Momo Wandel Soumah

Guinean singer, composer, and alto saxophonist, Momo “Wandel” Soumah, was considered one of the greatest saxophonists in Africa. He was the troupe Circus Baobab and was very influenced by jazz luminaries such as John Coltrane, Charlie Parker and Ornette Coleman. He mixed jazz and traditional music from the lower coast of Guinea (the Soussou and the Baga). Endowed with has superb voice Wandel surrounded himself with a highly talented group of traditional musicians. His band’s line-up included bala player Khali Camara, the flutist Mamady Mansare, Sékou "Kora" Kouyaté (former director of Miriam Makeba’s band), and master drummers Aboubacar Camara and Aly Sylla (soloists of the National Percussion of Guinea). In 1996 a French production company, Taxi Vidéo Brousse, made a documentary about him, titled Momo “Wandel” Soumah. In 2002 Momo Wandel Soumah was nominated for the BBC World Music Listeners Award. Momo “Wandel” Soumah died Sunday, June 15, 2003, at the age of 77. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.