Boncana Issa Maïga, born 1949 in Gao, Mali, was a versatile African music artist-flutist, saxophonist, guitarist, singer, composer, arranger, and producer. After a scholarship to Cuba in 1963, he returned to Mali in 1968 to found Las Maravillas de Mali and later moved to Abidjan, where he taught music, directed the Ivorian Conservatory, and conducted the RTI orchestra for fourteen years. His solo recordings include Haciendo Maravillas (1977), Salsa y Alegria (1977), Andurina (1980), Boncana Maïga (1982), and the compilation EP Koyma Hondo (2018). He arranged for Alpha Blondy, composed scores for Bal Poussière (1988) and Moolaadé (2006), and received a Kora Award in 1997. Boncana Maïga died in Bamako on 28 February 2026.
