassey, one of the few Nigerien musical acts known
internationally, and much beloved in their home country.
Prior to their trip to Mali, Bethany was joined by her father Peter
Yarrow (Peter, Paul & Mary) for a memorial concert for Odetta Holmes,
known simply as Odetta (December 31, 1930 - December 2, 2008). They
were joined on February 24th at New York's Riverside Church by a who's
who of people influenced by her - including David Amram, Maya Angelou,
Harry Belefonte, Oscar Brand, Tom Chapin, Wavy Gravy, Maria Muldaur,
Bernice Reagon, Pete Seeger, Sweet Honey in the Rock, Josh White Jr.
and Peter Yarrow, among many others.
Bethany & Rufus with Bonga also gathered on February 21st at Carole
Hart's home for a house concert in honor of her deceased husband Bruce
Hart. An award-winning television and film producer/writer, Carole
Hart is the brainchild behind the "For the Next 7 Generations" movie,
whose soundtrack Bethany & Rufus have been collaborating on.
The full-length documentary tells the story of 13 Indigenous
Grandmothers from around the globe - the Arctic Circle, North, Central
& South America, Asia and Africa - who have come together because they
were told in prophecy that their ancestral ways of prayer, peace-
making and healing are vitally needed in the world today.
bwsmile
Sorry, forgot to post where you can check out more of Bethany & Rufus:
http://www.bethanyandrufus.com/
http://www.itunes.com/bethanyandrufus
http://www.myspace.com/bethanyandrufus
http://www.youtube.com/bethanyandrufus