Introduction
Mandinka culture is a predominantly oral culture where storytelling is not only a way
of entertainment but also a means of recording and learning from the past, solving
problems and communicating messages of great importance. It is part of the role and
responsibility of the jali to be an oral historian. As the late Gambian kora player Jali
Nyama Suso puts it, “they’re journalists - they interpret events of now and of the past”.
If you are born into one of the great musical families of the Mandinka people, you are a
jali from birth, even before you touch a musical instrument. A young jali must first learn
the ancient stories of his people and the great Mandinka epic tales of adventure such
as the story of the great emperor Sundiata Keita or the famous King Kelefa. Only after
mastering these old tales can you begin to tell your own stories and create new songs.
Because the jalis know the histories and stories of their people, both past and present,
they are like the glue that holds communities together, and in the words of the famous
kora player Toumani Diabate, “they are the needle that sews”, bringing people and
communities closer together and helping to preserve their common history.
Songs and stories range from epic tales to simple tales of family histories, love stories,
or messages of thanks and praise. The epic of Sundiata, which tells the life and exploits
of the founder of the Mali empire, Sundiata Keita, is one of the longest accounts
transmitted by the jali, in fact there have been more than twenty different versions
collected over the years.
© Detta Danford & Love Music Festival
Activities: Music and Storytelling
Listening, storytelling / writing, performing
• Paper & pen / pencils
• Computers, internet access
& speakers
• Sundiata Keita story sheet
for primary classes
60-120 mins
split between
the activities
Small groups / individual
Any age
Activity 1. The Tale of Sundiata Keita
For primary classes
Listen to Mamadou playing Soundiata Keita on the Love Music Festival Jukebox. It is a
song about the great Mandinka emperor.
The story is told in the guide sheet accompanying this project. However there is one
catch! The story is all in the wrong order.
In groups, cut out all the different sections of the story and lay them out in front of you.
Read through the different parts and see if you can re-arrange them in the right order.
When you are happy with your story, get together with another group and compare what
you have. Do you both have the same order? If not, does the story still make sense?
One of the great things about aural histories (stories being passed down from one
person to another) is that often things get slightly changed or embellished from person to
person. See if you can remember the story of Sundiata Keita when you go home tonight.
Have a go at telling a family member or friend. Can you remember all the parts of the
story? Do you have to make it up a little bit for the parts you can’t remember?
For secondary classes
In small groups, do some research on Sundiata Keita. What can you find out about him?
What is his story?
Together, choose the parts of the story that you think are the most important or the
most interesting to you. See if you can get the story written in no more than ten short
descriptive parts.
Once you’ve written your version down, compare your version of the story to the other
groups in your class. Have they all chosen the same bits of the story to include in their
version?
Can you think of any other epic tales that you know that are on the scale of the Sundiata
Keita tale?
One of the great things about aural histories (stories being passed down from one
person to another) is that often things get slightly changed or embellished from person to
person. See if you can remember the story of Sundiata Keita when you go home tonight.
Have a go at telling a family member or friend. Can you remember all the parts of the
story? Do you have to make it up a little bit for the parts you can’t remember?
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Activity 2. Exploring Songs with Stories
Most Mandinka songs are not as epic or complex as the Sundiata Keita. Many tell very
simple tales about everyday life, or are sung in praise of a particular person.
One of my favourite songs is called Kaira, which means ‘peace’ in Mandinka. This
song was written during a time of great fighting and war and a jali wrote it to sing to the
leaders of the country, in order to let them know that the people were tired of the fighting
and wanted to ask for peace.
To listen to Mamadou’s cousin, Toumani Diabate playing his version of Kaira, go to:
http://www.myspace.com/toumanidiabate
Think about some of the music you like or listen to a lot.
Find a piece you like that tells a story.
• What is the story about?
• Can you write down the lyrics?
• What do you think the musician is saying with this piece of music?
• What does it mean and what does it mean to you?
Share your piece of music and your thoughts about it with your class.
Activity 3. Telling You Own Story
Now think about a story from your own life that you think it is important to tell. It could be
about something that you don’t want to forget, or it could be about something that you
feel people could learn from.
Think about how you might tell that story.
• What are the important things for people to know?
• Is there a message you want to get across?
• Think about how you might narrate your story or how you might write it down.
• What sort of language/structure would you use?
You could write it like a poem, or more like a piece of narrative or prose.
Once you have decided on how you’d like to tell your story, write it down and practice
saying it.
In small groups, practice performing your stories to each other. Give each other
feedback on what parts you liked or didn’t like. What worked or didn’t work?
