Au Tour des Cordes — Saint-Louis
7th edition · Friday 29 to Sunday 31 October 2027 · Saint-Louis, Senegal
The festival
In Saint-Louis, where the Senegal River slips toward the Atlantic, an entire festival is held together by strings. Au Tour des Cordes was born in 2021 from the vision of Ablaye Cissoko, the Senegalese singer-songwriter and kora master who promotes it. His idea: bring together the string instruments of Senegal and the world — the kora, the xalam, the ngoni and the riti in dialogue with the violin, the viola da gamba, the Iranian setar, the Middle Eastern kanun, the oud, and classical and jazz guitar.
Carried by Gnon Dema, the association Ablaye Cissoko created to pass on traditional music, the festival turns Saint-Louis into an open-air stage: the Institut français, the river crane at the north of the island and the Kër Thiane residence host concerts, creative residencies, school outreach, training sessions and master classes. A gathering devoted as much to transmission as to creation, and now international in scope.
The 6th edition — 5 to 7 November 2026
The 6th edition opened on Thursday 5 November 2026 with Mamadiyel Gano, from the Fouladou, and the beautiful notes of the riti, the single-string instrument of the Fulani and Serer communities. The SénéGaels — traditional women musicians from Ireland and Senegal — set the heritages of the two countries in dialogue, and the duo of Ablaye Cissoko and accordionist Cyrille Brotto performed at Kër Thiane. On Saturday 7 November, Portuguese guitarist Pedro Jóia opened the closing night at the Institut français, before Rokia Traoré: in a large red boubou, guitar in hand, the Malian singer closed the festival with her “Fifty-Fifty” project, a fresh look at Manding music. Our story of that night: “The Kora, the Guitar and a Queen”.
The 7th edition — 29 to 31 October 2027
Before the closing show had even ended, the festival announced the dates of its 7th edition: from Friday 29 to Sunday 31 October 2027, in Saint-Louis. The strings have not finished vibrating on the banks of the Senegal River.
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Key facts
Name: Au Tour des Cordes — world string instruments festival. Place: Saint-Louis, Senegal (Institut français, river crane, Kër Thiane residence). Season: late October–early November (7th edition: 29 to 31 October 2027). Founder and promoter: Ablaye Cissoko. Carried by: the Gnon Dema association. Official website: autourdescordes.com. Official page: facebook.com/festivalautourdescordes. Instagram: @autourdescordes. Official contacts: general information and ticketing: [email protected]; press and communication: [email protected]; +221 33 961 73 61 · +221 78 172 99 78. Address: 8E avenue Iyane Sy, Ndiolofène, Saint-Louis — BP 884, Senegal.
Around the festival
The island of Saint-Louis (Ndar) — the historic heart of the city, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site: its old houses with wrought-iron balconies and the Faidherbe bridge, the symbol of the city. Guet Ndar — the fishing village on the Langue de Barbarie, its colorful pirogues and the return of the catch at dawn. Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary — about an hour away, one of the world's great sanctuaries for migratory birds, also UNESCO-listed. The river crane — a witness to Saint-Louis's port past, at the north of the island, and one of the festival's very venues.