Kartong, my first kora performance

Greetings again!
It has been a wonderful past couple of days. On Wednesday, Moriba and I spent a good portion of the day tuning our koras to a much higher pitch than we have been playing in. We did this in preparation of a performance that we would do later that evening in Kartong. I don't think that I've really explained the actual instrument that I am playing on this blog, so here goes. The kora has a calabash base, which a cow hide is stretched over the open end and is nailed to the back side. The neck is a round cylinder piece of hardwood (usually padauk, but it varies) of only about 3-4 inches in diameter, and up to three feet long that extends vertically from the calabash. The strings begin from the bottom of the calabash, where they are tied to a rebar ring. Going up the instrument, they "V" at a small wooden bridge that sits perpendicular against a small piece of wood covered in red cloth close to the center of the calabash. Each of the strings are attached to a small piece of hide called "conso". In order to tune the strings, you move the conso about the neck accordingly. 11 of the strings are based left of center, and the other 10 or 11 are to the right of center. Two wooden handle bars are inserted through the hide at the top of the calabash and go through the bottom end. The handles are held with the lower three fingers, while the strings are plucked with the thumbs and index fingers. There you have it....
Anyways, it is quite a chore to maintain the tuning of these things. Especially early within the instruments' life. The skin is frequently drying, stretching, as are the strings. The strings will also break frequently early on, which is why you don't want to tune the instrument too high too soon. You see? Even one month after my kora was made, throughout the process of tuning the instrument on Wednesday, the strings would fall out of tune every five minutes, and I had about four break on me. It is also important to maintain equidistance between each of the conso and not let them contact each other for tuning purposes. There is a process of when someone goes down the entire neck and gives equal space to each of the conso, using an awl referred to as a "loyo" to either loosen or tighten the strings accordingly. This process is called "kotoboro". Very interesting, all of this I must say. At least to me...
So after spending most of the day tuning our instruments under the mango tree, Moriba and I set out from the compound with our daypacks and koras slewn over our shoulders and caught a taxi. Our destination would be a coastal tourist resort on the outskirts of Kartong, which is a small village in the very southwest part of the country, close to the border with Senegal. I must say that this drive was absolutely beautiful, and the road was in better condition than any I've seen. The palm forests that surrounded the roadside were luscious, green, and gorgeous. The only downside to the drive was when we mauled a poor little goat crossing the road going at about 30 mph....ouch.....we also had to slow down for a pack of cattle, and a pair of sheep. It's very common to have to do so out here. Close to the resort, we came upon Peter, a friend of Moriba as he was sitting in his vehicle talking to the driver in the car on the opposite side of the road. We pulled to the side of the road while Moriba exited the vehicle to greet his friend. Peter is from the UK, and is currently being based out of the resort at which we would stay for the next couple of evenings. He is the lead organizer of the Kartong Festival, a three day music festival that will be occuring from 21-24 I believe featuring various musicians from Gambia, and even perhaps Senegal if I'm not mistaken. He has a lot on his plate, being the lead organizer, and my sense is that there isn't much consistant support from others. Peter is also the founder of a grassroots organization called Africa Links, which aims towards linking people and creating communities around music. If you're curious, log onto the Kartong Festival website. I think it is www.kartongfestival.org, if not, try ".com". I believe there is a link posted on the site towards the Africa Links organization as well.
After meeting with Peter on the roadside, we followed him into the resort. The resort has a covered outdoor eating area, and trails leading to eight or nine huts that have beds and a bathroom (with toilet and showerhead). There was a trail leading to the beach only a couple hundred meters away. I spent most of my time yesterday at this beach, sitting under a shaded palm leaf umbrella, practicing my kora, gazing over the Atlantic. This wasn't the main reason why we were here....really....We actually gave a performance to a group of toubabs from the UK who are here for two weeks. Mostly teen aged kids and a few parents, they are an organization working with kids in one of the local Kartong schools. I'm not sure exactly what they are doing, but I know that one of their projects is to provide bicycles to children. David and Helen whom are the leaders of the organization know Peter. The performance went relatively well. I played the three songs that I feel most comfortable with aside Moriba. After this, I allowed some of the guests to come try plucking my instrument. Moriba then provided a short solo performance. Supposedly, we are going to be coming back here on Monday for another performance. Awww...
Tomorrow, Moriba and I will go up to Bakau in the evening to see Youssou N'Dour perform in a futbol stadium. Some of you may have heard of the Senegalese pop artist. I've heard the name, but I am not very familiar with his music.
I hope all is well back home. Until next time...

Sean