Mariene Traditional Dancers Group
…, led by Simon Munuki. They are from the Ameru Ethnic Community. Their musical style is Kirarire and Authi. The lead singer wears Murungi, an ornament on both sides of the arms which is worn by the initiator/circumciser; it signifies a man of respect and authority. Their costumes include Lesos, necklaces, face painting, spears, fly whisks, gourds, and head gear, called Nkoroimade out of cow skin, with Monkey hide. The women cover themselves with g…
Aynu Traditional Group Group
…had the duty to protect his village hence all able-bodied men were automatically considered a soldier though this was not a permanent duty. Language: They are divided into many mutually intelligible dialects, but mainly they speak their own Lugbara language. Origins: The came into Uganda at the end of the 16th century. They were originally known as the Madi, their current name perhaps came to be used after the intrusion of the Khartoum Arab slaves…
Field Recording Report by Kahithe Kiiru Story
…ocation, we met EKHUNJWE YA ABASAMIA folk group. Led by Stephen Bwire, a local music scholar who acted as our contact person and by the group’s secretary Wilhemina Oduor, this is a very organized group of twenty eight (28) members coming from the different administrative areas of Samia district. Ekhunjwe ya Abasamia was formed in April 2008 with common focus on using music as a tool for community development. The group promotes traditional African…
Day 9 – Sunday 9th July 2017 Story
…ior); Kodo – represented by Olith Ratego who created the instrument; Classical guitar – represented by Peter Akwabi. Aside from the classical guitar, which served as a perspective on comparing different traditional instruments to modern instruments, all of the four other string instruments involved fall under the category of lyres per definition of “a plucked string instrument with no fingerboard, having strings running parallel to the soundboard…
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…0 weeks of highlights and memories, East Africa is a treasure trove of musical talent, instruments and styles. The stories that we have heard, through song or interviews, have far exceeded our expectations for the project. What started as a tiny experiment into recording a few groups performing in their villages has grown into something far beyond what we imagined. What we have captured in our videos and audio recordings is extraordinary artistry…
Day Zero: February 15, 2020 – Assemble in Zanzibar Story
…ries” are all the countries that have blown to Zanzibar and left their musical instruments, styles and influences. The Dhow Countries Music Academy trains musicians on this musical heritage. Their logo is the Dhow and we will refer to them as the DCMA. Third, musically, what you hear in Zanzibar is a wonderful fusion of Arabic music and African beats, with a bit of Cuban and Indian spices. The Dhow Countries. The most important and famous…
Day 3: Monday, 2017 February 20th Story
…um or heat to evaporate moisture on a too-loose drum. Our sessions are typically filled with lots of smoke and video of drummers running back and forth in/out of camera range tuning their drums as they play. See example: Here’s the Group: The group played 6 songs: Ndio Kwanza (We’re just starting and haven’t done anything yet) Mama Shughuli Yako Tomeiona (Now, you’ve seen how we play) Boga (Pumpkin), or Mboga in the local dialect Nina Ubembeleza U…
Central & Eastern Uganda: Day 4, Part 1 – Reflections Story
…are beautiful because they reflect the organic simplicity and lovely practicality of village life. They are disturbing because they are empty, rebuilt only for display and in their sterility, they look more like fossils than homes. These are the images that inform our discussions. What does it mean to preserve or to rediscover cultural elements? What part of our efforts should focus on preserving music, like these grass huts, before it dies? What…
Central & Eastern Uganda: Day 3, Part 1- Drum Making and Palace Players Story
…Cutting the wood to size “You then cut the wood to size” (the saw used is called a Musumeni). He then used a large handsaw to trim the wood from the ends of the wooden drum frame. 3. Preparing the outside of the drum “You then focus on the outside of the drum and prepare it” (the tool used is Embajjo). He had a second carving tool that he then used to shape and smooth the outside of the drum. The goal is to make it very smooth so the skin forms a…
Central and Eastern Uganda: Day 2 – Kampala to Jinja Story
…model we used for the restoration of the Royal Drums. We felt it was critical to check in on their progress. We focused on three main things on this visit: Interviewing James about the instruments themselves Recording the trumpeters Interviewing James in more detail about his life and work to restore the Bigwala trumpets. Part One: detail on the instruments The Bukakaire Bigwala Players are made up of three separate groups of musicians: the trump…
Central and Eastern Kenya: Day 3 – Nkubu to Mariene to Murungurune to Nkubu Story
…s led by Simon Munuki. They are from the Ameru Ethnic Community. Their musical style is Kirarire and Authi. The lead singer wears Murungi, an ornament on both sides of the arms which is worn by the initiator/circumciser; it signifies a man of respect and authority. Their costumes include Lesos, necklaces, face painting, spears, fly whisks, gourds, and head gear, called Nkoroi made out of cow skin, with Monkey hide. The women cover themselves with…
Central Uganda: Day 4 – Jinja Story
…urposes is to restore the Bigwala, the big Ugandan trumpet, to Ugandan musical culture. According to our local musical expert, James Isabirye, it was close to dead, but a Unesco project has helped to draw attention to the group by pointing out the instruments and its players are threatened with extinction. He also says there is a horn shortage because people don’t grow the right kind of gourds in the right shape – so he has a standing order throug…
Report from Womex 2013 News
…the launch for a new initiative by the Cape Verde government. It has been calculated that music is their biggest export and so has set up the African Music Forum to make it easier for musicians to make a living – from visas and flights to financial support. It is an exciting time, and seems to chime in with what Eddie Hatitye announced for Music in Africa. Members of the Music Producers Guild led a discussion on ‘What do producers actually do?‘ –…
The Key to Sustainable Aid in Africa? Perhaps we should follow the music. News
…the health of a village, is whether it has a strong, vibrant and young musical troupe. Supporting tribal music, therefore, is a key component in sustaining a healthy village, which is a key conduit to delivering all the more urgent and important aid, from medicines, to clean water, to sustainable farming techniques and financing, etc… We are finding ourselves caveating what we do less and less – we are doing our little bit to support the leaders o…
A recording studio which fits into the back of an SUV Story
…recorded to the Batwa at the Traveller’s Rest Hotel in Kisoro, Uganda!) We can also combine the two recording units into one to increase the number of inputs, while still working off battery power. The laptops use Avid ProTools recording software – an industry standard for recording and music production. The microphones we have chosen are industry standard models used in studios the world over but, most likely, not seen in the villages of East Afr…
What people say about Singing Wells News
…tural heritage of the region resonates with our firm’s vision to harness local talents and capabilities, build great businesses and create a leading African brand. We look forward to collaborating with Singing Wells in the future.” PSN Europe Magazine Read the review of Singing Wells here. Mark Totokwa via YouTube “This is good stuff – a good example of a sustainable project both in context and content. A big thank you to those behind this project…