Welnere (from 1996 to 2002)
Malick Pathé Sow, who was born in 1959 in the Fuuta region (north of Senegal) has become famous as one of the best hoddu players of his generation. He was also a musician in Baaba Maal’s band for many years. In the early nineties he moved to France and then to Belgium to start a solo career.
Welnere in 1995
Welnere ( = happiness in pulaar) was founded by Malick in Brussels in 1995 with three goals : be a link between the various halpulaar (peuls or fulani) communities in Europe, let the european public become more familiar with halpulaar music from the Senegal river and eventually bring back to Africa a new music, being the crossbreed of african and european influences.
The presentation text of 1996 was :
The music of the group is based on the traditional music of Fuuta Tooro (the semi-desert region of the Senegal river) and features a mix between the halpulaar’s melodies and instruments and european harmonies and instruments. This melting pot is however done with respect to the original music, and one can easily recognize the Yella, Naale or Ripo (the traditional rhythms of the Fuuta) as well as the graceful and arab-like melody that are typical of the region.
Malick’s lyrics are about the need to defend halpulaar culture, the hardship of exile out of Africa, nostalgia of home, the fate of political resistants in Mauritania, tributes to various famous men in Senegal (such as Cheikh Amadou Bamba or Baydi Kacce ) etc
I recorded in 1995 in my new studio in Brussels 7 titles which were released as a cassette in 1996
In the same time, between 1996 and 2002 Welnere has toured regularly in Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Germany and Canada with appearances in Sfinks (Antwerpen), Fête de la Musique (Genève), Couleur Café (Brussels), etc.
Malick had kept a good relationship with Baaba Maa, and thanks to him the 7 songs + 3 extra are released on CD on Palm Pictures, a new label founded by the old crew of Island records (among them was the legendary Jumbo Vanrenen) : Danniyanke (1998 – Yoff).
This CD got excellent reviews, but was never released in the US for mysterious reasons. Nevertheless we decide to record a 2nd CD, also in my studio, with some new musicians including Mbagnick Gaye as co-arranger and keyboard player.
This second CD is released in 2002 : Diariyata (2002 – A3Dis), but we can’t find any distributor and it remains largely unknown from the public. Maybe the “over-arrangement” of many titles is responsible for that.
Malick and I drift apart ; I continue to busy myself with projects which remain semi-confidential while Malick finally gets a real contract with serious people i.e. the team of Muziekpublique (Peter Van Rompaey).
Thanks to Muziekpublique, Malick, with a new band which includes kora player Bao Sissoko will issue two CDs which will well recognized and reviewed by critics and audience : Maayo Men and Aduna. Concerts and tours will follow.
Welnere (back from the dead)
Around 2016, Malick and Muziekpublique stop working together (for other mysterious reasons) and he comes back to me, at first occasionally and then in a more regular way. We record bits and pieces of some titles which will appear on his self-produced Anoore album and then a full single just after the Covid pandemic.
Starting in 2020, we work more and more together. I appear as a guest on the Anoore CD release concert in the Molière theater and we start rehearsing regularly at Bao Sissoko’s place.
An evening at Bao’s place.
We work on re-arrangements of old Malick’s tunes and some new compos. We play at Paira Daiza zoo (but not in the lion’s cage !) during their 2022 summer festival and later in the belgian senate as a musical intermezzo during a good-will seminar.
Pairi Daiza
In the belgian senate
We start recording again in my old studio, and finish the tracks in my studio outside of Brussels.
Finally we record a few tracks on video so as to have something recent to show to promoters.
Very serious discussion
The first track from the session :
The second video from the same session :
The third video :
