
Taj Mahal & Sona Jobarteh
Mar2
date
Mar 2, 2024Tickets
Location
On Sale
Taj Mahal & Sona Jobarteh are coming to Colorado Springs on March 2, 2024! Tickets range in price from $39 to $69 plus applicable fees and are available online at AXS.com or in person at the Pikes Peak Center box office.
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About Taj Mahal
âThe blues is bigger than most people think,â Taj Mahal says. âYou could hear Mozart play the blues. It might be more like a lament. It might be more melancholy. But Iâm going to tell you: the blues is in there.â
Taj is a towering musical figure -- a legend who transcended the blues not by leaving them behind, but by revealing their magnificent scope to the world. Quantifying the 77- year-oldâs significance is impossible, but people try anyway. A 2017 Grammy win
for TajMo, Tajâs collaboration with Kebâ Moâ, brought his Grammy tally to three wins and 14 nominations, and underscored his undiminished relevance more than 50 years after his solo debut. Blues Hall of Fame membership, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Americana Music Association, and other honors punctuate his reÌsumeÌ. Taj appreciates the accolades, but his motivation lies elsewhere. âI just want to be able to make the music that Iâm hearing come to me -- and thatâs what I did,â Taj says. âWhen I say, âI did,â Iâm not coming from the ego. The music comes from somewhere. Youâre just the conduit it comes through. Youâre there to receive the gift.â
About Sona Jobarteh
Sona Jobarteh is the first professional female Kora virtuoso to come from any of the West African Griot dynasties. Her lineage carries a formidable reputation for renowned Kora masters, most notable amongst these are her grandfather Amadu Bansang Jobarteh and her cousin, the legendary Toumani Diabaté.
Sona is reputed for her skill as an instrumentalist, her distinctive voice, infectious melodies and her grace onstage, and she has rapidly achieved international success as a top class performer.
The demand for Sona Jobartehâs live performances has rocket in recent years, and 2019 saw her perform at some of the worldâs most renowned festivals and venues such as the Hollywood Bowl in LA, WOMAD in Australia and New Zealand and Symphony Space in New York City, whilst also performing all over Europe, in China, Africa and Canada.
Sona has the unique ability to touch audiences from all over the world and from all backgrounds and cultures, whilst also commanding the attention of sitting presidents and royalty alike. Her captivating stage show has proved to be popular everywhere, and with a repertoire that exudes accessible sophistication, her audience demographic is forever expanding.
As a vocalist, Sona has featured in award-winning films such as the Hollywood movie Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom and The First Grader â the latter winning the âDiscovery of the Yearâ prize at the Hollywood World Soundtrack Awards in 2012.
About The Taj Mahal Quartet
âWhen I began, soul was something people had. It wasnât a style of music,â Taj Mahal says. No matter where we come from, we are all part of the same circle. We all want to dance, to get out of our heads, and tap into ourselves. When delivered by the Taj Mahal Quartet, the blues can take us there. For more than 40 years, Grammy-winning legend Taj Mahal, internationally renowned bassist Bill Rich, and revered percussionist Kester Smith have taken blues on a joyride through reggae, funk, jazz, cajun, and more, leaving a trail of swinging hips and raised palms in their wake. In 2019, guitarist and lap steel master Bobby Ingano joined the group, and the trio became the Taj Mahal Quartet. The four-match musical virtuosity with downhome grit unlike anyone else: a blend of sophistication and humble familiarity that is equally at home on a shotgun-shack porch or a Carnegie Hall stage. According to Taj, the collaboration extends far beyond the Taj Mahal Quartet themselves. âMusic is like theater to a lot of people -- theyâre watching it,â he says. âWell, you can watch it, but youâre supposed to participate. The audience is just as much a part of the music as the musicians are.â Taj pauses, then adds with a warm laugh, âI do like it when they dance.â