Festival Artists & Guests

DIENEBA SECK started out as an actress, but the beauty and purity of her voice inevitably led to her career as a singer. Her 1991 solo hit "Kankeletigui" became an anthem during the transition to democracy in Mali and gave her the sobriquet "the preacher."



Dieneba Seck was born in Bamako, but her family's roots are in Kita, a town famous for its music. She was a shy young girl, and at an early age found that acting gave her the opportunity to confront her timidity by joining the artistic and cultural groups of her district. Contrary to the experience of many Malian artists, she was positively encouraged by her parents, who doubtless sensed a hidden talent. Very quickly Dieneba revealed herself to be an excellent comedienne, and in 1984 she brought home the trophy for best soloist and took part in the bi-annual artistic and cultural show of her district. Such was her success that she dropped her studies in favor of an artistic career. In 1986 she met Sekou Kouyate, one of her admirers, and he immediately took her on as a vocalist for his band. The combination of his hard work and her beautifully pure voice helped them make their mark on the Malian music scene.


Kouyate's group went from strength to strength and were soon recorded for Malian television, then in its infancy. Their hit song that flooded the airwaves was "N'Kadignon Ye." The jubilation was short-lived for Dieneba, however, as the success of the record required her to leave her family and country to move to France for bandleader and lead vocalist Sekou. Far from being discouraged, however, she used this as an opportunity to rediscover her first love, theatre. She also continued to rehearse with the Bamako District Orchestra and, together with Ana
 Hather, a member of the U.S. Peace Corps, participated in the
 production of an album to raise awareness about the hazards of 
dysentery and associated illnesses.


Dieneba's first solo recording was made in 1991 in Ivory Coast with the patronage of a man named Abdoulaye Traore. For a first effort this truly was a masterpiece. "Kankeletigui" would become like a hymn: the soundtrack to the transition to democracy in Mali. For a whole year Dieneba was the untouchable queen of Malian song. Her second album, Kounkanko Kononni, was released in 1996 and its sales exceeded all expectations. The following year a French-based Malian magazine invited her to France once again, where she met producer Ibrahima Sylla. He quickly signed her up for his latest project, Les Grobinees, alongside Sona Tata and Hadja Maningbe.


Dieneba has 
continued to unabashedly develop every nuance and subtlety in her 
musical compositions. She signed a deal with Syllart Productions and released the album Djourou in July 1999. For the past four years Dieneba has been composing an opus of 12 new 
songs entitled Tigne ("The Truth"), arranged by her old mentor Sekou Kouyate and produced by Cameroonian guitarist Yves Ndjock.


After a successful 14-year career, Dieneba comments feely on social and political problems of Malian society.


—Courtesy of Calabash Music

SEKOU KOUYATE is a world-reknowned griot singer, instrumentalist, and storyteller. He quickly rose to fame in Mali’s music scene, working alongside Salif Keita as a member of the country’s prominent “Rail Band.” He ultimately went solo, creating his own band of five members, one of whom was his future wife, Dieneba Seck. Their two major hits, “Diagneba” and “Koulikoro,” catapulted them into the international music scene, and Sekou now works and lives between Paris and Mali. He arranged Dieneba’s album “Djourou” in 2000 and the two of them have recorded a duet: "Sekou ni Dieneba" ("Sekou and Dieneba").

FULANO CUBANO is a group of multi-ethnic performers who have collectively been performing Afro-Cuban music, song and dance for well over 35 years. Specializing in Orisha praise songs, rumba, and comparsa, they have collaborated with fellow masters in the field such as Los Afortunados, Puntilla Rios, Obini Ashé, and Oyu-Oro to teach workshops and classes around the country. Only within the last 30 years have women broken from tradition to study and play the batá drums, and the women in Fulano Cubano are among the first in the United States to do so. As an integrated group of men and women performing batá together, Fulano Cubano has become a bold symbol of resistance to conventional gender norms in the field of Afro-Cuban music, and seeks to offer forth this rich and vibrant musical expression to the greater community. 

SOLO SANA is an accomplished traditional dancer from Burkina Faso, West Africa.  A principal member for one of the premiere companies of Mali, Troupe District du Bamako, he has proven himself as a leader among the troupe’s artists.   Solo’s presence at local ceremonies and festivals is in high demand, and he performs with renowned griots and musicians as well as with internationally known artists such as Djeneba Seck and Abdoulaye Diabate.  With an extensive knowledge of traditional dances of the Mande culture, he is a highly sought after instructor for students from France, Italy, US, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Morocco, and other countries of Africa. Most notably, Solo has instructed internationally-acclaimed dancers from the United States, including university instructors and Broadway performers.   He is currently based in the U.S., where he is performing, teaching workshops, and leading school residencies across Vermont for Jeh Kulu Dance and Drum Theater.

