First new artist release through Chrysalis Global, an imprint of Chrysalis Records Produced by an A-list team: Dudu Sarr, Lucy Durán + Pape Armand Boye
“Three outstanding Malian and Guinean griots…. Co-produced by Dudu Sarr, Lucy Durán and Pape Armand Boye, and recorded in a single session in Dakar, guitarists Gaoussou Kouyaté and Kerfala Diabaté are brilliantly underpinned by the subtle rhythmic patterns of Lassana Diabaté’s balafon. 5-stars.” —Songlines
“It is a rare dialogue between balafon and guitar by hereditary West African jali musicians.” —World Music Central
“Ground-breaking griot album Guitari Baro.” —Music In Africa
“Guitari Baro: A Transcendent Dialogue of West African Strings and Rhythm.” —Jazz Chill
“The trio’s name translates as “Guitar Conversations”, a title that reflects both the griot role as cultural storytellers and the cross-continental dialogue at the heart of their playing." —Rhythm Passport
In November 2024 in the Dakar neighbourhood of Mamelles, three Mande griot musicians met and shook hands for the first time: master balafonist Lassana Diabaté and guitarists, Gaoussou Kouyaté and Kerfala Diabaté. This handshake led to new friendships, new recordings at Dakar’s LaBoutique Studio, a new album and an international record contract with a frontline independent record label. As with all master musicians, Guitari Baro’s timing was perfect.
Their musical project, also named Guitari Baro is Mande for “Guitar Conversations” and is the first artist release from the newly formed imprint from Chrysalis Records, Chrysalis Global. An A-List production team includes Dudu Sarr, Director of Dakar Music Expo and agent of 17 years for Senegalese superstar, Youssou N’Dour and internationally acclaimed record producer, Lucy Durán. As the producer of three Grammy-nominated albums and 26 albums by Malian artists including Toumani Diabaté, Bassekou Kouyaté, Kassemady Diabaté and Trio Da Kali, Lucy Durán was the perfect lead producer for the project.
Guitari Baro’s meeting led to powerful studio sessions under the guidance and co-production of La Boutique studio owner and internationally acclaimed musician, Pape Armand Boye. During the recording process, it became clear that Lassana Diabaté, Gaoussou Kouyaté and Kerfala Diabaté were creating inspiring traditional and breathtaking new music. And thus, the Mande trio, Guitari Baro was formed. As record producer Lucy Durán describes,
“The combination of the guitar strings – plucked in dazzling and lyrical runs, damped, strummed and unexpected harmonies,—with the complex interlocking and flowery melodic lines on the rosewood keys of the balafon, is hypnotic and entrancing. Guitari Baro is definitely one of the most exciting and innovative projects I’ve ever worked on, they have managed to open up breathtaking musical territories of old and new, local and beyond. This is a true conversation between three Mande musicians who are genius performers and composers in their own right.”
The West African balafon holds a special place in traditional music from West Africa and is the musical centrepiece for GUITARI BARO. Over 1,000 years old, the balafon dates back to the founding of the Malian empire in 1235, and was the instrument of choice that accompanied the great Emperor Sunjata Keita wherever he went. The balafon is performed by master balafonist, Lassana Diabaté, who is compared to JS Bach by the lead violinist of Kronos Quartet, David Harrington. “Kolonkan”, composed by Lassana Diabaté honours the tradition of the balafon and takes its name after Emperor Sunjata Keita’s sister Kolonkan, who came from the Segou region in central Mali. “Kolonkan” evokes the lyrical and bluesy sound of Segou music, with its damped strings and 5-note pentatonic scales.
“Lamban Blues” is inspired by a traditional Mande balafon piece, dating several hundred years ago. It was originally performed on the balafon, as an accompaniment to a flamboyant, rocking dance and on this arrangement, guitarists Gaoussou Kouyaté and Kerfala Diabaté bring new textures and sounds to the bouncing riff on the balafon. With jazzy riffs, walking bass and a slight Latin tinge,“Sobrasito” is a dazzling and unpredictable new composition from guitarist Gaoussou Kouyate. It translates as “Little Sobra” and is dedicated to Gaoussou’s father’s home village, Sobra, in the mountains west of Bamako, the capital of Mali.
