Top Cuban and Senegalese musicians to appear at the Apex later this month

Jazz pianist Omar Sosa and kora player Seckou Keita will celebrate the release of their second CD “SUBA”, by taking to the road on an 11-date tour, including taking the stage at the Apex.

The Atlantic Ocean separates Cuba and Senegal, the respective birthplaces of Omar Sosa and Seckou Keita, a distance diminished by their shared ancestral connection to Africa.

In the summer of 2012, they were invited to perform together in London by their mutual friend, the drummer Marque Gilmore.

“Seckou arrived just before the gig, took out his kora and started playing,” Omar remembers, “and I clicked with him like we had been playing together all our lives.”

Seckou loved Omar for his “high level of musical spirituality.” Omar saw in Seckou a rare ability to blend and collaborate but never lose his identity. By the end of the night, the inevitable “hey man, let’s do a record” had been voiced. By the end of the year, they had begun work on their debut CD Transparent Water.

Sosa has released over 30 albums during a career that has included nominations for seven Grammy or Latin Grammy awards, whilst Keita is a multi-award winner, most recently as the prestigious BBC Radio 2 Folk Musician of the Year (2019).

The duo have a global heritage that spans jazz, Latin and African music, and the new album brings together influences from across the world.

“SUBA” means “sunrise” in Mandinka, Keita’s native language.

Omar Sosa and Seckou Keita are joined by Venezuelan percussionist Gustavo Ovalles, Jaques Morelenbaum on cello and Dramane Dembélé on flute and they are set to be at the Apex on Tuesday, November 23, at 7.30pm.