DAWDA JOBARTEH

The Denmark resident Gambian musician and composer Dawda Jobarteh is one of the biggest enrichments to the world music scene. He not only amplifies his instrument, the kora, a traditional West African harp and puts it through effects loops and distortion sounds to transfer it masterfully into the here and now - as a wanderer between the cultural heritages of West Africa as well as Northern Europe he is equally at home in both worlds. Out of that background he skillfully creates a highly unique sound universe between folk and afro jazz from two very different musical traditions, drawing on influences from two century-long historical cultures while still being firmly rooted in the modern age.

But Jobarteh´s execellence is clearly not limited to music: As a scion of West Africa‘s most famous griot family, whose career as a professional percussionist started at the age of 12, Jobarteh was born into a family tree with decades of musical heritage. In the tradition of the griots, the musicians, not unlike the blues singers, not only have the duties of keeping the music alive, but also to preserve and tell historic tales . So it´s of little wonder that Jobarteh's lyrics are as empathetic and wise as the music of this man oscillating between the cultural contrasts of his adopted Northern European home and his West African native on his tours around the globe.

If you take a look at Jobarteh´s previous development, it becomes crystal clear that one of West Africas biggest musical treasures lies in Scandinavia!