Griot 3000

Keepers of wisdom, customs, culture and history, the griot are heirs to a two-thousand-year-old oral tradition.

Paying homage to this essential figure in West African communities and inspired by Don Cherry’s legendary album Organic Music Society (1972), Griot 3000 reaffirms the African heritage of jazz through a dialogue between legacy and innovation.

Led by Brazilian spoken word artist Rodrigo Brandão, this collective brings together six non-jazz improvising musicians in an unprecedented line-up: Senegalese Dudù Kouate (percussion), Portuguese Luís Vicente (trumpet) and Carla Santana (electronics), and Brazilian Thiago Costa (guitar). The collective is completed by Braima Galissá, a master of the kora and the Mandinga culture of Guinea-Bissau.

Production: unha.pt/ Co-production: Centro Cultural de Belém, Jazz ao Centro, gnration/ Braima Galissá (kora), Carla Santana (electronics), Dudù Kouate (percussions), Luís Vicente (trumpet), Rodrigo Brandão (voice), Thiago Costa (guitar)