CD Review: Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita - Clychau Dibon

Catrin Finch (harp); Seckou Keita (kora).
(Review by Lance)

A Welsh harpist and a West African kora player may seem an unlikely combination to appear on a jazz blog but, as readers know, we sometimes stray from the parameters of the mainstream if the the journey is worthwhile. Well I may not journey to Mali or even Wales to hear this but it's certainly well worth a trip to the CD player or even to Kendal Brewery Arts Centre on November 13 which is the penultimate date on their forthcoming tour.

In truth there are much of the qualities associated with jazz on this CD. Improvisatory passages and an affinity between the players that sometimes has them playing together almost as one as well as complementing lines that enhance the other's statements.

At times it could almost be a Bach fugue or even a piece of Flamenco. There's also moments with a tender, pastoral feel to it - the Southern Sahara meets the Wye Valley.

For the uninitiated, the kora is a 21 string bridge harp with a cowskin resonator that can be plucked or bowed. In appearance it looks like a banjo with a lute base designed by an alien from one of the lesser planets.

However, the sounds produced by Keita are quite beautiful and most unbanjo - or even lute-like. In effect this is almost like a double tracked harp recording and I can't always tell who is playing what! It doesn't matter, both Finch and Keita are grandmasters of their chosen instrument and the end result is quite charming.

The CD Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita - Clychau Dibon is available circa October 13 from MWLDAN.

Lance.