Ray Lema Quintet

Concert

Ray Lema Quintet

Ray Lema is a true master of musical lightness, elegance, and delight. Trained on the organ at a Catholic seminary in his early teens, he dabbled in the guitar while studying at university in Kinshasa, but his instrument of vocation ultimately became the piano. He explored this instrument across a wide range of colours and temperatures—from the classical repertoire to samba, afrobeat, and jazz.  

Born in the westernmost part of Congo but later forced into a period of exile for over thirty years (in Washington, Brussels, and finally Paris), the sounds of his native country never left his heart. Lema continues to incorporate Congolese rhythmic techniques into his piano playing, adapting the sebene routine—the typical phrasing of the Congolese rumba that forms the base for dancing and musical trance. Many years into his international career, he enjoys a unique position: Lema’s music remains hugely accessible thanks to its apparent simplicity, while his originality transcends the boundaries of genre norms.

Part of Not All Travellers Walk Roads—Of Humanity as Practice, 36th Bienal de São Paulo, Berlin Edition.

Meeting point: Miriam Makeba Auditorium

Next date:

• Date Friday, 11/September/2026 20:30 bis 22:00
• Venue Haus der Kulturen der Welt
• Address John-Foster-Dulles-Allee 10, 10557 Berlin-Tiergarten