Once you are happy with your story and the way in which you are telling it, share it with
us by uploading it to our sharing space on our Glow pages. You can either use a written
version of your story, record it as a sound file or video yourself telling it.
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The Story of Sundiata Keita (in order)
Nare Maghann Konaté was a king, the king of the Mandinka Kingdom.
One day a hunter, who was also a fortune-teller, came to see King Konaté.
The hunter predicted that soon a haggard, hunched and ugly woman would come and
see him. But that if King Konaté married her, she would give him a son who would one
day become a mighty king.
King Konaté was already married to Sassouma Berete and had a son by her called
Dankaran.
One day, two hunters from the Do kingdom came to see him and with them they brought
an ugly, hunchbacked woman named Sogolon. King Konaté remembered the prophecy
and married her.
Sogolon soon gave birth do a son, Sundiata Keita.
Sundiata was a weak child, unable to walk throughout his childhood.
Despite his physical weakness, the king granted Sundiata his own jali at a young age.
This was so that the young prince would have a musician friend and consultant to grow
with him through his life.
After some years, King Konaté died.
The king’s first son, Dankaran, took to the throne, against King Konaté’s wishes to
respect the prophecy that Sundiata would make a great king.
Sundiata and his mother suffered the scorn of the new king and his mother.
One day, Sundiata was so enraged by the treatment he and his mother received, he
requested an iron rod from the blacksmith. He used the iron rod to pull himself upright
and walk.
Eventually, the hatred of Sassouma Berete and Dankaran drove Sundiata and his
mother into exile in another kingdom.
At this time there was another kingdom nearby called Sosso.
This kingdom was ruled by a cruel sorcerer king, Soumaoro Kante.
Kante attacked the Mandinka kingdom, causing Dankaran to take flight in fear.
Kante was a cruel king, who oppressed the Mandinka people, so they sent for the exiled
Sundiata.
By joining forces with neighbouring smaller kingdoms, Sundiata forged a coalition and
waged a war against Sosso. He finally defeated him at the Battle of Kirina in 1235.
Soumaoro Kante disappeared into the mountains.
Sundiata was crowned with the title ‘Mansa’, or ‘king of kings’, and became the first ruler
of the Mali Empire.
His model of government would guide the empire into greatness for many hundreds of
years, until 1645.
His life and adventures have been told in many stories and turned into songs by many
great jalis through the years.
www
.lovem
usicfestiva
l.com
p4
Mixed Up
Nare Maghann Konaté was a king, the king
of the Mandinka Kingdom.
His life and adventures have been told in many
stories and turned into songs by many great
jalis through the years.
Sogolon soon gave birth do a son, Sundiata
Keita.
One day, Sundiata was so enraged by the
treatment he and his mother received, he
requested an iron rod from the blacksmith. He
used the iron rod to pull himself upright and
walk.
This kingdom was ruled by a cruel sorcerer
king, Soumaoro Kante.
One day, two hunters from the Do kingdom
came to see him and with them they brought
an ugly, hunchbacked woman named Sogolon.
King Konaté remembered the prophecy and
married her.
One day a hunter, who was also a fortuneteller, came to see King Konaté.
At this time there was another kingdom nearby
called Sosso.
Kante was a cruel king, who oppressed the
Mandinka people, so they sent for the exiled
Sundiata.
The hunter predicted that soon a haggard,
hunched and ugly woman would come and
see him. But that if King Konaté married her,
she would give him a son who would one day
become a mighty king.
Sundiata was a weak child, unable to walk
throughout his childhood.
Kante attacked the Mandinka kingdom, causing
Dankaran to take flight in fear.
By joining forces with neighbouring smaller
kingdoms, Sundiata forged a coalition and
waged a war against Sosso. He finally
defeated him at the Battle of Kirina in 1235.
King Konaté was already married to Sassouma
Berete and had a son by her called Dankaran.
Soumaoro Kante disappeared into the
mountains.
Sundiata was crowned with the title ‘Mansa’, or
‘king of kings’, and became the first ruler of the
Mali Empire.
After some years, King Konaté died.
Despite his physical weakness, the king
granted Sundiata his own jali at a young age.
The king’s first son, Dankaran, took to the
throne, against King Konaté’s wishes to
respect the prophecy that Sundiata would
make a great king.
This was so that the young prince would have a
musician friend and consultant to grow with him
through his life.
His model of government would guide the
empire into greatness for many hundreds of
years, until 1645.
Sundiata and his mother suffered the scorn of
the new king and his mother.
Eventually, the hatred of Sassouma Berete
and Dankaran drove Sundiata and his
mother into exile in another kingdom.
www
.lovem
usicfestiva
l.com
p5