A Specialist in All Styles: Barthélémy Attisso and the Art of Living Multiple Lives

The Elegance of Multiplicity in the Life and Music of Barthélémy Attisso

See a man in a crisp suit arguing commercial cases in the sweltering courts of Lomé, then see that same figure under stage lights in a Dakar nightclub, weaving melodic guitar solos through smoky air. This was Barthélémy Attisso, a Togolese lawyer who became one of Africa's most distinctive guitarists without ever abandoning his legal practice.

Attisso's life embodied a rare synthesis of analytical rigor and creative expression, challenging our modern assumptions about specialization and career focus. In an era that demands we choose a single path to mastery, he showed that excellence in multiple fields could be mutually enriching rather than mutually exclusive.

The Practical Origins of Art

Attisso's journey into music began not from artistic calling but from financial necessity. When he arrived in Dakar in 1966 to study law at the University of Dakar, he faced the familiar struggle of international students: how to fund his education. His solution was characteristically methodical—he would teach himself guitar to earn money for law books.

The learning process reveals much about his systematic nature. He acquired a guitar and borrowed a manual from the university library, then practiced with the same disciplined approach he would later apply to legal studies. This wasn't romantic inspiration but practical problem-solving. "I became a musician because I had to find a job in order to pay for my studies," he later explained, adding that his teacher had advised him to "pick a job that doesn't bore you" if he wanted to work without exhaustion.

What began as eighteen months of intensive practice—during which he suspended his law studies entirely—transformed necessity into passion. He absorbed influences from radio broadcasts, synthesizing the guitar styles of Congolese legends like Franco and Tabu Ley Rochereau with jazz masters like Django Reinhardt and Wes Montgomery. This radio-based education created a guitarist who was, from the beginning, a synthesizer of global influences rather than a specialist in any single tradition.

The Architect of Orchestra Baobab's Sound

Attisso's methodical approach to learning soon led him into Dakar's vibrant club scene, progressing from copying records to joining various nightclub bands. His breakthrough came with the famous Star Band at the Miami Club, Dakar's premier musical venue. When Adrien Senghor needed musicians for his upscale Baobab Club in 1970, he recruited Attisso and other Star Band members to form Orchestra Baobab.

The timing proved fortuitous. Attisso's legal education had developed the analytical skills that made him the band's arranger, while his diverse musical influences helped create their signature sound. Orchestra Baobab embodied what they called a "specialist in all styles" philosophy, blending Afro-Cuban rhythms with Senegalese traditions and Congolese guitar lines with jazz harmonies.

Attisso's guitar work exemplified this synthesis. His playing ranged from psychedelic experimentation to tender ballads, always characterized by precision and musicality rather than flashiness. Consider his solo on "Bul Ma Miin": entering at 1:18 with a descending figure that outlines the harmonic space without demanding attention, his tone warm and articulate with just enough sustain to let each note breathe. Rather than relying on speed or virtuosic display, he built phrases patiently, often delaying resolution to create tension between melodic expectation and rhythmic placement.

His approach embodied a refined economy where each note contributed meaningfully. He favored the upper register not for drama but for transparency, as if clarifying an argument already in motion. The result transcended mere accompaniment to become commentary—measured, melodic, and quietly indelible.

The Complete Return to Law

By the late 1980s, Senegal's musical landscape was shifting. The rise of mbalax, championed by young artists like Youssou N'Dour, overshadowed Orchestra Baobab's sophisticated Afro-Cuban sound. When the band disbanded in 1987, Attisso made a remarkable decision: he returned to Togo and resumed his legal career full-time.

What makes this transition extraordinary is its completeness. Unlike most musicians who might continue playing privately after leaving the stage, Attisso didn't touch his guitar for fifteen years. "I'm a lawyer," he explained simply, embodying a compartmentalization that suggests he never saw himself as a musician first. He established a successful commercial law practice in Lomé, applying the same systematic approach that had characterized both his musical learning and his arranging work.

This period reveals something profound about Attisso's character in his ability to fully commit to whatever role he was inhabiting. The man who had once arranged complex musical harmonies was now navigating the equally intricate discord of commercial litigation.

The Disciplined Renaissance

When Orchestra Baobab reunited in 2001 for what was initially planned as a single London concert, Attisso faced an unprecedented challenge. After fifteen years away from music, he had to essentially relearn his instrument. When he first picked up his guitar again, his fingers simply wouldn't do what he wanted them to.

Characteristically, Attisso approached this obstacle with methodical discipline. He worked around the clock to recapture his technique, treating the return to music with the same systematic approach he had used to master guitar initially. The resulting album, "Specialist in All Styles" (2002), served as both a reference to the band's musical diversity and perhaps a subtle acknowledgment of his dual existence.

Throughout the 2000s, Attisso managed to balance both careers, flying from his law practice in Lomé to tour with Orchestra Baobab across Europe. "Someone takes over the office and when I come back I continue working," he explained, treating his musical career as an extension rather than a contradiction of his professional life.

The Legacy of Integration

When Attisso died from COVID-19 in August 2021 at age 76, he left behind a singular legacy that transcends either of his individual achievements. His guitar lines remain woven into some of the most beloved African recordings of the 20th century, while his legal work served clients across West Africa for decades.

More significantly, Attisso demonstrated that the analytical skills that made him an effective lawyer—attention to detail, systematic thinking, the ability to synthesize complex information—also propelled his musicianship. Conversely, the creative improvisation and cultural synthesis required in music possibly enriched his approach to legal practice.

His story offers a counter-narrative to contemporary obsessions with personal branding and singular focus. He lived as though law and music weren't opposites but complementary languages for interpreting the world, different stages for the same fundamental human drive to create order from complexity, whether through legal argument or musical arrangement.

In our times, when artists face pressure to become specialists in marketing as much as their craft, Attisso modeled something different: a life of plurality, integrity, and grace. His legacy suggests that the most fulfilling existence might not come from choosing between profit and delight, but from finding ways to honor both with equal seriousness and skill.