Sep 22/06
Nomads sport nice scarves
Yesterday I featured a Rock Paper Scissors project, Bole 2 Harlem, so today I’d thought I’d explore another of their chosen groups, Tartit.
Tartit is a Tuareg group of female musicians belonging to the Kel Tamashek society. Their music sounds a like a toned-down, more rootsy Tinariwen. I love the rythms and singing style.. plus they can produce sounds in their throats that would tie mine in knots.
Like Tinariwen, Tartit has its origins in the refugee camps of northern Mali. Tartit roughly translates into union, which refers to the cultural union of the Kel Tamashek society, now spread throughout Algeria, Libya, Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso.
Tartit’s only US release, Ichichilla, was put out by Network in 2000. You can see some cool photos of Tartit in Essakane, Mali, here. The album can be bought online at cdRoots.
One of these years I’m going to make it down to the Festival In The Desert in Tombouctou and Essakane, way up in northern Mali. Have any of you been? Maybe a few of us could split the rental cost of a 4×4 and head there for January 2008.
Tartit – Buloululba
Tartit – Holiyane Holiyana
Tartit – Hamoye
FYI, there is a new Festival sur le Niger (www.festivalsegou.org) that is much cheaper and easier to get to, held in February in Segou, which is a pretty town. I saw Oumou Sangare, Ali Farka Toure, Salif Keita, and others there.
No, it’s not the desert, and doesn’t have the same cache. But I’ve heard the Festival au Desert is becoming overpriced. Not that I’ve been — that’s just what I’ve heard from people who paid full price (300 Euros, not including getting there, which would take several days from Bamako) …
[...] The ever-wonderful Benn Loxo du Taccu blogs on Tartit, a Tuareg group of female musicians. [...]
Your site gets better and better every time I check up on it. Thanks for providing the blogosphere with samples of such wonderful music!
First – thank you for all the great things you publish here!
I would definitely join a small group heading to Essakane! I was once there, three years ago. And I would definitely do it a second time, avoiding an organised trip though. There are now about three or four different festivals in the desert around the Tombouctou and Gao region. Anyway there are so many different festivals in West-Africa, many of them worth any visit – but Essakane is magical.
By the way – enjoy your vacation!
Cool. This is a new band for me. And excellent too. Have ordered a copy of the cd. And can I can smugly gloat that I’ve already booked my tickets and flights for festival in the desert for Jan 2007. Can’t wait.
This just in: Tartit’s next album, titled Abacabok, is about to be released on Crammed Discs/Belgium (Craw34) on Oct. 24, and will be distributed in the US by Ryko. Dig it!
This time the group is made up of 4 men and 5 women, and the notes say “the women sit down, sing, and play cyclic rhythms on their tinde drums, while the men sing and play string instruments… The men are veiled, the women aren’t. Tuareg society is one of the few throughout Africa in which women are allowed to choose (and divorce) their husbands.
You go, gals!
http://www.crammed.be
I was going to go to the FitD last winter, even got as faras getting the necessary innoculations, but then my wife got kind of pregnant*… 2008 sounds like a feasible time to go, though… I might be good for that!
*Baby Nicolas is sitting on my lap as I write:)
Re: you can hear 4 songs from Tartit’s new album “Abacabok” on the band’s MySpace : http://www.myspace.com/tartitÂ
Matt,
After having just seen a short documentary on the Tent Sessions at Festival in the Desert, I am craving to go in 2008. I was considering an organized trip ,but if others know how to do it, I’d love to join in. Meanwhile I have Abacabok (now that it’s out) and it’s quite good. Between Tinariwen, Etran Finatawa, and Tartit, I think I prefer Etran Finatawa. But they’re all so good. I like to play them along with Mamar Kassey (of Niger) on my radio show.
Thanks always for the info at Benn Loxo.
Pamela