NORWICH – Burkina Electric, the first electronica band of the West African country of Burkina Faso, presents its American debut in a month-long performance and residency tour. The tour begins at 7 p.m. Oct. 12 at the Chenango County Council of the Arts’ Martin W. Kappel Theater, in Norwich, and will include a three- day residency with students of the Unadilla Valley Schools; followed by a performance on Oct. 15 at Gravity Lounge in Charlottesville, VA, following a University of Virginia residency; Oct. 17 at RPI in Troy; Oct. 18 at Johnny D’s in Somerville, MA; and Oct. 20 at Joe’s Pub in New York City.

Burkina Electric oscillates fluidly among the traditional soundscapes of the African nation of Burkina Faso, fusions of techno/trip-hop, and the rhythms of contemporary electronic dance culture, creating what many call a new genre of African electronica “both experimental and exciting.” Renowned composer/percussionist Lukas Ligeti brings his downtown New York background to Burkina Electric, where it is mixed with German vj/electronicist Pyrolator’s synthi-pop influences, paralleled to the spirit of African culture delivered by fellow band members: award-winning Burkina vocalist Maï Lingani, one of Burkina’s premier guitarists Wende K. Blass, and Burkina dancers As Zoko and Vicky.

New York-based Lukas Ligeti has found an exceptional interpreter for his contemporary work in lead singer Maï Lingani, and with Burkina Electric; he frees African music from the folkloristic and traditionalist inclinations of Western observers. “Africa is not a museum, and tradition only makes sense if it continues to live and is capable of fulfilling its social function in today’s life,” explains Ligeti.