Tamala, whose name means “travelers”, embodies the spirit of exploration, delving into the endless possibilities of blending the kora, violin, harmonica and voice. Guided by a natural musical alchemy, Tamala’s musicians move between tradition and innovation, strength and subtlety, dream and reality, north and south.

In their third album Diboli, Tamala officially presents itself as a quartet, with harmonica player and guitarist Olivier Vander Bauwede as the band’s new member. Diboli, a border town between Senegal and Mali where Mola Sylla’s ancestors come from, symbolises the link with the past. The album is a tribute to all the musicians who have contributed to West Africa’s rich musical traditions but whose names have often disappeared throughout history. It also stands for the ancestors who have supported the development of humanity in their own manner. Each note on the album exudes this spiritual link with the past in a contemporary context.

Musically, Tamala showcases their versatility in this album. Of course, there is the powerful voice of Mola Sylla, who not only keeps you captivated until the very last note but also surprises with an impressive range of self-made instruments. Kora virtuoso Bao Sissoko stands out as a gifted soloist with a keen sense of rhythm, as well as a talented composer. On the violin, the highly versatile Wouter Vandenabeele brings a contemporary European touch, making Tamala more than just the sum of its parts. A fourth musician, Olivier Vander Bauwede, has recently joined the project, adding bluesy tones to Tamala’s music with his harmonica.

The musicians :

• Mola Sylla – voice, xalam (SN-NL)
• Bao Sissoko – kora (SN-BE)
• Wouter Vandenabeele – violin (BE)
• Olivier Vander Bauwede – harmonica, guitar (BE)

Violinist living in Ghent, Wouter Vandenabeele loves to explore and discover diverse music. He performed various concerts alongside Senegalese traditional violinist Issa Sow. He also directed the prestigious Hadzidakis project for the Athens 2004 Olympic Games (with among others the Madredeus singers). He recorded about twenty albums and gave several hundred performances with Ambrozijn, Olla Vogala (his world music orchestra), Bared Ataï with which he played in Morocco and Belgium, Zuiderwind (EMI) in collaboration with South African musicians (concerts in Belgium and South Africa). He also worked with Steve Houben, Erik Vermeulen, Savina Yanatou, Philippe Thuriot, Ex Tempore…

Mola Sylla is a Senegalese singer and multi-instrumentalist who plays and makes traditional African instruments such as the mbira, kongoma (Senegalese lamellophone), xalam, and kalimba. He moved to Europe in 1987 and now lives in Amsterdam. His powerful and deep voice has led him to many collaborations, for instance with Omar Sosa, or in his jazz project with Ernst Reijseger and Harmen Fraanje. Mola enjoys exploring all dimensions of music and participated in several musical encounter projects with eclectic genres. He is also a founding member of Senemali and VeDaKi (a quartet of Senegalese, Russian and Indian music).

Born in a family of Senegalese griots, Bao Sissoko is renowned for his virtuoso playing of the kora and calabash. He has played with major artists such as Baaba Maal and expanded his repertoire after moving to Belgium, collaborating with artists such as Malick Pathe Sow, Zap Mama, Vaya Con Dios and Damon Albarn. He is also a member of the Auster Loo collective and worked on Mamy Kanouté’s album “Mousso Lou”. Bao has performed at prestigious venues and festivals around the world, including Roskilde, the Forde Festival, the Frankfurt Philharmonic, Bozar, Sauti Za Busari in Zanzibar and the Rainforest Festival in Borneo.

Olivier Vander Bauwede is a harmonica player and multi-instrumentalist from Ghent, Belgium. As a player of both the chromatic as well as the diatonic harmonica, he has worked with several critically acclaimed artists in various genres of music, ranging from blues and jazz to pop, rock, folk and world music. Olivier participated in tribute concerts for Toots Thielemans and founded the Young Toots Collective. In the blues world, he is active with his band Paradise Stompers and was nominated for Best Instrumentalist by the Belgian Blues Association in 2024. He is the newest member of Tamala, where he can fully express his love for West African music and add his touch of blues.