Versatile Koite Upstages Sangare’s African Jam

Oumou Sangare is one of the great divas of African music. An impressively dramatic performer, she is a rare female griot in a cultural expression historically dominated by males.

On Friday at the Conga Room, it was her sheer presence that made the greatest impact. Tall and regal, dressed in colorful Malian garb, she was command central for her group of musicians and singer-dancers. And there were moments, when she was singing her declamatory numbers, with the singers interacting in call and response fashion, in which she was irresistibly compelling.

But for those unfamiliar with the language of Sangare’s songs--essentially most of the capacity crowd--the repetitious qualities of both melody and rhythm soon began to undercut her effectiveness, completely losing the rich, complex storytelling qualities of her words. The later portions of her set, in fact, were highlighted primarily by the stirring playing of her musicians and, especially, by the remarkably ecstatic dancing of her two backup singers.

Sangare’s task was made more difficult by the extraordinary opening set performance of singer-guitarist Habib Koite. Every bit as charismatic as Sangare, he was also far more versatile, singing and playing a collection of material filled with appealing melodies and catchy shifts of rhythm. Interestingly, in his case, the unfamiliarity of the language was no problem, largely because his communicative manner--kneeling down at the stage edge to interact with the crowd, dancing in unison with his musicians, alternating sweet-toned vocals with virtuosic guitar playing--made such a clear, nonverbal connection with his listeners.

Both Sangare and Koite concentrated on material from new albums--”Ko Sira” and “Ma Ya” respectively. Koite’s songs, more epigrammatic than Sangare’s in their messages, dealt with love, life and social concerns. But the most significant message he had to offer was his own visibility as an emerging world music superstar.