Gniri means ‘dance’ in Balanta (the language of the Balanta people), and Balma means ‘balaphon’. Gniri Balma is ‘the dance of the balaphon’. The Balanta people are a major presence in Seckou’s homeland of Casamance, yet in general a minor presence in the rest of Senegal. They’ve long been a source of fascination for him. Their main instrument is the balaphon, the wood-block xylophone that’s a distant ancestor of the piano. Like most African peoples, the Balanta have an elaborate suite of rituals and dances relating to male circumcision, but unlike most, Balanta men can be circumcised at a later age. It usually happens when a man is about to take on a major responsibility in life, such as getting married, or becoming a father, or becoming the head of a family.he men are taken out into the bush where they’re given important life lessons by an elder, who’s accompanied by a balaphon player. During the ritual, they perform a very unusual one-legged dance. ‘The big dance (don-ba in Mandinka) has come,’ Seckou sings. ‘The man-dance has come. If you can’t move your leg, you can use your hands; if you can’t use your hands, your heart can dance.’ The first melody was originally composed by Omar, but like most of the songs on this album, the final result is the fruit of close collaboration. Sung in Balanta and Mandinka.