Contemporary Mali - Music in Mali: Music, Culture and Conflict

Dr. Gates in conversation with writer and filmmaker Manthia Diawara.

In 1999, on his PBS series Wonders of the African World, Dr. Gates brought for the first time to wide attention the Timbuktu manuscripts, a priceless trove of documents covering a wide range of human endeavor, including the teachings of Islam, law, medicine, mathematics, and astronomy. In the ensuing 15 years, these manuscripts have been imperiled by Mali’s civil upheaval. In this series, Dr. Gates explores contemporary Mali, and what the future holds for the cultural, architectural, and intellectual treasures of West Africa.

This week, Music, Culture and Conflict.

View the series

This program is in conjunction with the Mali Now festival celebrating contemporary Malian music, culture, and politics.

Tickets to this event include Museum admission.

Photo: Figure: Pair of Balafon Players, 18th–early 19th century, Dogon Peoples, Mali. Wood, metal, H. 15 7/16 x W. 5 3/4 x D. 6 1/2 in. (39.3 x 14.6 x 16.5 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979 (1979.206.131)