The kora is a Mandinka instrument consisting of a calabash, a wooden neck between 1m20 and 1m40 long going through it, and 21 strings.

The calabash, which serves as the soundboard, is covered with a goatskin and has a hole of about ten centimetres on its upper right side. The way the instrument is tuned varies according to the region where it is played. The kora is the traditional instrument of the griots (tribal poets and musicians) who, from time immemorial have formed an integral part of their people’s history.