Taffa Cissé

Taffa Cissé, (* 1957 as Moustapha Cissé in West Africa, Senegal) is a percussionist, author, composer, performer and member of the 1969 founded Senegalese music band Xalam (band). He lives in France and Senegal.
==Career==
Originally from Senegal, West Africa, Taffa Cissé was introduced to percussion at a very young age and was quickly proclaimed
“Master Drummer” by the griot community.
After College he studied music at the Dakar Conservatory (National Institute of Arts of Senegal I.N.A.S) and was admitted to the National Theatre of Senegal to join the National Ballet la Linguère.
Subsequently he became soon one of the greatest soloists in Senegal and later joined the Mudra Afrique also known as Centre Africain de Perfectionnement et de Recherche des Interprètes du Spectacle Mudra Afrique created by Maurice Béjart and directed by Germaine Acogny, where he worked as a musician and composer.. 
Furthermore he became a member (percussionist, composer, author and singer) of the mainly in Africa popular but musically worldwide very influential Senegalese band Xalam, that went (inter alia) on tour with Hugh Masekela and Miriam Makeba, played 1979 at the Horizonte – Festival der Weltkulturen der Berliner Festspiele., performed at the Dakar Jazz Festival or jammed with Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Sonny Rollins and others. 
In June 1982 The Rolling Stones invited Taffa Cissé to play on their next album Undercover of the Night.
 
With the release of the LP Gorée and together with Xalam Cissé reached 1984 the Top 5 (African, Reggae and Folk albums) listed in Le Monde for five months, wrote the music for the successful French movie Marche à l'ombre (film) , performed at the Anti-Apartheid Night: Hommage à Nelson Mandela in Paris and released eleven albums (1975–2015) https://sites.google.com/site/festivalculturesansfrontiere/artiste?tmpl=%2Fsystem%2Fapp%2Ftemplates%2Fprint%2F&showPrintDialog=1 .
From 1991 to 2012 the percussionist was a member and musician in the band of Jean-Luc Ponty, playing concerts all over the world with him and appearing on Pontys albums as Life Enigma (2001), Live at Semper Opera (2002) or The Atacama Experience (2007).
Taffa Cissé also has collaborated with various international stars of Jazz, Rock, African music and more, as Al Jarreau, Jean-Philippe Rykiel, Princess Erica, Làam, Anggun Cipta Sasmi, Julie Zenatti, Carole Frederick, Nadiya, Mama Keita, Leila Doriane, Nathalie Cardone or the musicians Noêl Assolo, Olivier Monteil and Jimmy Drouillard.
As well as he worked (as musician and composer) at the opening of 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, 1997 with theatre director Matthias Langhoff at Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus in Grèce , at Theàtre de la Cartoucherie in France, at Compagnie EBENE in France and 1999 again with Matthias Langhoff at the Deutsches Theater (Berlin) .
Nowadays Taffa Cissé is in great demand on the international scene and lives between France and Senegal, where he performs, composes, does studio recordings and tours with artists from different cultural and musical backgrounds.
Just as he works and tours with his band Xalam , which is still one of the most known music groups in Senegal and probably the oldest still touring today 
As an internationally known master of drums, Cissé also occasionally gives rhythm courses and workshops throughout Europe, Africa and the USA.
==Discography==
with The Rolling Stones
* 1983 - Undercover (of the night)
* 1983 – The Complete Story Of Rolling Stones 18
* 2018 - The Rolling Stones - Studio Albums Vinyl Collection 1971-2016
with Jean-Luc Ponty
* 1991 - Tchokola
* 2001 - Life Enigma
* 2002 - Live at Semper Opera
* 2007 - The Atacama Experience
* 2004 - Jean-Luc Ponty in Concert DVD
with others
* 1979 Juhani Aaltonen Springbird
* 1986 Les Porte MentauCombat Des Races
* 1993 Salif Keita et Steve Hillage L'Enfant Lion (Bande Originale Du Film)""
* 1996 Clement Masdongar Siya
* 1995 Yuba Everybody Nyani-Nyaniv
* 1997 Meiway Les Génies Vous Parlent
* 1999 MeEddy Louissiway Sang Mêlé
* 2000 Vanilla Attié Lagondes Horizons
* 2005 Clara Ponty Mirror Of Truth
* 2005 Lura Di Korpu Ku Alma
* 2005 Tcheka Nu Monda
* 2007 Roger 'Kemp' Biwandu Influences
* 2005 Julia Sarr & Patrice Larose Set Luna 
* 2009 Lura Eclipse
* 2009 Eddy Louissl D'Un Jour A L'Autre ...
* 2020 Don Pascal The Dakar Experiment
with Xalam (band)
* 1974 - Daîda
* 1979 - Adé (horizontal Berlin)
* 1982 - Africa
* 1984 - Goree
* 1986 - Apartheid
* 1988 - Gêstu-Guèstù
* 1990 - Xariit
* 1994 - Wam Sa Bindam
* 2008 - Live à Montreux
* 2009 - 2A@Z 
* 2015 - Waxati
Category:1957 births
Category:21st-century Senegalese male musicians
Category:People from Dakar
Category:Wolof-language singers
Category:Male songwriters
Category:Senegalese jazz drummers
Category:Senegalese drummers