Griot

Opening night at VIFF. I had a long day at work and was tired, so wasn't even sure if I was up for the festivities. Luckily, my first film was one that delighted the senses while not making too much demand on the brain. Made by trumpeter Volker Goetze and featuring his friend and musical partner Ablaye Cissoko, "Griot" is a low-key, laconically filmed documentary that brings to life the historical role and contemporary fate of the Mande griot: oral historian, musician, negotiator, mediator, master of ceremony and so much more all rolled in one. When I was studying postcolonial West African literature and film in grad school, I frequently encountered the griot as an enigmatic and fascinating figure in the works of Ousmane Sembène, Camara Laye, Yambo Ouologuem and their contemporaries. The gentle and soft-spoken Cissoko does not play up this mythical role, either in the film or in person. He simply and movingly shows us his respect for a tradition under threat and his quiet passion for the music. The kora, in his hand, is indeed a "magical instrument" and the highlight of the screening undoubtedly was the short but sensational live performance he and Goetze gave at the end.