“Hommage A La Rumba Congolaise” is a celebration of the popular Congolese rumba dance music that spread across the African continent in the 1960s and 70s. It was spontaneously composed on the spot in the studio as the guitarists began playing a rumba riff, Lassana Diabaté then joined in on bass balafon, its large resonant keys bringing a mellow sonority to the perennial music.
“Sokona” is a deeply personal conversation on the album Guitari Baro. It was composed by guitarist Kerfala Diabaté as a poignant tribute to his late sister, and is the only track on the album featuring electric guitar. Named after a Malian village, “Bambougou” is an original take on the contemplative and bluesy music of Segou in central Mali and evokes the sounds of the small oblong lute, the ngoni. On “Bambougou”, Lucy Durán performs on the West African “karinyan”, a small, ribbed iron pipe which produces a high-pitched ringing sound and is primarily used in the Wassoulou music of West Africa, especially by female jeli (poet singers).
Guitari Baro’s musical conversations span the trio’s shared Guinean and Malian Mande griot musical heritage while also referencing jazz, Congolese rumba, Rock n Roll, Guinean dance bands, Cuban music, and their own pure imagination, in innovative and creative ways. Dudu Sarr was instrumental in bringing the Guitari Baro trio together and expresses his excitement for this mould-breaking Chrysalis Global first artist release project,
“Guitari Baro is a celebration of pan-African creativity — uniting Malian tradition with Guinean guitar mastery. It highlights the richness and diversity of West African music while showing Africa’s role as a driving force in global sounds. This collaboration blends heritage and innovation, proving that tradition and modernity can speak powerfully together.”
Chrysalis Global is an imprint focusing on international jazz and folk, with previous titles including the critically acclaimed reissues of Toumani Diabaté landmark albums 'New Ancient Strings' and 'Kaira'. Guitari Baro was released internationally on the 26th of September, 2025 through Chrysalis Global on digital, physical CD format and vinyl.
“Three outstanding Malian and Guinean griots…. Co-produced by Dudu Sarr, Lucy Durán and Pape Armand Boye, and recorded in a single session in Dakar, guitarists Gaoussou Kouyaté and Kerfala Diabaté are brilliantly underpinned by the subtle rhythmic patterns of Lassana Diabaté’s balafon. 5-stars.” —Songlines
“It is a rare dialogue between balafon and guitar by hereditary West African jali musicians.” —World Music Central
“Ground-breaking griot album Guitari Baro.” —Music In Africa
“Guitari Baro: A Transcendent Dialogue of West African Strings and Rhythm.” —Jazz Chill
“The trio’s name translates as “Guitar Conversations”, a title that reflects both the griot role as cultural storytellers and the cross-continental dialogue at the heart of their playing." —Rhythm Passport
In November 2024 in the Dakar neighbourhood of Mamelles, three Mande griot musicians met and shook hands for the first time: master balafonist Lassana Diabaté and guitarists, Gaoussou Kouyaté and Kerfala Diabaté. This handshake led to new friendships, new recordings at Dakar’s LaBoutique Studio, a new album and an international record contract with a frontline independent record label. As with all master musicians, Guitari Baro’s timing was perfect.
Their musical project, also named Guitari Baro is Mande for “Guitar Conversations” and is the first artist release from the newly formed imprint from Chrysalis Records, Chrysalis Global. An A-List production team includes Dudu Sarr, Director of Dakar Music Expo and agent of 17 years for Senegalese superstar, Youssou N’Dour and internationally acclaimed record producer, Lucy Durán. As the producer of three Grammy-nominated albums and 26 albums by Malian artists including Toumani Diabaté, Bassekou Kouyaté, Kassemady Diabaté and Trio Da Kali, Lucy Durán was the perfect lead producer for the project.
