Master kora player Jalli Lamin Kuyateh is the guest in the Pieternel in the Pieterskerk (church) in Utrecht (repeat).
Jalli Lamin Kuyateh was born in Gambia and started his career as kora player when he was five years old. Since he was ten years old, he performed at parties, ceremonies and for tourists, sometimes with his father and sometimes with other musicians.
In 1983 Lamin founded the Fiscoband: one of the first bands that would combine the kora with Western and other instruments. In 1993 he went to Europe together with Ifang Bondi. He performed in many European countries with this band, on big festivals and on many stages.
In 1996 he came to live in the Netherlands and as of 1997 he performed with Angèle Jorna, storyteller of mainly African stories. He organised soloist performances on various stages, among which the large stage of the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, many festivals, symposiums, et cetera. In 1998 he founded the Jalliya Ensemble with which he arranged many stage performances: in RASA, Tropenmuseum, Melkweg, Vreedenburg, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, et cetera.
As of 2000 he teaches kora lessons at the Conservatory of Amsterdam.
In 2004 he started the band Jalliyabaa, a large swinging and traditional group. In that same year he formed the multicultural group Badalaa together with other musicians: they combined Western instruments with traditional instruments. A form of Afro pop. Ever since, the group also performs under the name Jalliyabaa.
He sings traditional songs but he also writes and composes his own songs which are about recent history, social problems, politics, life, love, war and peace, special people and everything else that is important to him.
His latest project is the new band KoraFusion, founded in 2014.
The ensemble consists of:
Jalli Lamin Kuyateh kora, bolombatu and vocals, composer and writer)
Moussé Pathé Mbaye, percussion
Ibu Sylla balaphone, djembe
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