WILL CALHOUN MALI PROJECT / SATURDAY, MAY 16 / Cape May Convention Hall / 1:30-2:45 PM
The Story
Will Calhoun, the Bronx-born Grammy-winning drummer from the iconic rock band Living Colour, has amassed an impressive list of jazz credits, including collaborations with such legends as McCoy Tyner, Pharoah Sanders, Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter, and Buster Williams. Over the past 15 years, Calhoun has been living part-time in Mali, where he recorded drums on Oumou Sangaré’s 2009 recording Seya and subsequently toured in her band. This connection led to him eventually meeting and studying with many master musicians in Mali, including members of The Hunters, a unique tribe in the north of Mali that rarely interacts with musicians outside the community. Calhoun and The Hunters have now joined forces in the Mali Project, which will be making its Exit Zero Jazz Festival debut. Featuring keyboardist Cheick-Tidiane Seck, who has toured with Fela Kuti and Youssou N’Dour, the Mali Project includes a crew of West African musicians on djembe, balafon, kora and ngoni along with Americans David Gilmore on guitar and Matt Garrison on electric bass.
The Sound
Ancestral 6/8 rhythms of Mother Africa blend with slamming rock-funk backbeats and strains of jazz improvisation with Malian vocals by Kandia Kouyaté to create this stirring cross-cultural gumbo. Audiences will be mesmerized by the soothing kora-tinged number “Oumoja” and the deep-grooving, trance-inducing “Mayo,” which bears the hypnotic bass line from John Coltrane’s “A Love Supreme” as part of its rhythmic underpinnings. With his captivating Mali Project, Calhoun has come up with an inventive new slant on world music.
Where & When: Cape May Convention Hall, Saturday, May 16
Will Calhoun is a Bronx Born, two-time Grammy winner from the iconic genre bending Rock band LIVING COLOUR; who has been inducted into National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington D.C. Will graduated from the Berklee College of Music, where he received his bachelor's degree in Recording and Engineering; and was the recipient of the prestigious Buddy Rich Jazz Masters Award for outstanding performance by a drummer.
He’s produced / toured with Harry Belafonte, Pharoah Sanders, Wayne Shorter, McCoy Tyner, Ron Carter, Buster Williams, Public Enemy, Lauryn Hill, Yassin Bey (aka Mos Def) Herb Alpert, Mic Jagger, Oumou Sangare and many others.
Will has four Grammy nominated Jazz recordings:
“Will Calhoun Quintet - Live at the Blue Note”, featuring Bobby Watson. (Half Note Records)
“Native Lands”, featuring Pharaoh Sanders, Buster Williams, Wallace Roney, Stanley Jordan, and more. (Half Note records)
"Life in This World", featuring Ron Carter and Donald Harrison. (Motema Records)
“Celebrating Elvin Jones”, featuring Christian McBride, Keyon Harrold, Jan Hammer and more. (Motema Records)
Over the past fifteen years, Will has been traveling and living part-time in Mali. He recorded drums on Oumou Sangare’s SAYE recording and toured in her fantastic band. This opened the door to Will meeting, recording, and studying with many masterful musicians in Mali.
Will Calhoun was finally invited to meet and play with THE HUNTERS, a very special tribe in the north that doesn’t play or record with outside musicians. The recording, produced by Malian master musician Checik T’diane Seck, features special guests Oumou Sangare, Madou Diabate, Vieux Farka Touré, THE HUNTERS, members of Salif Kieta’s band, Tacamba singers from the North, the late great “MANGALA”, and more. The entire recording took place at MOFOU Studios, Salif Kieta’s studio complex.
His touring band will be directed by Cheick T’diane Seck and will feature a mix of masterful Malian and Senegalese musicians.