Ablaye Cissoko & Volker Goetze: Domain Domain

This magical (and most unlikely!) intersection of cultures produces a surprising result. To be fair, "surprising" may seem like an odd description given the fact that I'd never considered the combination of the West African kora with a trumpet before. With the wide tonal range available on the 21-string kora, Ablaye Cissoko is able to maintain a solid bassline and a series of beautiful and ringing arpeggios over which Volker Goetze weaves his melody. There's also a call-&-response feel here as Goetze drops back for a few short solo passages. Truly mesmerizing stuff.