SEYDOU COULIBALY is one of Mali’s leading dancers, teachers, and choreographers.  He was named Mali’s #1 dancer in the final Biennale arts competition before the coup d’état in 1990. He then founded and was artistic director of Mali’s nationally respected and award-winning Troupe Komée Josée, which toured throughout Mali.  Seydou now also works extensively in the US, where he teaches Mande dance, music and culture at Wheaton College, Brown University, and at his long-running class at the Dance Complex in Cambridge, MA.   Seydou also runs Yeredon, a cross-cultural school in Bamako, which aims to bring a greater knowledge of Malian culture to foreigners while preserving the work of Mali’s most talented artists.  His film credits include Steven Spielberg's “Amistad”, “Mali Djembekan”, “Street Party in Lafiabougou”, and numerous educational films on Malian music, dance and culture. Seydou’s djun-djun playing can be heard on Mohamed Kalifa Kamara’s Africa Kanben.  www.yeredonmali.org

MOUSSA TRAORE was born and raised in Mali and has been playing the djembe for the past thirty years. In 1984 he was deemed a "master" by his teacher, Sega Cissé, and is considered to be one of the top djembe players in Mali. Moussa has achieved great recognition throughout Mali as an accomplished musician in traditional ceremonies as well as the Malian pop scene. Since moving to the U.S. Moussa has continued to distinguish himself as a highly respected teacher and performer: he has given drum workshops in cities throughout the country and now teaches classes, leads drum ensembles for West African dance classes and performs with other Malian artists. 

LORENZO "DEVIOUS" CHAPMAN is a professional dancer from Pacoima, San Fernando Valley, California. Devious overcame many of the obstacles he faced living in a community riddled with gangs, drugs, and poverty through dance as a method of spreading positivity and inspiring others in his community to strive for better. As recent high school graduates, Devious and his peers organized themselves as The GR818ERS, a group of men and women who find a safe haven in Hip Hop and who host monthly community events, coordinate youth programs, and work with community partners to serve underprivileged youth and families. Devious has traveled North America and Africa spreading The GR818ERS' message, working with international nonprofit Invisible Children, competing at prestigious Hip Hop dance events, and teaching aspiring dancers. Through his work in Uganda and the Congo, Devious began to see how the circumstances in East Africa in many ways reflected life on the streets back at home in the U.S.

PIERRE "PIERRE BOOGIE" ARREOLA is a senior Sociology concentrator at Brown University from Pacoima, located in the San Fernando Valley, California. Through his nonprofit organization, Hip Hop 4, and partner crews, he is currently working to improve conditions in underserved communities by utilizing Hip Hop as a platform for social development. Pierre is an aspiring dancer and artist, spending most of his time outside of the classroom teaching underprivileged youth about Hip Hop culture. Pierre currently works with legislators, educators, and community organizers to devise innovative solutions to social problems by engaging communities with Hip Hop.

BILL FERRI's innovative application of flamenco guitar technique to the four-string bass is quickly gaining him recognition throughout the region as one of the area's most creative and talented musicians. He began his formal training in jazz and classical music at the age of 14 under the guidance of Jesse Bastos, bass player for the renowned Johnny A., and later with Dr. Steven Lajoie, who heads the Jazz Department at Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI), and has been collaborating with New Works/World Traditions at Brown since 2004.  Bill continues to perform in a range of projects while teaching bass and piano and completing his degree in Jazz Composition. Photo credit to Jenny Jope.

MATTHEW ROLANDO GARZA is an educator and performance artist who has worked with youth in historical inquiry, visual arts, music and songwriting, dance and movement, social media, technology, writing, and film production in the U.S., West Africa, & Asia. A recipient of The Woodrow Wilson-Rockefeller Brothers Fund Fellowship for Aspiring Teachers of Color, M. Garza holds a B.A. in Education History from Brown where he was a member of New Works/World Traditions Dance Company and was inducted as a Watson Associate at the Watson Institute for International Studies for his artistic and academic work with youth and artists in Bamako, Mali. Recently selected as a member of the PBS affiliated Art21 Educator’s Professional Development Initiative, M. Garza teaches Visual Arts & Technology at a special education school in Manhattan and is currently finishing a dual MA in Educational Theatre & Social Studies at NYU Steinhardt.

