Biography:
King Marong has been
performing professionally since the age of 12. Marong
developed his talents in the coastal fishing village of
Bakau where he was born and
grew up exposed to griots and
international musicians who were his mentors and role models. In his late teens he
formed his band Kunta Kinteh and later toured in The Gambia, Senegal,
Europe and the UK.
King Marong has built an
international reputation as a master Gambian percussionist of many African
drumming styles on instruments such as the Djembe,
Boucarabou, Doundoun and Sabar, teaching percussion to
students from around the world.
Since arriving in Australia, King has developed a reputation
as being a versatile and dynamic performer. He has worked
with local West African and Australian artists to introduce
the complex and powerful drumming rhythms, melodic kora
music and vivid dance style of his culture to Australia. His
involvement in many collaborative projects has enabled him
to work with both local and international musicians
including energetic live percussive dance music with local
DJ’s, to the sleek and sophisticated
‘afro-jazz-reggae-fusion’ of his band Super Afro Mandinko.
For this project King has been collaborating with some of
Melbourne’s premier musicians, playing and arranging the
traditional songs of the Gambia with a contemporary feel.
King has had a strong working relationship with the Boite
World Music Café, contributing to the Melbourne Millennium
Chorus at the Melbourne Concert Hall as a solo artist. King
has also represented his culture on many occasions in
performances around the state through his close work with
Multi Cultural Arts Victoria.
Now a resident in Melbourne, King has taught percussion to
students from the USA, Europe, Netherlands, Scandinavia, UK,
Japan, Australia, NZ and Canada. He performs regularly at
festivals, ceremonies, private celebrations, corporate
functions and has been artist in residence at many
government and private schools in Australia.
His band King Marong and Safara, formed in 2001, is an
acoustic, percussion-based representation of the many
traditional songs and dances performed for local Senegambian
ceremonies in both the city and the villages. Safara
incorporates vocals, djembe, sabar, doundoun, kora, dance,
cow bell and shakers in a spiritually inspiring repertoire
of dynamic tribal rhythms and visually stimulating dance
routines specific to Senegal and The Gambia.
King Marong Safara Music School:
A cultural ambassador for Senegambia, King has created the
Safara Music School in Melbourne where he teaches hand
percussion and dance on various levels.
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