Press Interview in Bucaramanga, Columbia.

USA: World Discoveries July 2004
Jobarteh Kunda cds - Bibiafrica

The Jobarteh family is a large, respected family of Jails or Griots in the Manding families of West Africa, and Kunda is the Manding word for family or clan.
Strangely, the co-leader of the group, Tormenta Jobarteh, was not born into the family: he's originally from Germany - it's finally happening, we now have 'African' bands co-founded by Westerners who traveled to Africa in the 1980s and 90s to study or apprentice under African musicians. (...) "The eight-piece combo do a very good job of bringing traditional Manding music of the Gambia into the modern world without losing the feel of the original. Tormenta Jobarteh plays kora and talking drum amazingly well for a person who grew up in Munich, and his co-leader Mori Dioubate plays balafon (marimba) and guitar.
On their second album ALI HEJA, the group takes a great leap forward with a couple of personnel changes: guitarist Teddy Toure brings a true late-20th century African sound to the band - very professional now; not so experimental as before.
(...) the group vocals (...) are truly wonderful (...). This is a band to watch out for!

African Courier Oktober 2001
Tormenta Jobarteh-The African man of the world

Jobarteh.Kunda was the favourite of the over 6000-strong audience during this year´s Tollwood Festival in Munich.
When Tormenta Jobarteh set his hand to his Kora, the audience could scarcely contain their astonishment Meanwhile, Lancelott Scott was working hard on the heavi, hollow-sounding djembe in  the backround, Gerhard Wagner added a touch of Jazz to the band`s african roots.
But it was Mori Dioubatè, the balafon player (balafon is an African form of Xylophone), who weaved a tapestry of sount that floated above the rest of the music.
He is gifted with a voice that seems to embody the whole mystique of Africa.
The eight-person multinational group were dressed in African attire, wich was enough to set them apart from the numerous artistes who performed at the annual music festival; but,  more importently, it was their fascinating music that made them find favour among the teeming fans at the Olympic Stadium venue of the show.
No wonder the influenial daily newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung later described the group as "the controlled scream and mystique of Africa".
....
Caribbean elements, and influences from jazz, modern pop and other styles now joined the style of the band, resulting in a diverse and exciting sound that  can truly be called world music.
The only female member of the band, Sabine Zeh Silva, who is of Brazilian-German origin plays congas, percussion, as well as being a vocalist and dancer.
The music of Jobarteh-Kunda expresses a vivacity of mood that seems strange but  familiar to European ears.
And as their songs urge:
Enjoy the beauty of nature, learn to respect creation, experience the power of love, friendship and let your body move to the rhythm of the music!

 

DAILY OBSERVER; Wednesday, February 9, 2000

Tormenta Jobarteh, the German griot. When Werner Sturm travelled from Munich, Germany to The Gambia in 1987, it was not to savour the sun by the beach or to visit touristy places,camera carrying and enjoying the scramble for mints by kids. It was 
rather "to answer to a divine call to learn the tradition of the griot," as he put it. So, he quicklymoved to Buraba village where, for the next five years, he underwent tutelage under a renowned kora master, adopting a typical rural lifestyle devoid of the "greater than you" posture of some "toubabs" in this part of the world. "We played kora at ceremonies in the provinces and i lived squarely by my share of the proceeds," he reminiscensed last week at the Calypso Beach Bar, Cape Point. He was amazed at the way he was accepted and given a deep sense of belonging by the villagers. Which was why he did not hesitate to change his name to Tormenta Jobarteh. Upon his adoption as a griot, he travelled back to Munich where he had learnt to play drums and percussion and carried on with the "tradition of music and story telling based on love, tolerance and respect of nature," according to a citation on him.
Soon, he met Mori Dioubaté, who "comes from the same age-old family of griots which had adopted Tormenta" and Jobarteh-Kunda, a music group based on Mandinka folklore, was born, having Juanito Heldmann, Humphrey Cairo, Sir Lancelot Scott, Sabine Zeh Silva, Amie Jammeh and Gerhard Wagner as other members. The group recently launched a CD titled "abaraka", partly sponsored by FTI and Humorakes, and is planning to come to The Gambia in June to perform at the 2000 edition of the Roots International Homecoming Festival. "Our fathers did story telling in Europe with harp. Now, I do it with the kora and children in particular appreciate it. They call me Africana", he explained, stressing that there are now many popular story telling events and festivals in Europe. Any wonder then that he said, "playing the kora is a blessing from God which has changed my life. The kora is a special instrument and I am happy playing it. I am happy playing it. I am happy I went to Buraba for a wonderful experiance. Tormenta Jobarteh is 36.