“Prince of the Kora” or “King of the Kora” were some of the titles that Toumani Diabaté received over the years. An excellent player of the kora, a 21-string instrument made from a large gourd and typical of West Africa, he died in a private clinic in the capital of Mali, Bamako, after a short illness.

“My best friend, my support and confidant, my guide, my best companion, my dear father is gone forever.” His son wrote on Facebook: “My friend Diabaté, who is also a kora player and shared the stage with him, also in Portugal.”

Toumani Diabaté said he was the representative of the 71st generation of traditional musicians. Born in 1965, he began learning to play this type of guitar at the age of five. He introduced himself to the world by recording the album Kirain 1988. He quickly became one of the biggest names in Malian music, alongside Salif Keita and Ali Farka Touré. (With the latter he recorded two albums, one of which won a Grammy for Best International Album, and gave a memorable performance at the Cale do Amaral Hall, Lisbon, in 2005, as part of the Africa Festival.)

Salif Keita expressed his regret over the “loss of a national treasure.” Malian Grammy Award-winning singer Oumou Sangaré said Diabate was “a bridge between ancestral tradition and modernity.”

Senegalese Youssou N’Dour described Toumani Diabaté as “a gifted kora player and an unparalleled music arranger”.

“Tonight the Kora has lost its master,” said Malian journalist Seydou Cessouma.