SPLA : Portal to cultural diversity
Cultures-Fiji

François Essindi (Abakuya)

  • François Essindi (Abakuya)
© brother John
Percussionist, Storyteller, Cultural developer
Principal country concerned : Column : Music, Theater, Literature

François Essindi is a young story teller-musician from central Africa, region & culture of Ekang, the Fang-Beti's. He showed on a very early age his talent to domesticate the traditional instruments which looked very old-fashioned to his fellows? With his enlightened face of a fang sacrifier seeking for a ceremonial fetish, he surprises by his wide open-harted and brusque smile, before going back to his conversation with the Spirits of the Ekang. Regarding his music, Essindi never cuts off of the intiatic. He always goes for music which is moreless sacred, these which are limit close to trance connected to something else. From his band's traditional name "Otoulbaka" in Cameroun to his actual show, Abakuya, interactive, related and sung where come together like a succession of a cosmogony a wide range of items and percussion from the ngom-djembe-toronto (long drum born of Essindi's inspiration & self made ?) to the Snail shel, pygmy flutes, sanza, mvet? Essindi never sidetracked. Even when he composed very succesfull for the singer Donny Elwood, when he could be tempted to do it it on an easier way. Essindi will stay with the depth of the thousand entries, sour critics on the leaders, on modernity, about the insatiable will of the Human struggling for more, on the complex rythms and polyphonies of the forest. Harps, shells, mvet all the "sui" percussions come between the tale without never turning it delinquent. It's not a matter of virtuosity, the technic serves the played message, told, sung, satirized. On the end, stays from Essindi and his performance an incredible communication strength, this all through his very original personality and his self-made instruments and material, looking like it came straight from Ancient times, from Thèbes?

Groups

2 files

Music albums

1 files

Organizations

1 files

Events

56 files

Partners

  • Alliance Française VANUATU
  • PACIFIC ARTS ALLIANCE
  • FURTHER ARTS

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