In 1988, Sterns released their first compilation to showcase some of the great national and regional bands of Mali. Taking a lead from the orchestras of Guinea and active in the late 1960s through the 1970s, these were the bands that bred musicians of such calibre as singers Salif Keïta and Mory Kanté, guitarist Djelimady Tounkara, or composer, arranger and flautist, Boncana Maïga.
As Africa struggled towards independence, governments of all nationalities and organisations of all hues seemed prepared to directly invest in the arts on a global level, and these recordings were originally made under a partnership between the German label Bärenreiter-Musicaphon and Mali's own Ministry Of Information. An unlikely coupling today, but perhaps not so much then.
Since independence in 1960, Mali had organised a series of bi-annual cultural festivals. During these the various regions competed in dance, theatre, ballet and music. The 1970 music winner was the Orchestre Regional de Segou, and along with the fellow competing orchestras of Keyes, Sikasso and Mopti, plus the Rail Band and National “A” Band included to represent Mali as a whole, Bärenreiter recorded them after the 1970 festival for a series of albums that, though now long out of print, are still valued today.
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the release of the Sterns vinyl LP compilation, we are proud to make available for the first time digitally, the album 'Mali Music' as originally released. All transfers are direct from the restored magnetic tape as originally supplied to Sterns by Bärenreiter-Musicaphon.
“An explosion of joy amidst an abundance of harvests and, above all, of milk fresh from well-fed cows.” (from the original liner notes to the track “Rècital” by Orchestre Regional De Mopti)
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