Gao Hong & Kadialy Kouyate

The Chinese pipa meets the African kora ... and the Celtic bodhran

Wednesday 14th January 2026, Drama Studio, University of Sheffield

TalkingGigs presents Gao Hong and Kadialy Kouyate - 14th January 2026

What an amazing gig to end my tenure as host and curator of TalkingGigs. It was a pleasure and an honour to host Gao Hong and Kadialy Kouyate, two extraordinary artists whose skill, articulate conversation and musical virtuosity brought a resonant expressiveness to their performance at the Drama Studio on the 14th January. The first half of illuminating and erudite conversation brought out the artists' background, cultural influences and also displayed the consummate mastery of their instruments. The all music second half displayed a collaboration whose synergy emphasised their skill at improvisation and the intuitive understanding of each others instruments. A breathtaking performance brought a standing ovation from the totally absorbed audience. To extend the cross cultural collaboration a little further I joined the duo with some Celtic percussion on my bodhran for two tunes - totally improvised with very positive results judging by the audience's reaction. Another standing ovation followed their encore. What a great gig and a lovely way to end my tenure leading TalkingGigs.

At the end of the interval I broke the news of my departure and introduced my successors ; local Sheffield global folk band Mishra who decided they would love to take TalkingGigs forward as a collective. I am really pleased and very excited that Mishra are now involved, and I look forward to the new energy and gigs that they will bring to such a wonderful format founded all the way back in 2014 by Charles Ritchie.

That’s it from me. It has been a great privilege to work with so many wonderful and talented people in my time curating TalkingGigs and I feel that I have grown, in many ways, along with the TalkingGigs format. But before I go ...

My thanks to the audiences that have attended TalkingGigs over the years and for all the money they have raised for ASSIST Sheffield. Thanks to the TalkingGigs volunteers for their help and making my role so much easier. Thanks to Charles for setting up TalkingGigs. Thanks to Nick Potter of Sheffield University Performance Venues for a productive and friendly collaboration that enabled TalkingGigs to flourish and bring some outstanding acts to Sheffield. Thanks to ASSIST Sheffield for being present and everything they do to make Sheffield a better place for all . Finally my thanks to Mishra for continuing the format and my best wishes to them as they carry TalkingGigs forward.

Here's to a new a new start and more adventures in Edinburgh with my lovely friend, companion, wife and inspiration, Olivia Cox.

Mòran taing – Many Thanks

Alasdair.

All photographs by Colin Perkins

And finally, Liz Williams - one of TalkingGigs volunteers adds her summary:

What a beautiful evening of conversation and tunes. The very accomplished Gao Hong played for only the second time with the delightful Kadialy Kouyate. Their two instruments while being similar had some noticeable differences. The pipa being a 4 stringed instrument and the kora being 21 strings.

Both performers shared their history of a musical life with Gao Hong becoming professional at the age of 12 while Kadialy Kouyate was born into an hereditary oral and musical ‘griot’ traditional family. Kadialy explained the history of his instrument in the context of Senegalese history and traditions.

During the second set we were delighted to hearing the fusion of the 2 instruments which complemented each other and had the additional pleasure of solos from them both. Alasdair joined them on set for two improvised numbers with the Celtic ‘bodhran’ setting the rhythm for the others to join in.

They finished their set with an improvised set based on the warm welcome they both received from Sheffield and the audience.

Gao Hong's next performance was playing in London with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, so we all felt very privileged to hear her and Kadialy in such an intimate setting.

A final farewell and thanks to Alasdair

I wanted to add a note of my own thanks to Alasdair.

When I stepped back from TalkingGigs in 2018, I thought that that would be it ... a great experiment and huge fun, but 'goodnight and goodbye'.

But Alasdair, who had been volunteering for a year or more, could see that it shouldn't end there. So he said he'd love to take over. We chatted it through ... and he did.

Astonishingly - to me at least - he has now been hosting TalkingGigs for longer than me! He has put on some wonderful gigs and established a really productive relationship with Nick Potter of Sheffield University Performance Venues. And I'm now delighted that Nick is going to be carrying things on with Mishra. My best wishes go to them all.

I will be around somewhere and am really looking forward to seeing what the third generation of TalkingGigs is going to bring!

Thank you everyone - especially everyone who has come to any of the gigs over the years.

Charles Ritchie

Talking_Gigs_Gao_Hong_Kadialy_Kouyate_15

(Top) Alasdair in his element performing with Gao Hong and Kadialy Kouyate

(Middle) Handing on the torch (from the left) - Charles Ritchie, Ford Collier, Kate Griffin, Alasdair Dempster, Nick Potter and John Ball.

(Left) Farewell and applause to Alasdair from his final sold out audience.

All photographs by Colin Perkins