Spotlight: Ablaye Cissoko & Cyrille Brotto

One could almost say that Ablaye Cissoko and Cyrille Brotto were drawn together thanks to Brotto’s wife, who is a long-time fan of Cissoko. Learning that the renowned Senegalese singer and kora master was in Toulouse, Brotto decided to surprise his wife by organising a concert for Cissoko in his hometown of Figeac, in the heart of the French Occitanie region. From their first encounter, when Brotto, one of the finest French diatonic accordion players, picked up his instruments, an immediate rapport was established and a lasting friendship ensued.

“I didn’t know at the time that Cyrille played the squeezebox,” Cissoko tells me. “It just so happened that I always had the desire to play with an accordionist. Our meeting was a gift. I see the instrument like a spirit, like a bird that stretches out his wings to fly; its melodic power intrigues me.” Of the 21-stringed West African kora, Brotto says, softly, “[it] is definitely mysterious for me. The sound is absolutely captivating and magical.” 

Ablaye Cissoko, an adept of international encounters and known for his fruitful artistic collaborations (with Canada-based Constantinople Ensemble and German trumpeter Volker Goetze, to name but two), immediately recognised the potential of what could be a new musical adventure with Brotto. “I am open and attentive to music and other musicians from all over the world,” says Cissoko. “That is where I find stability and inspiration for my own music. My duo project with Cyrille embodies two histories, two cultures, two horizons and two landscapes. While playing I visualise Cyrille in his mountains and me with my large Mande family on the Atlantic coast of Saint-Louis in Senegal. It soothes me.”

The griot and the folk musician started meeting regularly in a studio they rented in Toulouse, each bringing his own tradition and themes with them. The duo worked to concoct a refined collection with the intention of pursuing their partnership for a live show. They very quickly recorded their first album, Instant, featuring songs and instrumentals, mainly waltzes. “The waltz is my culture,” explains Brotto. “I come from the traditional dance music scene and it is what I strive to transmit.” It seems the two men work together with serenity and deep understanding. “We try to be in communion with all the elements which surround us while we are playing,” says Cissoko thoughtfully, as he speaks about some of the album’s tracks. “In the opening track, ‘Troisième Z’, I am thinking of a child who has never known his mother. He will search for her all his life, even if she is no longer living.” Cissoko recounts that his own mother died when he was two and it has always been painful for him. On ‘Deme Deme’, Cissoko’s voice is fraught with emotion. “I am saddened to observe the destruction of my country’s economy and see so many youngsters wanting to leave at all costs to find work.”

“Both the kora and accordion somehow carry a living tradition,” Cissoko says. “They awaken all our senses and allow us to see humanity differently.”   

Read the review of Ablaye Cissoko & Cyrille Brotto's Instant 

This interview originally appeared in the October 2022 issue of Songlines. Never miss an issue – subscribe today