Noura Mint Seymali and Elida Almeida at Lincoln Center Atrium

Lincoln Center Atrium, an airy passageway open at both ends, links Broadway and Columbus Avenue between 62nd and 63rd streets. On thursday evenings it becomes a performance space presenting global artists passing through. This summer Noura Mint Seymali from Mauritania and Elida Almeida from Cape Verde performed. At both shows i spoke with passersby, who detoured into the atrium and were blown away by the experience. The informality of the space, seemingly randomly gathered crowd and amazing talent make for two memorable  experiences. 

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Cape Verde and Mauritania are close geographically but culturally expansive. Berber, Amizigh, and sounds of the Magreb percolate through Noura’s vocals and Jeich Ould Chighaly’s guitar. She draws on the poetry sung in the griot tradition of her family sung in  Hassaniyya Arabic. Jeich also comes from a Moorish griot family. As do most musicians in Mauritania, they perform in traditional settings, weddings, parties and ceremonies. 

A look or a hand gesture from Noura signaled Ousmane Touré on bass, or Matthew Tinari on drums  to change the tempo or take a solo.The rhythm section came to the foreground during the vocal breaks, the drumming and funky bass lines standing out along Jeich's guitar.  The quartet format was initially due to touring restrictions, but seems to have challenged the musicians to adapt in ways that keep the music spontaneous. 

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From the start there was an easy rapport to their interaction on stage, Noura’s vocals soared and dove setting the scene for Jeich’s solos, which were short but completely absorbing and took unanticipated turns before leading back to Noura. A close look at his guitar offers a hint at how he gets such incredible sounds.

The set featured music was from her first two albums Tzenni and Arbina released by Gliitterbeat as well as newer songs the band plans to record this fall in Mauritania. The label site offers this on the songs meaning: Many of the songs on Arbina call out to the divine, asking for grace and protection. “Arbina” is a name for God.  The album carries a message about reaching beyond oneself to an infinite spiritual source, while learning to take the finite human actions to necessary to affect reality on earth.   The concept of sëbeu, or that which a human can do to take positive action on their destiny, is animated throughout.  

300 miles of the Atlantic ocean  separates the Cape Verdean from its neighbor Mauritania, musically the distance is greater. Culturally it draws on West African and Portuguese elements Elida Almeida's set sung in Kriolu, featured mostly original songs that touched on several traditional rhythms found in the islands, funana, batuka, coladeira, morna as well as latin jazz over the course of  her Atrium set.

The rhythms merge and flow in her compositions "Sapatinha" invoked funana and featured the accordian of Diego Gomes and the lyrics recalled her growing up on the island of Santago; "Kontam" a ballad with all the saudade of a morna, and Nlibra di Bo (batuca) both written after a breakup; and on the Stunning "Bersu d'Oru" a carnival like rhythm merged into a latin jazz groove.