Day Two: February 17, 2020 (Stonetown) Story
…rs on a scholarship from the DCMA to study violin and the oud starting in 2000. He’s been teaching at the academy for 18 years. Members of this group include: Mohamed Othman Faki – leader, on violin, Kheri Mizaka Aliy on African Bass, Makame Ali Juma on drum, Buruhami Makame Haji on 2nd drum, Mgeni Seleiman Makame on sticks, Said Ame Othman on shakers, Aikazija Abdala Ame -dancer, Mirianaharus Juma Hamis – dancer. All sang but Mohamed Othman Faki…
Day 1 – Saturday 1st July 2017 Story
…s whoever is around”, Luo proverb) and nature of improvisation that comes with it; ‐ Traditionally in the past there was a separation between vocalists and nyatiti players (not the same person); ‐ Term controversy (thum as opposed to nyatiti, is in fact a generic term for music in Luo language) and hypothetical historical explanation; ‐ Mention of “Koblong”, a tune known by almost all players, often used for teaching cause of its strong combinatio…
Day Three: Bungoma Town to Kakamega Story
Tuesday, February 20th, 2018: Today, we returned to record Wilbert Wanyama in Bungoma Town. As mentioned, we met Wilbert on the evening of February 19th, but were unable to record his band due to thunderstorms. So we returned to Santa Maria Resort to record him the next morning. And the weather was sunny and crisp, following the previous evening storms. First, Wilbert told us the history of the band. The band, Bungoma Roots Band, started in 2005…
Day Five: January 22, 2019 Mwanza Continued Story
…Kagera Bukoba and part of the Wahaya Community, this group was formed in 2000 and performs in the Akasimbo style. Their instruments are: Kangote (Drums), Akafotho (hand whistling), Enganja: Clapper – two wooden ‘bricks’ struck together, and they wear Ebisheshe (grasses). We recorded four performances: Wachumba Walya: A song about someone who is too mean-spirited to support his community even though he has lots of money, it is about a man “who eat…
Singing Wells Stories Page
…a sample of the music that the Singing Wells project has recorded between 2011 and 2013, then please click here. Tiny Moses We met Tiny Moses during our field trip to record the music of the Batwa in southern Uganda in late 2011. He arrived at the Travellers Rest hotel with the other members of the Micyingo community. He turned up to record with his home made guitar in his hand. We recorded him playing a few tracks with his and then we recorded hi…
Kochia Traditional Dancers Group
…ll need to entertain) and monkey fur. They are accompanied by drumming, and the Tung’, the Luo horn. You can contact the Kagan Kochia group for bookings on +254 700 600881 Sources: www.hivisasa.com www.allafrica.com Homa Bay, Kenya Leader: William Odero Ondiek…
Day two: From Sirisia to Mabuyole Falls Story
Monday, February 19, 2018: Woke up early and drove to Sirisia to record the band Namatete. The band was founded by Weput Khulu Namatete in 1992. He and his friends gradually made instruments and learned to play them while taking care of their cattle. By 1992 they were good enough to call themselves a ‘serious’ band. The founder started by playing the Lituneu. His brother joined him for a while and brought the Shirili, the single stringed instrume…
Day Three: February 18, 2020 (Stonetown, Mpendae, Maungani) Story
…rom Zanzibar) with Singeli (a new tribal rhythm). Taarab came from early 1800’s as Egyptian music. In Zanzibar the Mother of Taarab, Siti Binti Saad, made Taarab more popular in the 1920’s to 1950’s. We spoke to Hassan Mahenge, the assistant director of this band. He is a teacher at the DCMA. He teaches the Oud and plays the saxophone. All the students at the DCMA study traditional music such as Taarab as well as Western music. Members of the grou…
Hannah Calascione Staff Profile
…t before she starts her degree in Anthropology at Cambridge University in 2013. She is joining the Singing Wells team for the field visit to Northern Uganda 2012 and has researched the area in great detail, writing reports on the tribal groups and their music and traditional instruments. Hannah will be armed with a microphone as she interviews the musicians and documents their oral histories, providing the all important context for the songs and d…
Tabu Osusa Staff Profile
…Ketebul Music’s Retracing Series. Supported by the Ford Foundation Office of Eastern Africa, the Retracing Series is a research based documentary project whose main objective is to research, archive and document the musical culture of Kenya. Tabu is the East Africa Project Co-ordinator for Singing Wells. His extensive knowledge of the East African music industry is integral to the strategic planning of the field visits and identifying inspiration…
Pius Wafula Group
…le, used to play with a famous local group called “Webuye Jua Kali” up to 2009, when he founded his own group. Today the group counts 5 members who play the following instruments: LITUNGU – a 7-string traditional lyre; ISIRILI – a one-string fiddle; LUENGELE– a percussive idiophone, they use a wooden stool struck with wooden sticks; ENG’OMA – a generic term for drums, they use a plastic water container also struck with wooden sticks; CHISASI – sha…
Day Four: 10 March 2022 (Rongo) Story
…of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. in the summer of 2014, a trip that included Ontiri Bikundo, one of the musicians we were scheduled to record that evening in Rongo. Ontiri is a master of the obukano, an instrument which has an indelible history among the Abagusii community of Western Kenya. The obukano is used more as percussive instrument and an accompaniment by a soloist. However, the nyatiti and the litungu played by the…
Elgon Ngoma Troupe Group
…ilimbwa Julius. Julius is a member of the Bagisu tribe, who founded it in 2009 as a group for orphans or disadvantaged youths. Julius helps these students develop their natural talents to the next level, in the hope of finding work with their skills. He struggled through his teens with no support, but found his way gradually as a musical performer, working with the National Theatre and various troupes around Mbale. He was always extremely proud of…
Page
Welcome to Singing Wells’ Top 20 Moments It’s been nearly 10 years of travel, discovery and music. We’ve travelled across East Africa with the aim of bringing traditional music to a wider audience. With our Youtube channel now surpassing 5 million views, we wanted to celebrate the last 10 years of sharing the beautiful music of East Africa with you. Each week, we will post a new video counting down our Top 20 Singing Wells moments and memories….
Day Zero: February 15, 2020 – Assemble in Zanzibar Story
…in Arabic as ‘having joy with music.’ Taarab’s origins are in the late 1800s. Mohamed Ibrahim, studied music in Egypt, where he learned to play the Qanun and returned to Zanzibar to form the Zanzibar Taarab orchestra. Of course, there are a variety of musical styles in Zanzibar, including (every use of quotes in this post are direct quotes from the DCMA): Ngoma: “Ngoma literally translated means drum and is a term to encompass all local tra…
Tarajazz Group
…rom Zanzibar) with Singeli (a new tribal rhythm). Taarab came from early 1800’s as Egyptian music. In Zanzibar the Mother of Taarab, Siti Binti Saad, made Taarab more popular in the 1920’s to 1950’s. We spoke to Hassan Mahenge, the assistant director of this band. He is a teacher at the DCMA. He teaches the Oud and plays the saxophone. All the students at the DCMA study traditional music such as Taarab as well as Western music. Members of the grou…