Richard Sewanyana Group
…the starter. But he failed. So they then asked him to play any song of any of the ones they had been playing since he joined the palace. And he couldn’t. And they were very mad because he had taken a salary as a player and they felt he was a robber. So when my father realised he had been found out and that he wouldn’t replace his father there was a panic and a desire that I go to the palace to replace my grandfather. So I played in the place of my…
Buganda Music Ensemble Group
…ingers. His friends eventually found out due to all the rumors circulating the palace. They tried to ask him about it but he kept denying that anything had happened. Albert leads the song with the bow harp or Ennanga, a new instrument for us. Albert is only one of 3 master players. It was played in solo performances and the Ennanga player was the advisor to the king, as people would bring him messages for the king that he would turn to song. “Muli…
Ayub Ogada Group
…da, probably the most internationally acclaimed Kenyan musician, whose use of the nyatiti in different musical genres is both original and pertinent for our Masters of the Nyatiti story. We spent the day at his home in Nyahera location, not far from Kisumu town, and conducted a long yet free of form type of interview. Although a Luo himself, Ayub had never learned how to play the nyatiti in a traditional setting. He picked it up later in his caree…
Mohamed Uthman Kidumbak Group Group
…rum. So Kidumba is a smaller, bongo style drum. Adding Ki to the beginning of the word makes it small. Mohamed Othman had no musicians in his family. He became interested in Kidumbak style music at 16 and taught himself the violin and bass. He went to Egypt off and on for six years 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 Othm…
Namaddu Troupe Group
…nd, who has been off drinking, and they reunite. “Kwakira Wiita”: A song about eating new food, particularly millet, after the harvest. But the children don’t stay home and are out all the time, so they suffer from bad spiritis. They need to be home in the house for the good spirits. Gradually they return home and all is well….
Royal Entenga Drummers Group
…xylophones, the Entenga were part of a set of ‘royal instruments’ and much of the music was lost in 1966 when the palace of the Buganda Kingdom was attacked by government troops. The palace and instruments were destroyed, the King exiled, the royal musicians disbanded and much of the music forgotten. But in 2015 James discovered the sixty-something Musisi, possibly the last surviving drummer. Musisi was just a teenager at the time of attack and ba…
Day Two: January 19, 2019 From Tarime to Buturi to Bariadi Story
…hen the river overflows. All the things from the river and along the edges of the river spreads through the village and around all the land Mahenne Gayo: A song about the importance of always telling the truth Mahenne Gayo: We repeated song 5 with ‘freestyle recording’ – what we mean here is we allow our three camera operators to ‘roam’ and to ‘release the band’ to dance. We are trying to overcome the somewhat artificial nature of ‘archiving’ wher…
Field Recording Report by Kahithe Kiiru Story
…the Samia sub-county. This sub-county was named after the Samia sub-group of the Luhya ethnic community who make the majority of its’ population. In Nanguba village of Agen’ga location, 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 a…
Global Influences Project: Artist Submissions Page
…beat bop has been submitted by Jay P Production for our latest installment of the Global Influences Project. We love how they used this beat to create something that got the whole team wanting to dance! When we asked about their process, Jay P Production said “We have always believed in selecting the best drums and sounds for each genre and that’s what we did here and we really appreciate you guys for believing in us.” We think what they created j…
The Revival of the Entongooli Page
…ous Next We are absolutely thrilled to be a part of supporting the revival of the Entongooli, an incredible stringed instrument that is on the brink of dying out. Our friend and colleague Professor James Isabirye, who has also headed up the revival of the Royal Entenga Drums and the Bigwala, has travelled to visit Mr Mukadisi, who is educating a group of children on how to build and play this instrument in the hopes of continuing it’s legacy. Belo…
Global Influences Project: Loop Library Page
…rdings across East Africa. These recordings feature just a small selection of the artists we have recorded over the last decade and we are very excited to see how other musicians can use and be inspired by this incredible music. If you are interested in becoming a part of the Global Influences Project, you can download the project brief here or head back to the main page for more information. If you want to independently release your music for sal…
Day Zero: February 15, 2020 – Assemble in Zanzibar Story
…ut set up, so we’ll use this ‘Day Zero’ post to fill you in on the purpose of the trip. First, Zanzibar is an island off Tanzania, with a long colorful history. Before it was ‘controlled’ by the Portuguese in 1503, it was a base for traders between the African great lakes, the Arabian Peninsula and India. In 1698 it came under the control of the Sultan of Oman. Areas were developed to grow spices and this area, which includes Pemba, became kn…
Support Singing Wells Page
…You As well as a special thank you on our website, we’ll send you details of the song your donation funded and an MP3 download of the track, plus a commemorative digital Singing Wells poster. Donate £25 and Sponsor a Song CLICK HERE TO DONATE NOW * Please note: donations are made to the Abubilla Music Foundation, our registered charity which funds the Singing Wells project Sponsor a Music Group£250 Your Gift to Us Your money will be used to suppo…
Day One: 7 March 2022 (Shikangania and Mukumu) Story
…High School, situated along the Kakamega-Kisumu road. Our first recording of the day was to be with Johnstone Mukabi, son of the legendary guitarist George Mukabi. The senior Mukabi is regarded by all as the pioneer of omutibo, arguably the most popular musical genre in the region. It would not be our first meeting with Johnstone Mukabi since we had previously featured him on the Singing Wells project in April 2018. He later came to Ketebul Music…
FAQ’s Page
…ers from both Ketebul Music and Abubilla Music. You can read about members of the team if you click here. Influences artists are professional musicians who collaborate with us on field and studio recordings. Click here to find out about these musicians. We also rely on local liaison personnel who have direct contact with the communities we visit and an expert knowledge of local music styles. During the field recording visits we also benefit from t…
Day Four: 10 March 2022 (Rongo) Story
…armac roads in the region was located there. It would appear the full name of the company in English was too much of a mouthful and the locals simplified it to ‘Rodi Kopany’. When Ben Mukabwa returned to Kakamega after our last recording in Kisumu, Dave Otieno joined us in Rongo and teamed up with Fiston Lusambo to continue our experimental fusion of contemporary elements with traditional sounds of Western Kenya region. Dave and I go back a long w…