Editing Djembe (section)

==Recent history==
Prior to the 1950s and the [[Decolonization of Africa|decolonization of West Africa]], due to the very limited travel of native Africans outside their own ethnic group, the djembe was known only in its original area.

===National ballets===
[[File:Bundesarchiv B 145 Bild-F014155-06, Bonn, Afrikawoche, Nationalballett Guinea.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Dancers of Les Ballets Africains in Bonn, Germany, 1962|[[Les Ballets Africains]] in [[Bonn]], [[Germany]], 1962]]

The djembe first came to the attention of audiences outside West Africa with the efforts of [[Fodéba Keïta]], who, in 1952, founded [[Les Ballets Africains]]. The ballet toured extensively in Europe and was declared Guinea's first national ballet by Guinea's first president, [[Ahmed Sékou Touré|Sékou Touré]], after Guinea gained independence in 1958, to be followed by two more national ballets, the Ballet d'Armee in 1961 and Ballet Djoliba in 1964.<ref name="Billmeier" />

Touré's policies alienated Guinea from the West and he followed the [[Eastern Bloc]] model of using the country's culture and music for promotional means.<ref name="Meredith">{{cite book|title=The State of Africa: A History of Fifty Years of Independence|last=Meredith|first=Martin|year=2006|publisher=Jonathan Ball Publishers|location=Johannesburg, South Africa|isbn=978-1-86842-251-7|title-link=The State of Africa: A History of Fifty Years of Independence}}</ref> He and Fodéba Keïta, who had become a close friend of Touré, saw the ballets as a way to secularize traditional customs and rites of different ethnic groups in Guinea. The ballets combined rhythms and dances from widely different spiritual backgrounds in a single performance, which suited the aim of Touré's demystification program of "doing away with 'fetishist' ritual practices".<ref name="Flaig">{{cite thesis |first=Vera |last=Flaig |title=The Politics of Representation and Transmission in the Globalization of Guinea's Djembé |url=http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75801/1/vhflaig_1.pdf |access-date=January 15, 2012 |publisher=University of Michigan |year=2010 |degree=Ph.D. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140428014120/http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75801/1/vhflaig_1.pdf |archive-date=April 28, 2014 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref><ref name="Berliner">{{cite journal|first=David|last=Berliner|title=An 'Impossible' Transmission: Youth Religious Memories in Guinea-Conakry|journal=American Ethnologist|volume=32|issue=4|pages=576–592|date=November 2005|doi=10.1525/ae.2005.32.4.576}}</ref>

Touré generously supported the ballets (to the point of building a special rehearsal and performance space in his palace for Ballet Djoliba) and, until his death in 1984, financed extensive world-wide performance tours, which brought the djembe to the attention of Western audiences.<ref name="Djembefola">{{cite video |title=Djembefola |people=Laurent Chevallier (director), Mamady Keïta (himself) |year=1991 |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0216717/ |access-date=March 23, 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170211023704/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0216717/ |archive-date=February 11, 2017 |df=mdy }}</ref><ref name="Ballet Africains">{{cite web |title=Les Ballets Africains |url=http://www.lesballetsafricains.net/ |access-date=January 15, 2012 |work=Official website sanctioned by the Department of Culture of the Republic of Guinea |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120116231709/http://www.lesballetsafricains.com/ |archive-date=January 16, 2012 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> Other countries followed Touré's example and founded national ballets in the 1960s, including Ivory Coast (Ballet Koteba), Mali ([[Les Ballets Malien]]),<ref name="theatre encyclopaedia">{{cite book|title=The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre: Africa|volume=3|publisher=Routledge|location=London|isbn=978-0-415-05931-2|date=June 24, 1997|pages=[https://archive.org/details/worldencyclopedi0002unse_j6c2/page/448 448]|last1=Diawara|first1=Gaoussou|last2=Diawara|first2=Victoria|last3=Koné|first3=Alou|editor1-last=Diakhate|editor1-first=Ousmane|editor2-last=Eyoh|editor2-first=Hansel Ndumbe|editor3-last=Rubin|editor3-first=Don|url=https://archive.org/details/worldencyclopedi0002unse_j6c2/page/448}}</ref> and Senegal (Le Ballet National du Senegal), each with its own attached political agenda.<ref name="Castaldi">{{cite book|title=Choreographies of African Identities: Negritude, Dance, and the National Ballet of Senegal|first=Francesca|last=Castaldi|year=2006|publisher=University of Illinois Press|isbn=978-0-252-07268-0}}</ref>