Guitari Baro’s meeting led to powerful studio sessions under the guidance and co-production of La Boutique studio owner and internationally acclaimed musician, Pape Armand Boye. During the recording process, it became clear that Lassana Diabaté, Gaoussou Kouyaté and Kerfala Diabaté were creating inspiring traditional and breathtaking new music. And thus, the Mande trio, Guitari Baro was formed. As record producer Lucy Durán describes,
“The combination of the guitar strings – plucked in dazzling and lyrical runs, damped, strummed and unexpected harmonies,—with the complex interlocking and flowery melodic lines on the rosewood keys of the balafon, is hypnotic and entrancing. Guitari Baro is definitely one of the most exciting and innovative projects I’ve ever worked on, they have managed to open up breathtaking musical territories of old and new, local and beyond. This is a true conversation between three Mande musicians who are genius performers and composers in their own right.”
The West African balafon holds a special place in traditional music from West Africa and is the musical centrepiece for GUITARI BARO. Over 1,000 years old, the balafon dates back to the founding of the Malian empire in 1235, and was the instrument of choice that accompanied the great Emperor Sunjata Keita wherever he went. The balafon is performed by master balafonist, Lassana Diabaté, who is compared to JS Bach by the lead violinist of Kronos Quartet, David Harrington. “Kolonkan”, composed by Lassana Diabaté honours the tradition of the balafon and takes its name after Emperor Sunjata Keita’s sister Kolonkan, who came from the Segou region in central Mali. “Kolonkan” evokes the lyrical and bluesy sound of Segou music, with its damped strings and 5-note pentatonic scales.
“Lamban Blues” is inspired by a traditional Mande balafon piece, dating several hundred years ago. It was originally performed on the balafon, as an accompaniment to a flamboyant, rocking dance and on this arrangement, guitarists Gaoussou Kouyaté and Kerfala Diabaté bring new textures and sounds to the bouncing riff on the balafon. With jazzy riffs, walking bass and a slight Latin tinge,“Sobrasito” is a dazzling and unpredictable new composition from guitarist Gaoussou Kouyate. It translates as “Little Sobra” and is dedicated to Gaoussou’s father’s home village, Sobra, in the mountains west of Bamako, the capital of Mali.
“Hommage A La Rumba Congolaise” is a celebration of the popular Congolese rumba dance music that spread across the African continent in the 1960s and 70s. It was spontaneously composed on the spot in the studio as the guitarists began playing a rumba riff, Lassana Diabaté then joined in on bass balafon, its large resonant keys bringing a mellow sonority to the perennial music.
“Sokona” is a deeply personal conversation on the album Guitari Baro. It was composed by guitarist Kerfala Diabaté as a poignant tribute to his late sister, and is the only track on the album featuring electric guitar. Named after a Malian village, “Bambougou” is an original take on the contemplative and bluesy music of Segou in central Mali and evokes the sounds of the small oblong lute, the ngoni. On “Bambougou”, Lucy Durán performs on the West African “karinyan”, a small, ribbed iron pipe which produces a high-pitched ringing sound and is primarily used in the Wassoulou music of West Africa, especially by female jeli (poet singers).
Guitari Baro’s musical conversations span the trio’s shared Guinean and Malian Mande griot musical heritage while also referencing jazz, Congolese rumba, Rock n Roll, Guinean dance bands, Cuban music, and their own pure imagination, in innovative and creative ways. Dudu Sarr was instrumental in bringing the Guitari Baro trio together and expresses his excitement for this mould-breaking Chrysalis Global first artist release project,
“Guitari Baro is a celebration of pan-African creativity — uniting Malian tradition with Guinean guitar mastery. It highlights the richness and diversity of West African music while showing Africa’s role as a driving force in global sounds. This collaboration blends heritage and innovation, proving that tradition and modernity can speak powerfully together.”
Chrysalis Global is an imprint focusing on international jazz and folk, with previous titles including the critically acclaimed reissues of Toumani Diabaté landmark albums 'New Ancient Strings' and 'Kaira'. Guitari Baro was released internationally on the 26th of September, 2025 through Chrysalis Global on digital, physical CD format and vinyl.
For more information contact Angie Lemon PR.
