Artwork: Tuareg Couple Dancing (Color Pencil)

In anticipation of an art exhibition, I wrote a short story about each painting, as if written by the person in the painting. These are all real people, and the stories are based on experience, observation, and representative/factual information typical of someone from that region/profession. Some of these paintings are still available, so if you are interested in purchasing one, please contact me.

My husband and I have been invited to perform at the American Ambassador’s residence, along with fellow Tamascheck tribal musicians. Such events give me the opportunity to dress in my flowing Indigo robes and adorn my hair with silver pieces handed down from my grandmother. Most of all, it’s a chance to dance to the slow, flowing, repetitive melodies that are so much a part of our nomadic Saharan heritage. When I close my eyes and focus intently on the music, I almost forget that we are over a thousand kilometers away from our homeland. It is rather fascinating to see Westerners join in on the dancing or even give some of our traditional percussive instruments a try. In this way, we can share our culture with others far beyond our isolated desert village. 

See more artworks on www.melissaenderle.com.

Tweet

Heroes of the Manuscripts

Back in January of 2013, I blogged about some terrible news I had read regarding Timbuktu. In that post, I wrote about how the Ahmed Baba center, location that housed hundreds of thousands of precious manuscripts (some dating over 800 years ago) had been burned by Islamic fundamentalists. At the time of that writing, it was hoped that at least some of the manuscripts had been saved, but their fate was unknown. This morning, I read with relief a great article entitled The Book Rustlers of Timbuktu. Largely through the proactive and often risky efforts of a librarian, nearly 90% of the over 400,000 documents were saved. Through land and boat, over the Sahara, thousands of small metal lockers - 2 or 3 at a time- containing the books eventually made their way down to the capital. Imagine carrying this out, initially right under the noses of the fundamentalists during afternoon siesta times, facing searches, using public transport including tiny dugout canoes, not having the financial resources, etc.

Amazingly, not one of the documents smuggled down was lost. Efforts are being made to repair the nearly 40% suffering from damage, as well as to digitize the works whose contents range from diaries to medical texts. Just as some successfully hid artwork from the Nazis, dedicated people in Timbuktu saved historical treasures from the wrath of destroyers. They are the heroes of the manuscripts.

one of Timbuktu's beautiful doors

Read about my boat trip up to Timbuktu via traditional pinasse.

Tweet

Music of Mali

Hunter  Harp Griot
Color Pencil by Melissa Enderle

Music is an integral part of the people. You'd be hard pressed to not find — music occurring somewhere in your surroundings - whether it be a drum, or simply a small radio. What I have noticed is that African music and dancing is not what it initially appears to be - it is not just random beats of a drum or movements. Rather, there are many complex rhythms occurring simultaneously. The dancer, who is trained and is knowledgeable of the many different dance movements, will pick up on a rhythm of the instrumentalists and begin the appropriate or fitting dance steps. The dancing requires precision, endurance, a sense of rhythm, and aerobic ability. Drums vary in size and shape. They are typically played in ensembles - many people playing at the same time. At the artisan market, I saw people smoothing the top of a skin (leather) for a drum head - with the bottom of a glass coke bottle! 

I will have to admit, though, that my favorite instrument is the kora. Historically the instrument played by the griots, the kora has 21 strings and is one of the most sophisticated instruments in sub-Saharan Africa. I is a cross between a lute and a harp, with the look more resembling the lute. The main part of the instrument is made of a gourd with leather stretched over the top. The player plucks the strings, with the instrument held upright. It's simply amazing to see how fast notes can be played by using one's thumbs! I do have a picture of a kora player on my zing website. Anyway, the instrument has such a beautiful sound - much like a harp but unique onto itself. I went to a restaurant on Saturday and the kora player had me in a melodic trance. The music was delicate and yet powerful. A common theme and melody was replayed often, with slight variations. The music (he was also singing) told of things such as the great combination of hope, love, and trust. He was so into his music - it just flowed from his fingers. I am seriously looking into learning to play the kora. I did learn to play the kora, along with another teacher while living in Mali. Our teacher, Djelimady Sissoko, was very patient as we learned the fingerings, how to tune (sort of), the accompanying parts, and main melodies of the songs. All music was improvisational and had no written music.

