Ye Jaliya O

From the notes by the composer: I am an admirer of traditional West African music, with its direct simplicity and wonderful rhythmic complexity. I have composed an original piece of music with text excerpts from "The Pulse of Life" by Catherine De Vinck interwoven with the dominant Lambango lyric: "Ye Jaliya-o, Allah le ka Jaliya da" (Oh music, God created music.)The "you are the heart, you are the sound...." "Pulse of Life" chant begins as an undercurrent that rises and falls until it overtakes the piece. The rhythms in this piece are clearly African influenced, as is its tonality. The raised fourth (C sharp) is characteristic of Sauta, one of the kora traditional tunings. The kora is a 21 string harp-lute played by the griots as a lead instrument.