by SCOTT C

At 70 years of age, Manu Dibango, or "the Lion of Cameroon" as he is sometimes called, has contributed enormously to the presence of African music throughout the world. This legendary saxophonist began his career in the '50s playing jazz in Brussels and Paris before eventually returning to Cameroon to form his own band in 1963. Best known for longstanding classics like "Soul Makossa" and "Weya," he has also collaborated with many celebrated African artists over the years, including Fela Kuti, Tony Allen, Angelique Kidjo, Franklin Boukaka and Ray Lema, to name a few, displaying talent not only on the sax but on the marimba and vibraphone as well. The Mirror spoke to Manu Dibango over the phone from his back garden in Paris.

Mirror: What was all that music I heard in the background a minute ago?

Manu Dibango: Oh! It is a sunny day outside, and I have to move into the garden because I have some singers at my place and we are practicing today. We have a concert in three days in a church here in Paris, and I'm working with the London Gospel Community Choir.

M: And they're at your house!

MD: Yeah (laughs)! I've been working with them for six or seven years, with various sizes of bands. Three weeks ago, I was playing with the philharmonic orchestra in Rotterdam! I like to keep busy in different directions, you see? Not only Makossa, Makossa, Makossa… (laughs)

M: That's good to hear, man, but I know everybody still wants to hear "Soul Makossa" wherever you go.

MD: I know that! I have played for a long time already, and they still want to hear it!

M: You're not sick of that?

MD: Nooo! This is the public demand, you see? I have been playing "Makossa" for 50 years. People come to see you sometimes because they only know that song. It's a kind of nostalgia for some. Play what people know from you, and then of course you can bring some new stuff as well.

M: The Soul Makossa LP was probably my first introduction into African music, but I didn't discover it until 1989.

MD: Thank you, sir! Welcome to the club!

M: I was born in 1972.

MD: The year of the Makossa (laughs)! That song came to America in 1973 and you were one year old. It's almost a standard now that so many different bands play. I have heard so many versions of that one song.

African expansion

M: Have you seen growth in the popularity of African music in the last few years? It seems like the legacy of Fela Kuti has lent a lot of momentum to the greater population discovering some of the many African artists who have contributed for years.

MD: It often takes a long time to bring something good to the people. It could take 20, in this case 30 years for people to realize that there is a new environment, or a different approach to the music and rhythm - not from Western countries, but from Eastern countries, you see? More and more people know the difference between Salif Keta and Angelique Kidjo. The new generation is coming now.

M: But when you say it takes 20 or 30 years for a sound to become recognized, is this something that you're conscious of when you were creating and recording all those years ago?

MD: You cannot know this in advance. Instead of doing 20 "Soul Makossas" and never working again (laughs), you have to bring something new. A new approach that embodies your music is always changing, and that takes time. Beethoven died before people knew he was a genius, and when he was alive he was suffering like hell. Most classical music took a century before people gave it respect.

M: You should feel pretty good, man. You've been recognized and you're still laughing!

MD: (laughing) Thank you, my friend! Yes, I'm still around! This time I'm coming to Montreal with a young band from Cameroon. Instead of bringing my old band, it's good to bring the new generation - this is most important for me. You learn always from the young people.

M: I suppose they're happy to be learning from you as well.

MD: Oh, yes. I like to do this kind of experimentation. Sometimes I play with 40 saxophones, ages eight to 35 years old, in Paris. This is the music life, it does not stop.

M: And you're 70 years old?

MD: I am like good wine, my friend (laughs). I only get better with age!

At Spectrum on Tuesday, July 8, 8pm, $35

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