Elisa Diedhiou is one of the few women to play ekonting, and the first to pursue a living as a professional ekonting player. Here she performs the song “Aniil Umbaam Ejonjon" in Cap Skirring, Senegal. 'Ears of the People' is available February 3, 2023, on CD and digital. Pre-order/stream: Smithsonian Folkways: https://folkways.si.edu/ears-of-the-people/ekonting-songs-from-senegal-and-the-gambia Bandcamp: https://smithsonianfolkways.bandcamp.com/album/ears-of-the-people-ekonting-songs-from-senegal-and-the-gambia All other platforms: https://orcd.co/earsofthepeople 'Ears of the People' is a collection of sublime contemporary recordings of the ekonting, a three-stringed gourd lute played by Jola people in Gambia and the Casamance region of Senegal. The nine tradition-bearers featured on the album share stories of love, heartache, conflict, spirituality, and all that is unique and beautiful in Jola culture over the rolling lilt of the instrument. An important forebear of the American banjo, the ekonting drives lively dancing and brings these stories to life. These songs, rarely heard outside Senegambia, are a living tapestry of the Jola people and a unique interweaving of human voices and stringed instruments. Smithsonian Folkways: https://folkways.si.edu Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/smithsonianfolkwaysrecordings Twitter: https://twitter.com/Folkways Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smithsonianfolkways Support our work! Become a Friend of Folkways: https://folkways.si.edu/friends-of-folkways The content and comments posted here are subject to the Smithsonian Institution copyright and privacy policy (www.si.edu/copyright). Smithsonian reserves the right in its sole discretion to remove any content at any time.
Video Duration:
3 min 2 sec
YouTube Keywords:
music folk "Woody Guthrie" "Pete Seeger" Smithsonian Folkways old-time non-profit