NEW WORKS / WORLD TRADITIONS is an international performance troupe committed to utilizing the power of performance to educate, deliberate and inspire social engagement. Through research and cross-cultural exchange, New Works develops provocative theatrical experiences that address important political, public health and social landscapes. These new theatrical works exist at the intersection of science, art, and social activism. New Works actively tours through out the USA and West Africa to engage with communities in humanitarian projects devoted to cultural preservation, malaria prevention, environmental causes and educational advancement. Comprised of Brown University faculty, alumni, current students, and professional Malian and American artist-activists, New Works has developed over 35 new works for the concert stage, in the schools, and for film. www.brown.edu/Departments/Theatre_Speech_Dance/about/newworks.html

MICHELLE BACH-COULIBALY is the Senior Lecturer in the Department of Theater Arts and Performance Studies at Brown University and director of the Yeredon Center for Cultural Preservation and Social Engagement in Mali, West Africa. At the Yeredon Center students, scholars, medical practitioners, and artist-activists collaborate on service learning projects for radio, television, musical and concert stage productions, festival performances, and film that address relevant social issues and injustices. Michelle is the artistic director of New Works / World Traditions at Brown, with whom she has choreographed over 35 original works that fuse research, image, and high energy performances.

THEMBA MKHATSHWA is a graduate of Berklee College of Music where he majored in Professional Music. A percussionist born in Baltimore, Maryland, Themba has had the opportunity to perform internationally in places such as Greece, Guinea, Senegal, Gambia, the Ivory Coast, Malaysia, the Caribbean, and South Africa. Themba has also had the opportunity to perform on the TV show Dr. OZ, tour with the Donald Harrison Quintet, and study under Ralph Peterson, Mamady Keita, Moussa Traore, Menes Yahudah and Terri Lynn Carrington.

KOFI ATSIMEVU hails from Richmond, California, and is a scholarship recipient at the Berklee College of Music. Through the many ups and downs that life has brought, Kofi has found a true love for the art of drumming, and is expanding his medium of self-expression through studying drum techniques from a variety of cultures.

MUNIR RICHARD has been around music his entire life. Born in Baltimore, MD, raised in Atlanta, GA, Munir began playing djembe and other musical instruments at the age of two. Through much hard work developing his talents, he now attends Berklee College of Music. Munir is a great spirit who strives hard to spread his love for life through his music every day.

Bass guitarist ANDREA CHITOURAS began playing with Nigerian musicians in San Francisco and performed with Nigerian master percussionist Babatunde Olantunji who was the person most responsible for her getting her start playing bass in public. Her first appearance was at SOB’s (Sounds of Brazil) in New York City in 1998. Over the past 15 years, she has honed her skills by playing at clubs with a variety of musicians in Bamako, Mali, and with her guitarist brother, Chris Chitouras. In 2012, Andrea performed with Khaira Arby at the Festival in the Desert/Essakane held in Timbuktu and at the Festival on the Niger River in Segou, Mali, just weeks before the coup d’etat changed history.  She has played with talent such as Toumani Diabate, Basekou Kouyate and Ami Sacko, Zani Diabate, Oumou Sangaré, Lobi Traore, Mangala, Afel Boucoum (all from Mali). Andrea has also toured with the band Inyombya (Rwanda), and performed with Cheick Lo (Senegal), Euphuro (Mozambique,) Victor Deme (Burkina Faso), and Ba Cissoko (Guinea).





REBECCA LEUCHAK is an art historian, dancer, and singer who has taught World Arts and administered international education programs at Roger Williams University for over a decade. Art and activism are her research foci. She is particularly interested in understanding the place of the visual arts in the revolutions in the Arab world. Her interviews with artists in Cairo and Alexandria during the summer of 2012 and her study of the political role of arts production and institutions as the Arab uprisings have unfolded will be presented in a workshop on Sunday from 1:15-2:45 p.m.







GRISSELLE ESCOTTO was born and raised in New York City and has been dancing as long as she has been walking. She began her formal training at 5 years old and later joined the Batoto Yetu Dance Company. On a whim, she took a family friend's Afro-Cuban dance class and instantly fell in love with the movement; she has been training with Danis "La Mora" Perez ever since. Dance was an integral part of Grisselle's undergraduate experience at Brown University where she choreographed and danced for several theatrical productions, MEZCLA, and New Works/World Traditions. Grisselle served as dance director of MEZCLA for two years and as President for one, and received a Weston Award for her work in New Works. She served as a teaching assistant for the Mande Dance class for two years and traveled with New Works to Mali. Currently, Grisselle lives in New York City where she continues to train at Alvin Ailey and Broadway Dance Center.