Another stringed instrument is the ngoni which looks a little like a boat-shaped narrow lute. While in Senegal, I also heard some beautiful flute playing - reed flutes that is. Gosh, they were doing acrobatics while playing! The other instrument that I have seen quite often is the balafon - a type of wooden xylophone with keys (15-19) made of hardwood suspended over a row of gourds which amplifies the sounds. Wooden mallets are used to strike the keys. 

Music is ingrained in the very blood of Malians. Whether it is playing, singing, dancing, or simply enjoying the music, the tunes of this West African country reverberate throughout the day. All of the weddings and other special functions I attended had live musicians. 
Now having taught in five countries and having collected music from around the world, I still have to say that Malian music is some of my favorite. 

Some Mali music you might want to find CD's of: Oumou Sangare and Rokia Traoré (female singers of Mali), Salif Keita (male singer),  Ali Farka Toure (acoustic guitars), Salif Keita; For Kora, the popular players are Toumani Diabaté (video above), Ballaké Sissoko (brother of my kora teacher), and Mamadou Diabaté; Tuareg music by Tinariwen.

Tweet

Timbuktu's Disappearing Tradition

Global warming and modern technology are two things putting one of the oldest trading traditions in jeopardy. For centuries, caravans of camels made the 45 day trip out into the Sahara Desert to the Malian town of Taoudenni to load up huge slabs of salt and haul them back to Timbuktu. Such salt slabs, once considered nearly as valuable as gold, were used in the preservation of food. Such trade made the towns of Timbuktu and Mopti wealthy cities, with the mined "white gold" being floated down the Niger River for trade. Due to global warming and its reduction of rain in the region, oases are drying up, making the journey more arduous for the camels carrying the huge slabs, reducing efficiency and thus profits. Some Tuaregs (the nomadic "Blue Men of the Desert") have abandoned the traditional camel caravan method of transportation for salt slabs and instead are using trucks. The journey for vehicles takes only 10 days and the trucks can carry much more than camels are, resulting in much higher profits. In addition, salt miners are emboldened to charging more due to quicker turnaround time between journeys and payment.

Similar to the plight of family farms in Wisconsin, the Tuaregs are also faced with the dilemmas imposed upon them by modernization; get big or get out. Doing it "the old fashioned way" with 200 camels no longer enables the Tuareg to earn a living, particularly when compared to those using much faster modern equipment not as subject to the harsh climate. Camels, like dairy cows of small farms, are being sold off, with the owners having to either purchase modern equipment or abandon the salt trade altogether. Along with this change comes the disappearance of a great tradition and way of life.

Having traveled from Mopti to Timbuktu via traditional pinasse, I would mourn such a loss. I fondly recall seeing the huge slabs of salt piled neatly along the shores of the Niger/Bani Rivers in Mopti, imagining the journey those slabs must have taken from the dry sea bed in the remotest parts of Mali then across the sands to Timbuktu via camels, and then down the river to this very spot. Knowing that more of those slabs today are coming not with romanticized caravans but with trucks spoils it for me - and for the Tuaregs whose traditional lives are disappearing.

This entry was inspired by the BBC article from Friday on the salt caravans.

Tweet

Precious Documents in Timbuktu Get a New Home

When I traveled via pinasse (traditional boat) up to Timbuktu, Mali in 2001, I was excited to see the fabled city deemed by many to be the very epitome of remoteness. (Actually you can fly to Timbuktu now, but I find that rather sacrilegious). Amongst the sandy streets and mud brick structures was the Ahmed Baba center, a humble building belying its contents. Inside we found stacks of precious manuscripts, some dating back nearly 800 years, just sitting there on the counter, piled in shelves, and a few in a glass case. Many were right there in the open, able to be handled and touched  - or should I say maimed - by people and exposed to the elements - and termites. There was no air conditioning and the room was warm. Such terrible conditions for fragile, writings documenting the rich education & cultural history of Timbuktu, illuminated Korans, and much more. It was great that the center sought to collect documents from the region, but preservation in these conditions was a definite concern.

Today's BBC website posted an article and video announcing that a new building has been constructed to house the documents, along with people who are working to document and restore/conserve the manuscripts. Amidst the crumbling mud brick buildings, the new white building will probably look a bit out of place, but such an endeavor is necessary if the manuscripts will be around for the next generation.

Tweet