Bwazan

Bwazan (‘Bobo children’ in the Bobo and Bwa language), are a percussion and dance troupe founded in 2005 in Bamako, Mali (West Africa).

Bwazan are a family group of musicians; brothers, sisters, cousins and uncles born into the same family line of djelis (Griots) in the region of San, near Segou. From a very young age, the group were initiated into the study of instruments, songs, and rhythm scores in their pure tradition. Today, Bwazan revisit, through their own arrangements and instrumentation, the sound of their ancestors with the greatest respect, upholding their musical heritage by promoting and preserving the identity, spirituality and cultural richness of their Bo ethnicity.

Bwazan present songs, rhythms, and dances, which are accompanied by their traditional instruments, including the balafon (West African xylophone), the doun doun and djembe (hand drums), the yabara, and the barra (calabash drum), kamalan n’goni (stringed harp), and kora. Complex movements, precision, and harmony, combined with energetic dances, describe this group of talented, young artists. They are a real delight musically.

Bwazan take their audiences on a cultural journey, performing their uplifting music with great professionalism, soul, enthusiasm and joy. They promote a message of peace, humility, freedom, and courage. As ambassadors of their music and this message, Bwazan represent Mali.