It’s hard to imagine a more enticing location for a festival than Timbuktu. Since 2001, the Festival au Désert has been held in or near that fabled city. It's attracted great musicians of various genres, from Tinariwen and Bassekou Kouyate to Robert Plant and Bono.
This year the festival had to be postponed because of the conflict in Mali. But despite the upheaval, the festival still managed to put together a compilation album, Live from Festival au Désert. It comes out April 16, 2013, and CBC Music is streaming it in advance of the release. Just click play.
PLAYListen to Live from Festival au Désert
Track Listing
The album: Live performances from the likes of Canada’s Kiran Ahluwalia backed by desert blues icons Tinariwen, guitarist Habib Koite, ngoni genius Bassekou Kouyate, Malian singer Khaira Arby and many other Malian musicians you may not know. Click here for full track listing.
The recognition: Freemuse, an organization supporting freedom of musical expression, gave its 2013 award to the Festival au Désert.
“In spite of extreme Islamists’ attempts to silence all music in Mali, the Festival defends freedom of musical expression and struggles to continue keeping music alive in the region,” said Marie Korpe, executive director of Freemuse, in a public statement.
The festival’s future: The hope is that the festival will take place in the fall (after the rainy season). There are also plans for a Festival-in-Exile international, with concerts in Scandinavia, North America, the Middle East, South Africa and Morocco.
Related:
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From Peter Tosh to Thomas Mapfumo: when songs are political acts