Mokhtar Samba
& MOSSAN

The ex-Ultramarine African drums/percussionnist virtuoso Mokhtar Samba created MOSSAN, a musical bridge between Africa, Europe and North Africa orchestrated by 8 pluri-ethnical musicians and singers coming from Madagascar, Morocco, France, or Mali. Some very colorful afro-jazz served by truly wonderful voices.

About Mokhtar Samba .....

Mokhtar Samba and his explosive drumming can be heard throughout the world on tours and recordings with Salief Keita, Youssou N'Dour, Henri Dikongue, Eddy Louiss, Carlinhos Brown, Richard Bona, Tama, Ultramarine, Joe Zawinul, Graham Haynes, Nguyen Le, Jean-Luc Ponty, and many others. Mokhtar's Moroccan-Senegalese heritage mixed with the jazz and afro-fusion atmosphere of Paris has created one of the most important drummers of our time.

Since a couple of yearson Mossan, a pluri-ethnical band , he’s been working with eight musicians coming from Madagascar, Morocco, France, or Mali..., and continues to collaborate to several projects, with Manu Dibango or Ultramarine lately reformed...

Mokhtar Samba has also writen a book on African drumming "African Rhythms and Independence for Drumset" [texts in French & English + CD 96 tracks].

Mokhtar Samba

What are your projects?

Mokhtar: "Well, there is Mossan, and the desire, of course, to record an album with this group.... and also to continue to participate to many projects.... if you like, with our friends, Tom, Jean-Philippe... we are more trying tp form a team, to try an do some new things, with always the same theme, Africa, but in the wide meaning of the term. We are not an orchestra with some"bou-bous" playing African music ! It is more open than that. You can live in Paris, and play an open music !"

You have played with many great musicians, including Joe Zawinul...

Mokhtar: "Yes, and it was quite "comical", because I found myself playing with Joe Zawinul without any rehearsal ! I replaced Paco Sery, and I played about fifteen gigs with him...
Lately, I went to San Francisco, in the United States to record with Carlos Santana... and maybe I would be featured on a few tracks of his upcoming album. Carlos Santana is someone who is searching for many things, and he loves Africa... He knows a little bit of everything, and all about African music... and he is searching for some combinations... He really is a great person, and it was an incredible encounter, really."

You also teach African rhythms... is it something important for you?

Mokhtar: "Yes. I give some master classes with Gérard [Carucci]. We were even supposed to give one here, but I don't know what happened! I have also writen a book, "African Rhythms and Independance for Drumset", on African rhythms, and I am trying to get these things known to people. Because everything that is Brazilian music, Cuban music or salsa... is now starting to be part of people's life, it is not "exotic" any longer, and we have to do the same for the African music. People should't say they went to listen to some African music like if if it was something unual or "exotic"... it has to become something normal, like if you were going to see a concert of Gilberto Gil. And I think that African music, throught quite a few groups and experiences, in Paris - because Paris is where it is happening, where there is a lot of cultural mixes - is starting to move, little by little. We are beginning to see people doing different musics. And just with my group, Mossan, with Jean-Philippe [Riquiel], with Tom [Diakité], who got signed by Peter Gabriel's label with his band, Tama, a very interesting group, very opened; also with Doumbe, the bass player, who recorded an album, mixing African music and funk... I really think there are a lot of goog things happening and on the way. We have passed the time where we thought everything that was American was great, and now I believe we are starting to go in a new direction, and it is a good thing!"

How did you start playing the drums?

Mokhtar: "In fact, I started playing music because my mother was often taking me to some weddings... and you know, I was in Morocco, where there is a lot of percussions... and my brother was playing a little drums... That's how I started."

You have learned by yourself?

Mokhtar: "Yes, I learned by myself at first, then I went for a little while at the conservatory of music... but I mostly learned by myself, listening to some records... and most of all, I was lucky to be interested by several styles of musics, when I was young. And what Idefend with Mossan, is a sort of multi-ethnicity, of mixing of musics and influences...
My origins are African, but I have grown up in France, and it is also part of my culture. So it is a mix of all of that... and it seems that it is in mixing that yoy do the good things! So, I am trying!"

Mokhtar Samba

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