Based in Lille, France, Sakina Abdou has been involved in free music since 2007, when she joined the Muzzix collective. Her 2022 solo album Goodbye Ground brought her wider attention and acclaim, and helped her to move towards free improvisation in her solo playing.

Her latest album Hammer, Roll And Leaf is a collaboration with pianist Marta Warelis and precussionist Toma Gouband. She describes the feeling of wanting “to approach freedom with serenity... Sometimes you have to fight to claim freedom. But I also think you can fight with serenity. I was curious to interrogate this approach, because after years of being very angry about a lot of things, I really wanted to find a peaceful way of approaching music.”

Here, she curates a playlist of music that has inspired her in this new chapter.

Tracklist

Momo Wandel Soumah “Afro Blue”
Bi-Ki? “Tenues (Autoroute)”
Fred Frith “Freedom Is Your Friend/Some Assembly Required”
Charlie Haden & Carla Bley “The People United Will Never Be Defeated”
Adoct “Démenti Conforme”
The soloists of Concert Spirituel “Joseph Bodin de Boismortier: Concerto For Five Flutes in A, Op 15, No 2, 3rd Mvt”
Jimmy Giuffre “Jesus Maria”
Frank Theuns, Marc Hantaï “Michel Blavet: IIIe Recueil De Pièces Pour Deux Flûtes, Prélude”
Dimba Tamboura/Hamadou Guindo/Hamadou Tienta/Naouma Danbélé “Shepherd’s Dance”
Sakina Abdou “Planting Chairs (Part 4)”
Charles Mingus “Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting”
Sakina Abdou/Toma Gouband/Marta Warelis “Hammer The Roll”
The Lounge Lizards “Yak”
La Pieuvre & Circum Grand Orchestra “Andesine (Part 3)”
Trapeze “Disco Kid”
Miles Davis “In A Silent Way”
Sakina Abdou & Raymond Boni “Miroir d’Eau”
Roscoe Mitchell “Eeltwo (Part 1)”

In The Wire 491/492, Abdou talks in more detail to Stewart Smith about the making of her new album. Wire subscribers can also read the article in our online library.