Elsden Music is proud to present the debut recording by Afro Baroque. Formed following a
chance encounter between award winning pianist and composer Yakir Arbib and
Cameroonian virtuoso drummer and vocalist Conti Bilong, the duo explore traditional
rhythms from central Africa and the Middle East, amalgamating Baroque style counterpoint
and dynamic jazz interplay.
An unlikely pairing given the difference in their musical backgrounds, Arbib and Bilong
nevertheless discovered a phenomenal synergy from the very first time they met in a small
rehearsal room in Paris and started playing ‘Caravan’ by Duke Ellington.
Yakir states that “something inexplicable happened. An instantaneous musical connection resulting
from the alchemy of this unlikely encounter.” This surprising connection manifests itself through
genuinely unique music, the quality of which is more than evident on the Afro Baroque
recording.
Afro Baroque’s music is a dynamic happening of African singing and dancing rhythms enveloped
by a warm colour pallet of baroque sounds and harmonies. It’s like Manu Dibango meets
Avishai Cohen meets Handel. At times festive and exuberant like on the pygmy inspired
“Wana So” and at times meditative and melancholic such as on the heartfelt “Mout Binam
Nou” where the speaker asks in Basa language “Why do we humans have to create so much
enmity, jealousy and strife between us just because of differences in provenance, culture and
colour of the skin?”.
From conflict (“Stuck in Dagestan”) to romance (“Barbes Rochechouart”) Afro Baroque’s
debut album is guaranteed to bring a wide and complete emotional experience to the listener.
In a joint statement, Afro Baroque say:
“We believe that now more than ever, we need connections, bridges, and strands of colour and
beauty that connect opposite cultures, traditions, languages and religions together from across the
world. Afro Baroque’s music is exactly that! We connect seemingly diametrically opposed worlds: the
studious European counterpoint on one side, and the unstoppable force of joy, rhythm and dance
coming from Africa on the other.”
