Bouba Sacko

Among musicians, Bouba Sacko is one of the most respected contemporary guitarists in Mali.

When he started playing guitar in the 1960s, the concept of a "Griot guitarist" barely existed. The famed praise musicians of West Africa's Mande people mostly worked with the Kora (21-string harp), Ngoni (spike lute) and wooden-slatted Balafon. Bouba's father, Ibrahim Sacko, was director of the state-sponsored Instrumental Ensemble of Mali, so the traditional repertoire and lore of Mande griot heritage surrounded him from the start. Just the same, Bouba stuck with the guitar, developing a powerful capacity to evoke traditional instruments using his axe.