Download Study sheet for Lamba

The societal and historical context for Lamban
Lamban is a dance and song created by jali (griots) for each other. Initially Lamban was
devoted to the Kouyate lineage, who belonged to the very first family of jalis in Mande. Balla
Fasseke Kouyate was the griot to Sunjata Keita, the founder of the Mali Empire.
The version most often performed today is Lamban Ba – Big Lamba. It is performed when
the entire community, including non-griots, gets together.
It’s important to remember that Lamban is a dance for jali, or griots. In Africa, people
who are not members of the griot caste will not, and really, should not perform Lamba. That
being said, the dance has been taught for years in the United States, and has become an essential
part of the African dance repertoire.
In order to understand Lamba, you need to know the structure of Mande society.
Mande society, a person is born into one of three main castes: the freeborn, (horon), the
artisans (nyamakala), and the slaves (jon).
Nyamakala, or the artisans, are sub-classified based on profession. They include the
potters, the wood-carvers, the blacksmiths or ironworkers, and the praise
singers/musicians/historians – the griots (from the French) or jali.
The jali are endogamous. That means they marry within their caste. So in order to be a
jali, or a griot, you must come from a jali family.
The jali have the hereditary right to play three instruments; the kora, or harp lute; the
balaphone, the African ancestor of the xylophone; and the ngoni, a small instrument that is
considered one of the ancestors of the banjo.
The history of the jali, in fact the history of all the Mande people, is intertwined with the
history of the Great Mali Empire, and the legend of Sunjata Keita.
What was the great Mali Empire and who was Sunjata Keita?
According to the legend, Sunjata Keita was the son of the second wife of Chief Magan
Kon Fatta. Sunjata Keita was born disabled, and was ridiculed by the first wife and her son,
Dankaran Touman
Sunjata did not walk until he was 7, but after walking became a great hunter. Keita’s griot
was Balla Fasseke Kouyate.
When Magan Kon Fatta died, Dankaran Touman became chief. Dankara Touman. sent
Sunjata, his mother and his sister into exile.
Dankaran then sent Balla Fasseke Kouyate to appease Sumanguro Kante, a blacksmith
and a sorcerer, who was the king of the region. At that time Sunmanguro was fighting
against Mali.
Balla Fasseke Kouyate managed to get into the king’s secret chambers, and started playing
his balaphone (or xylophone). Although the king was far away, he heard the music. He changed
himself into the wind and returned to see who was playing his instrument. Rather than kill Balla
Fasseke, the king cut his Achilles tendon, so he couldn’t walk away.
Sumanguro invaded Mali and destroyed its capital, Niani. A party found Sunjata, and
persuaded him to return to defend his homeland. At first, Sunjata couldn’t defeat his enemy. But
Sunjata’s sister learned of Sumanguru’s taboo – the one talisman that would defeat him. Sunjata
used it during a battle, and Sumanguru fled. He was never found. Sunjata became king.
Scholars believe that Sunjata became king around 1230 or 1235, and that he ruled for
about 25 years. The empire lasted from the 13th to the end of the 16th centuries. (From the
1200 to the 1500s.)
Here is the least you need to know about Lamba:
1.Griots or jali, the professional musicians and oral historians of the Mande people
dance it.
2.The jali have the hereditary right to play three instruments: the kora, the ngoni and the
balaphone.
3.The term Mande, refers to ethnic groups that live in the following countries: Mali,
Senegal, Guinea, Gambia, and Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Some Mande speakers are
also found in Sierra Leone and Burkina Faso. (And, of course, the United States and
Europe as immigrants.)
4.Mande includes the following ethnic groups: Mali: Bambara (Bamana in English);
SeneGambia: Mandinka; Guinea: Maninka, Susu,
5.Lamba was created to honor the Kouyate family. The Kouyate (also spelled Kuyateh)
descended from the first jali or griot, Balla Fasseke Kouyate. He was the griot to Sunjata
Keita.
6.Sunjata Keita was the founder of the Great Mali Empire. He was born disabled and did
not walk until he was 7.
7.Sunjata Keita defeated Sumanguro Kante by striking him with his taboo.
8.The Empire lasted from the 13th to the 16th centuries.
Sources: “Mande Music,” by Eric Charry
http://chantsmandingues.free.fr/Accueil_ENG/index2.htm