Diali Cissokho & Kaira Ba play the Blue Ridge Music Center

Combining passionate originality and fierce authenticity, Diali Cissokho & Kaira Ba take West African dance music into new territory—the North Carolina Piedmont. That’s where Cissokho, a griot born to a family of professional musicians in Senegal, now makes his home. The repertoire is pure Manding, the centuries-old musical culture of Cissokho’s ancestors. It’s reformulated with modernizing impulses in a band format: agile basslines interweave with the melodic twins of kora and electric guitar, undergirded by an explosive rhythm section of djembe and trapset drums. Kora master Cissokho is also the group’s vocal frontman.

Mason Via is a talented young musician, singer, and songwriter out of Danbury, North Carolina. He caught the music bug early from his father, well-known bluegrass musician David Via, and began playing acoustic guitar at 12 years old. His recently released debut, Up, Up, Up, showcases his blend of Appalachian string instrumentation and world percussion. Via’s lyrics are considered by many to be the driving force behind his band’s music. Mason Via and his band play a wide variety of roots influenced music that has been described as soulful acoustic, R&B (rhythm and bluegrass), and funky folk.

Tickets are $10. Visit blueridgemusiccenter.org or call (866) 308-2773, ext. 245.

Since 2013, the Foundation has funded the concert programming at the Blue Ridge Music Center in keeping with the nonprofit’s mission to ensure cultural and historical preservation, along with natural resource protection, educational outreach, and visitor enjoyment now and for future generations. Learn more