Bela Fleck, banjo; D'Gary, guitar

In 2005, banjo master Bela Fleck went to Africa. He had two goals. One -- to meet cool musicians and play with them. Two -- to find the ancestor of the banjo.

That he found in the Gambia, in West Africa.

Meeting cool musicians wasn't a problem either.

Since then, Bela Fleck has recorded an album that features his collaborations with, among others, Tanzanian musicians John Kitime and Anania Ngoiga and guitarist D'Gary from Madagascar.

The CD is called "Throw Down Your Heart". And the musicians have just completed a month-long tour of the US. Just before their final performance -- in New Bedford, Massachusetts -- Fleck, Ngoiga and Kitime treated me to a song backstage.

Bela Fleck, Anania Ngoiga, John Kitime