===Emigration===
In the United States, Ladji Camara, a member of Ballets Africains in the 1950s, started teaching djembe in the 1960s and continued to teach into the 1990s. Camara performed extensively with [[Babatunde Olatunji]] during the 1970s, greatly raising awareness of the instrument in the US.<ref name="Camara">{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://africanmusic.org/artists/ladji.html |title=Papa Ladji Camara |first=Andy |last=Wassserman |encyclopedia=The African Music Encyclopedia: Music from Africa and the African Diaspora |access-date=January 13, 2012 |year=1995 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112000208/http://africanmusic.org/artists/ladji.html |archive-date=January 12, 2012 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref>

After the death of Sekou Touré in 1984, funding for the ballets dried up and a number of djembefolas (who were never paid well by the ballets<ref>{{cite journal |title=Rare German Radio Interviews with Famoudou Konate |journal=Percussive Notes |volume=39 |issue=6 |date=December 2001 |editor-first=Lilian |editor-last=Friedberg |url=http://chidjembe.com/fkusaradio.html |access-date=January 12, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120413123345/http://chidjembe.com/fkusaradio.html |archive-date=April 13, 2012 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref>) emigrated and made regular teaching and performance appearances in the west, including [[Mamady Keïta]] (Belgium, US), [[Famoudou Konaté]] (Germany), and Epizo Bangoura (France, US, and Australia).<ref name="Epizo">{{cite web |url=http://epizob.com/e/biography.html |access-date=January 13, 2012 |title=Who is Epizo Bangoura? |work=Epizo Bangoura official website |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303234605/http://epizob.com/e/biography.html |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref><ref name="Files">{{cite thesis |first=Frederick Rimes |last=Files |title=Hairy drums, live sampling: Ethos Percussion Group commissions of 2004 and their "extra-conservatory" elements |url=http://gradworks.umi.com/34/99/3499233.html |access-date=July 28, 2013 |publisher=City University of New York |year=2012 |degree=Ph.D. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304052603/http://gradworks.umi.com/34/99/3499233.html |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> A number of other djembefolas—M'bemba Bangoura, [[Abdoulaye Diakité]], [[Bolokada Conde]], Mohamed "Bangouraké" Bangoura, and Babara Bangoura, among others—followed their example, establishing a sizeable population of expatriate performers and teachers in many Western countries.

===Film===
[[File:Djembefola DVD Cover.jpg|thumb|120px|left|alt=Cover of Djembefola DVD|''Djembefola'' DVD cover]]
The 1991 documentary ''Djembefola''<ref name="Djembefola"/> by Laurent Chevallier depicts Mamady Keïta's return to the village of his birth after a 26-year absence. Upon release, the movie won the Wisselzak Trophy and Special Jury Award at the [[International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam]], and the Audience Award at the [[Marseille Festival of Documentary Film]], and brought the djembe to the attention of a wide audience.<ref>{{cite web |title=Laurent Chevallier – Awards – IMdb |website=[[IMDb]] |url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0156694/awards |access-date=March 4, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091009102321/http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0156694/awards |archive-date=October 9, 2009 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Marseille Festival of Documentary Film (1991) |website=[[IMDb]] |url=https://www.imdb.com/event/ev0000421/1991 |access-date=October 22, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924182413/http://www.imdb.com/event/ev0000421/1991 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref>

A 1998 follow-up documentary, ''Mögöbalu''<ref>{{cite video |title=Mögöbalu |people=Laurent Chevallier (director) |year=1998 |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2321435/ |access-date=March 23, 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160323025818/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2321435/ |archive-date=March 23, 2016 |df=mdy }}</ref> (also by Chevallier), contains concert footage uniting four master drummers ([[Soungalo Coulibaly]], Mamady Keita, Famoudou Konaté, and [[Doudou N'Diaye Rose]]) on stage.

