Ben Aylon & Saboula Bangoura Feat. Yair Hashachar

 Israeli Premier

African drumming artist, Ben Aylon, comes full circle in a joint show with his teacher and djembe master, Saboula Bangoura. In the evening, the two will host the guitarist, kora player and producer, Yair Hashachar, a former member of the “Black Guru” and “Gulaza” ensembles led by Aylon.

The magic of African rhythms captivated Aylon, one of the leading percussionists in Israel, so much that he set out on a life-changing journey of discovery. He began studying African drumming with Master Saboula, a native of Conakry, in West African Guinea. Saboula, a teacher and master revered by hundreds of students from Africa and around the world, has developed a unique approach to the drum as a medium of communication, creating a repertoire which draws on the voices and rhythms of Africa and its tribes. Travelling to Senegal over a decade ago, Aylon discovered Senegalese drumming traditions, researched and developed them into an innovative style through a world-renowned hybrid technique. On a unique system, consisting of ten different African drums, Aylon distills the mesmerizing and intense sound of an entire drumming tribe into a powerful virtuoso solo performance.

The immense popularity he gained in Senegal, led to inspiring musical collaborations with the legendary Youssou N’Dour, with the greatest Senegalese drummer, Doudou N’Diaye Rose and with singer Cheikh Lo. His debut album, Xalem, was recorded in Africa and was included in the Songlines magazine list of the ten best albums of 2021. “Aylon has absorbed the essence of the various West African styles and distilled them into a unique and cohesive whole, proving himself as the blackest toubab (white man) in West Africa,” wrote the magazine’s reviewer, Nigel Williamson.

At the Jazz Festival, 16 years after the beginning of their joint journey, the master and his student will come together for an intergenerational dialogue of mutual enrichment between two unique voices. A sweeping, wild and richly rhythmic show that is not to be missed.