MANDING JATA presents the performing arts and oral traditions of the Mali Empire, encompassing much of the region now known as West Africa. It was the largest Empire in African history and its most celebrated city was the fabled Timbuktu.

At the crossroads of MANDING culture, Timbuktu drew together performers from across the Empire, generating a rarified level of creative vitality. Much of the MANDING JATA repertoire comes from this golden era, between the 13th and 15th centuries.

In 1995/96 over forty MANDING performers living in Canada, the USA and Europe were interviewed and auditioned before selecting the artists of MANDING JATA. Since then the group has performed for enthusiastic audiences around the world.

This distinguished group of musicians, dancers and singers come from Mali, The Gambia, Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast. The primary instruments featured are the kora (21 string harp lute), balafon (xylophone), ngoni (lute), djembe and dundunba drum ensemble, flutes and the nyri nyro (bull roarer).

While the performers come from the heart of the culture, with many formerly being principal members of their countries national cultural troupes, the vision of MANDING JATA comes from the mind of the "JALI", the hereditary musical historian and guardian of the flame.

NOUMOUFASSA also presents a program designed for young people entitled, The Manding Empire Revealed, which has been presented to over 3000 school audiences in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the Caribbean.