Estuary / Constantinople - Kiya Tabassian, Ablaye Cissoko, Patrick Graham

Come and share a magical moment as the setar, kora, and percussion intertwine, creating music that soothes the soul. Doors open at 7 pm. The estuary, a place where freshwater meets saltwater, evokes passage, renewal, and fertility. It is a space of transition and transformation, where unexpected possibilities emerge—just like the musical encounters imagined by Constantinople. Kiya Tabassian and Ablaye Cissoko, both eternal musical explorers who build bridges between cultures and eras, have been working and collaborating together for over a decade and have traveled through imaginary worlds stretching between Persia and the Mandinka kingdoms. With Estuary, they bring together the currents of their musical memories and offer stories inspired by figures of profound nobility and humanity, reimagined through a universal language. Just like their voices, the strings of their setar and kora respond to and intertwine with each other, while the outstanding percussionist Patrick Graham supports and colours this sonic alcove, where the listener—privileged witness to this encounter—is invited to enter. “These pieces were born from true encounters, from those moments when life reveals its hidden beauty. They speak of extraordinary beings in their everyday simplicity, of those quiet heroes who transform the world through their very presence. The estuary is that magical place where the river embraces the ocean, where waters weave their stories together. These pieces are our estuaries: spaces of encounter between our traditions and universal emotions, between the stories of here and the hearts of everywhere. It is our mission as griots and bridge-building musicians to carry beauty forward, to give voice to the human qualities that deserve to be known and honored, to shed light on those sparks that illuminate our shared path.” Kiya Tabassian, Ablaye Cissoko, Patrick Graham “(…) a rare delight: music unlike anything heard before.” – Le Monde “In twelve years and three albums, these two virtuosos have sealed the union of the setar lute and the Manding kora, giving birth to new traditions at the crossroads of the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa.” – Télérama (TTT)