The Oscar-nominated 2007 drama ''[[The Visitor (2007 drama film)|The Visitor]]'' ensured that the djembe was noticed internationally by mainstream viewers.

===Western music===
The djembe has been used by many western artists, including [[Paul Simon]], [[Cirque du Soleil]], and [[Tool (band)|Tool]], raising awareness of the instrument with western audiences.<ref name="Simon">{{cite web |title=Evolution of the Instrument: Djembe |url=http://revivalist.okayplayer.com/2011/07/05/evolution-of-the-instrument-djembe/ |publisher=The Revivalist |access-date=September 16, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120317144054/http://revivalist.okayplayer.com/2011/07/05/evolution-of-the-instrument-djembe/ |archive-date=March 17, 2012 |url-status=dead |df=mdy }}</ref><ref name="Cirque">{{cite web |title=Cirque du Soleil's percussion setup in pictures |url=http://beta.musicradar.com/news/drums/the-cirque-du-soleils-percussion-setup-in-pictures-462225/6 |access-date=September 16, 2012 |work=Congas, djembes and more |publisher=musicradar |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130129074411/http://beta.musicradar.com/news/drums/the-cirque-du-soleils-percussion-setup-in-pictures-462225/6 |archive-date=January 29, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref>

===Recordings===
Recordings of the djembe far surpass the number of recordings of any other African drum. Beginning in the late 1980s, a slew of djembe-centric recordings was released, a trend that, as of 2014, shows no sign of abating. This is significant because these recordings are driven by the demand of western audiences; there are almost no djembe recordings within African markets.<ref name="MM" />

===Educational material===
Among the earliest educational resources available to a student of the djembe were an educational VHS tape by Babatunde Olatunji released in 1993,<ref name="Olatunji">{{cite video|title=African Drumming|first=Babatunde|last=Olatunji|publisher=Interworld|year=2004|medium=DVD|others=Re-release of 1993 VHS version}}</ref> as well as books by Serge Blanc, Famoudou Konaté, and Mamady Keïta.<ref name="Billmeier" /><ref name="Blanc">{{cite book|title=African Percussion: The Djembe|first=Serge|last=Blanc|year=1997|id=[[International Standard Music Number|ISMN]] M-7070-1802-6}}</ref><ref name="Konate" /> In 1998, these were supplemented by a three-volume VHS set by Keïta<ref name="Rythmes Traditionnels">{{cite video|title=Rythmes Traditionnels du Mandingue|medium=DVD|others=Re-release of 1998 VHS version|first=Mamady|last=Keïta|year=2008|publisher=Djembefola Productions}}</ref> and, in 2000, by a VHS tape by Epizo Bangoura.<ref>{{cite video|title=Yole & Zawuli: Traditional Rhythms for the Djembe|first=Epizo|last=Bangoura|medium=VHS|publisher=Dramavision|year=2000|editor-first=David|editor-last=Bolliger}}</ref> Since then, the market for educational materials has grown significantly. As of 2014, dozens of educational books, CDs, and videos are available to an aspiring player.



===Tourism===
Starting in the 1980s, a number of Guinean djembefolas (Epizo Bangoura, Famoudou Konaté, Mamady Keïta) started hosting study tours to Guinea, allowing djembe students to experience Guinean culture first-hand. Many other djembefolas followed suit; as of 2014, a potential visitor can select from tens of djembe tours each year.  Djembe tourism created a market for djembefolas in Guinea that previously did not exist. Young djembefolas try to emulate the success of their predecessors and cater to the needs of the tourists, leading to change and commodification of the original djembe culture.<ref name="Flaig" /><ref name="Gaudette">{{cite journal |last=Gaudette |first=Pascal |title=Jembe Hero: West African Drummers, Global Mobility and Cosmopolitanism as Status |journal=Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies |volume=39 |issue=2 |pages=295–310 |doi=10.1080/1369183X.2013.723259 |date=20 September 2012 |s2cid=145753409 |df=mdy }}</ref>

