Bantous de la Capitale, renowned Congolese rumba band, formed 1959. Notable… Read Full Bio ↴Bantous de la Capitale, renowned Congolese rumba band, formed 1959. Notable early members: Jean Serge Essous (born Mossendjo, Congo-Brazzaville, Jan. 15, 1934; died Brazzaville, Nov. 25, 2009; saxophone, clarinet., vocal), Edouard "Edo" Ganga (born Brazzaville, Oct. 27, 1933; vocal), Célestin "Célio" Kouka (born Brazzaville, 1930s; maracas, vocal), Daniel "De La Lune" Lubelo (born Mambenga, Congo-Brazzaville, Mar. 15, 1934; bass), Nino Malapet (born Brazzaville, Mar. 8, 1935; saxophone), Papa Noel Nedule (born Kinshasa, Dec. 25, 1940; guitar), Saturnin Pandi (born Mpita, Congo-Brazzaville, May 31, 1932; died Brazzaville, 1996; congas).

Congo-Brazzaville nurtured a number of first-rate bands, none more important than the luminous Bantous de la Capitale. Four of its musicians, Célestin, Edo, Essous, and Malapet, had started their careers in Brazzaville in the early fifties' band Negro Jazz. Across the river in Kinshasa, Essous and two other Brazzavilleans, De La Lune and Pandi, became founding members of O.K. Jazz in 1956; Edo and Célestin joined the next year. In 1959, with the prospect of independence for the two Congos looming large, these five Brazzavilleans returned home to form Orchestre Bantou.