Kora

He is performing here with his Symmetric Orchestra, an ensemble of West African musicians who play both traditional instruments (kora, balafon, bolombatto, djembe) and slightly more contemporary ones (guitars, keyboards).

Since its invention, probably in sixteenth-century Senegal, the kora has been used by professional bards called jalis, or griots. The plucked instrument's harplike sound accompanies the jali's song—praise for patrons, histories and genealogies, satire, political commentary, and poetic recitation.