===Commercially produced instruments===
Most djembes from Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, and Senegal are still hand carved from traditional species of wood, using traditional tools and methods. In the 1990s, djembes started being produced elsewhere, such as in [[Ghana]], [[Nigeria]], [[South Africa]], and [[Indonesia]], often using modern machinery and substitute species of wood, such as [[tweneboa]] (''[[Cordia platythyrsa]]'') or [[mahogany]] (''[[Swietenia mahagoni]]'' or ''[[Toona sureni]]''). However, these woods, being softer and less dense, are not as suitable as the traditional woods.<ref name="Woods" /> A number of western percussion instrument manufacturers also produce djembe-like instruments, often with fibreglass bodies, synthetic skins, and a key tuning system.<ref name="Polak Bamako">{{cite journal|title=A Musical Instrument Travels Around the World: Jenbe Playing in Bamako, West Africa, and Beyond|first=Rainer|last=Polak|editor-last=Post|editor-first=Jennifer|journal=Ethnomusicology: A Contemporary Reader|year=2005}}</ref>

===Women djembefolas===
The traditional barriers against women djembe and dunun players have come down over time.
* In 1998, Mamoudou Conde, director of the ballets ''[[Les Percussions de Guinée]]'', ''[[Les Ballets Africains]]'', and ''Ballet Djoliba'', began to explore the idea of including women djembe and dunun players in ballet performances, against considerable initial resistance from male performers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.amazoneswomandrummers.com/html/bio.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040606104929/http://www.amazoneswomandrummers.com/html/bio.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 6, 2004|title=The creation of Amazones: The Women Master Drummers of Guinea|first=Mamoudou|last=Conde|date=December 17, 2003|publisher=Department of Culture of the Republic of Guinea|work=Amazones: The Women Master Drummers of Guinea}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/raleighdrumcircle/message/1567 |first=Chuck |last=Cogliandro |title=Amazones Djembe Group—from Kumandi Drums Newsletter |date=August 5, 2004 |access-date=January 17, 2012 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120710224321/http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/raleighdrumcircle/message/1567 |archive-date=July 10, 2012 |url-status=dead |df=mdy }}</ref> Despite this, he included two female djembe players in the 2000 American tour of ''Les Percussions de Guinée''. Based on positive feedback from that tour, Conde decided to form an all-female ballet group called ''Amazones: The Women Master Drummers of Guinea'' (renamed ''Nimbaya!'' in 2010). The group first toured the US in 2004 and continues to perform, with tour dates scheduled out to 2014.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.amazoneswomandrummers.com/index.html |title=Official Website of NIMBAYA! The Women's Drum & Dance Company of Guinea |publisher=Department of Culture of the Republic of Guinea |access-date=January 17, 2012 |editor=Sekou Conde |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130113443/http://www.amazoneswomandrummers.com/index.html |archive-date=January 30, 2012 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref>
* There are several notable female djembefolas, including Salimata Diabaté from Burkina Faso (lead djembefola of ''Afro Faso Jeunesse''),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7YNp59JoAQ |title=Salimata Diabate et Afro Faso Jeunesse, SNC 2010 |website=[[YouTube]] |access-date=January 17, 2012 |year=2010 |location=Performance at Le Theatre de l'Amitié, Bobo Dioulasso, Burkina Faso |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120902130608/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7YNp59JoAQ |archive-date=September 2, 2012 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> Monette Marino-Keita from San Diego (winner of the 1st National "Hand Drum-Off" Competition in 2001),<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.monettemarino.com/home/home.html |title=Monette Marino-Keita's Official Site |access-date=January 17, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120904003929/http://www.monettemarino.com/home/home.html |archive-date=September 4, 2012 |url-status=dead |df=mdy }}</ref> Anne-Yolaine Diarra from France (djembefola with ''Sokan''),<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sokan.eu/ |title=SOKAN |language=fr |access-date=January 18, 2012 |year=2005 |work=Official website |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120131222552/http://sokan.eu/ |archive-date=January 31, 2012 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> and Melissa Hie from Burkina Faso (lead djembefola of ''Benkadi'').<ref>{{cite web |url=http://benkadibordeaux.free.fr |title=Benkadi un art authentique |access-date=May 24, 2013 |language=fr |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029190404/http://benkadibordeaux.free.fr/ |archive-date=October 29, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://melissahie.wix.com/melissa |title=On the Road with Mélissa |access-date=May 24, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029191632/http://melissahie.wix.com/melissa |archive-date=October 29, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref>