Nino Galissa

Guinea Bissau

Nino Galissa, author, composer and kora performer, composes using his African roots adorned with various modern styles of Afro-pop and jazz.

Nino Galissa, author, composer and kora performer, composes using his African roots, adorned with various modern styles of Afro-pop and jazz. In his compositions, he integrates current sounds, working with the contemporaneity of traditional African music.

To this day, the Mandinga people cultivate the tradition of the Griots (or Djelis), men who belong to families of storytellers, guardians of Mandinga music and culture. Nino Galissa belongs to one of these families, and his father, Buli Galissa, was the first musician from Guinea-Bissau to bring the Kora harp to Portugal, a 21-string instrument with a beautiful sound, which is played by members of these families. Nino Galissa learned from his father the stories of his people and the secrets of the instrument.

Nino Galissa knows how to combine the sound of the Kora with the sound of Western musical instruments, such as the guitar, keyboards and brass instruments. He composes in his native language, Fula, and also in Guinean Creole, Portuguese and Spanish. His first album was released in 1997, and he is already on his fifth studio album, in addition to several festival appearances. He is currently one of the best-known artists of traditional African music in Europe.