African Guitar Summit is a group of nine Canadian musicians, all of African origin, who perform traditional songs from their native countries.
8-556: The African Guitar Summit was organized in Toronto as part of a performance project for CBC Radio's On Stage program. Musicians were, from Guinea, guitarist Alpha Yaya Diallo and on balafon Naby Camara. From Ghana, guitarist Pa Joe, singer Theo Yaw Boakye, and drummer Kofi Ackah took part. Additional musicians were Adam Solomon from Kenya, Mighty Popo from Burundi/Rwanda, and from Madagascar guitarist and harmony singer Donné Robert and Madagascar Slim . The producer of African Guitar Summit
16-809: The Juno Award for World Music Album of the Year . The group performed an arrangement of Mwembo at the Juno Awards Gala in Winnipeg, April 2, 2005 and, in the same year, at the Live 8 concert in Barrie, near Toronto. Their second album, African Guitar Summit II was released in 2006 and nominated as World Music Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2007 . In 2016 and 2017, under the management of
24-635: The "Best World Music Album" category, a second in 2002 for The Journey and shared a third in 2004 for the African Guitar Summit compilation. He released Djama in 2005. He won the Best World Artist-Solo at the inaugural Canadian Folk Music Awards in 2006. He plays with Ghanaian guitarist Pa Joe Diallo, Adam Solomo and Mighty Popo in African Guitar Summit . In addition to the guitar, he also plays
32-580: The Herschel Freeman Agency, the group toured the US. Alpha Yaya Diallo Alpha Yaya Diallo is a Guinean-born Canadian guitarist, singer and songwriter. He incorporates Guinea's rich musical tradition into his original compositions. Diallo has won two Juno Awards , shared a third, and was nominated another three times. Diallo was born in Conakry , the capital of Guinea. When he
40-544: The mid-1980s, where he worked particularly with the Fatala group, which played traditional Guinean music and was associated with Peter Gabriel 's music label. After extensive touring, Diallo settled down in Vancouver, British Columbia , Canada, in 1991. In 1993, he released his solo first album, Nene , which was nominated for a Juno Award, as was his 1996 album Futur . He won his first Juno, for The Message in 1999 in
48-610: The time every family had a member who was being trained in music." He started playing percussion in school, but taught himself to play the guitar at an early age (either "probably six or seven" or 12, according to his inconsistent recollections). At the University of Conakry , he became the bandleader of the Sons of Rais and toured extensively with them throughout West Africa . After graduation, he performed with Love Systems, Kaloum Star and Sorsornet Rhythm. Diallo moved to Europe in
56-551: Was Todd Fraracci. The nine musicians rehearsed and arranged for three days, sharing stories and experiences. On the fourth day the group debuted in a concert at CBC's Glenn Gould Studio. The following three days were spent in CBC Studio 211 recording their self-titled CD. Everything was recorded live off the floor, in one or two takes. African Guitar Summit was released on CBC Records in November 2004, and went on to win
64-542: Was young, he followed his father, a doctor who was in demand all around the country; this exposed him to a wide variety of cultural experiences, both from the different ethnic groups within Guinea itself and from neighbouring countries. When Guinea gained its independence from France in 1958, its Marxist first president, Ahmed Sékou Touré , launched a cultural program aimed at the rediscovery and support of "Guinea's music, arts, dance and languages." Diallo recalled that, "At
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