Serengeti Group Group
…the community of Kuria and played in the Ritungu style – this style refers to the form of dancing where the two lead dancers ‘nodded’ their head in almost a trance like way to the music and to their large eight-stringed instrument. We were mesmerized. Their instruments included the: Zeze, Virandi (shakers), and Ritungu (eight stringed instrument, huge Nyatiti). The group had three musicians in ‘red’ and two dancers in ‘white.’ The dancers were per…
Day Three: February 18, 2020 (Stonetown, Mpendae, Maungani) Story
…nd motorbikes going by occasionally. We managed to record one song but had to stop after that due to noise. We hope to have this group come to the hotel on our last recording day. We felt bad that they only were able to perform one song but they took it graciously. Performers: Rajab Suleiman (qanun and director), Mohammed Hassan (accordian), Fum Faki (bongo and tabla), Tatu Khamis Haji (singer) Songs: Chungu – means Pot, composed by Said Ali 10 y…
Tarajazz Group
…henge (Saxaphone, assistant director), Mahsin Basalama (contra base), Christopher Weston (Cajon and high hat), Regina Juma (singer). There was supposed to be a violin player but unfortunately he couldn’t make it. Songs: Alamina Dura – The orbit of the Gods Pakistan – written by Siti Binti Saad who loved Pakistan when she visited Kasha – Kenyan Taarab love song. A man singing about his “chest being opened and empty” In typical Taarab style this has…
Day Three: Bungoma Town to Kakamega Story
…rs and were invited everywhere to preform. They brought in other musicians to form a much bigger band. They then produced their third CD in 2013, Namusia, again with Soundcheck in Kisumu. They started performing all over Kenya. They are now very well established with houses, and Wilbert is married to a nurse and just had their first baby. The continue to take their work very seriously, with professional costumes tailored to the type of event. Wilb…
FAQ’s Page
…you could help – be in in drumming up publicity for our cause or offering to perform some post production of our material. Maybe you could help with our fundraising efforts. Please get in touch and let us know how you would like to help. Will you come and record my band? We have a schedule and a plan for the next 3 or 4 field visits to East Africa, so any groups we record would have to be within designated areas where we plan to travel. We’d love…
Get on the Map Page
…nks contained within the form on the map of East Africa. Submission of the form does not guarantee that your group or music will be featured on the map….
Mchele Mchele Sanaa Group Group
…This group, from the Sukuma community, was formed in 2010 and performs with a number of styles: Bukomia Lume, Buchheye, Wigashe. Their instruments are: Ng’oma (Drums), Pembe (animal horns, large impala), Firimbi (flute), and Njuga (shakers). …
Day Zero: 6 March 2022 – Travel To Stream Story
…was that a number of live streaming studios where performers book sessions to perform and stream their concerts sprung up in Nairobi. Some venues also adapted to hosting online performances, directly streaming shows to mobile devices and computers of audiences wherever they may be. With the prevailing situation, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the ability of performers to earn a living is quickly shifting to a dependence on access to Int…
Day Four: January 21 2019 Mwanza Story
…aa Group: This group, from the Sukuma community, was formed in 2010 and performs with a number of styles: Bukomia Lume, Buchheye, Wigashe. Their instruments are: Ng’oma (Drums), Pembe (animal horns, large impala), Firimbi (flute), and Njuga (shakers). We recorded five performances: Ntale Atabihyala: ‘The boss, who is always wrong, wants to be always right. Just accept it’ Ba Tanzania (Malima): Praising country, encouraging farmers and hard work…
Bungoma Roots Band Group
…y jobs, mostly in construction, and then would gig in the evening, often in clubs filled with drunkards. However, after years of hard work and managing to record multiple records, they needed to bring in other musicians to form a much bigger band. They then produced their third CD in 2013, Namusia, again with Soundcheck in Kisumu. They started performing all over Kenya. They are now very well established with houses of their own….
Day 5 – Wednesday 5th July 2017 Story
…nal nyatiti players. He says he created his own style of music and learned to “adapt in order to survive”. At his home, we encountered another talented musician – Martin Njoroge “Papillon”, whom Ayub has been mentoring. Papillon played for us a few tunes on an original string instrument he invented and manufactured himself. This was very interesting to observe, since the instrument in question was based on the nyatiti, although it had more strings…
2. Naizungwe Drums – progress report 1 Story
…rced and cut down, the logs have been hollowed out and the skins have been formed. One of the early milestones was finding a tree out of which to craft the largest of the drums, no trivial task given the size and type of tree required. Here is our first video, James Isabirye talking about the tree and introducing the project: https://youtu.be/bZUxKhTGmCA The lead drum maker is called Muhamudu Kaziba (in the left of the video above). He comes from…
Day 2: Sunday, 2017 February 19th Story
…where all ages participated and you had a feeling that the young people still really enjoyed the traditional dances. Here, the women are discussing how best to perform their dance for Sophie: And that was day two. A short drive back to the hotel….
Day 1: Saturday, 2017 February 18th Story
…reating a specific post for him, so he could continue drumming for all visitors to the government. Because he was blind, he was invited to perform with specific women groups, of songs for women by women, of songs that no males could see. Every day we will tell more about Mzee Morris and his music (see picture below). We will also talk about his legacy and the attempts of his family and fans to keep his name and his music alive. Like all Singing We…
Our journey to the Royal Drums: in the words of James Isabirye Story
…ents, build new instruments, build new groups, find opportunities for them to perform. From my conversations with Singing Wells, we are now calling this the ‘Bigwala Model’, although that sounds a bit grand, and sounds like we had a perfect grand plan. Of course, things evolved more organically. You’ll remember in 2013, Singing Wells came to Uganda and we started to discuss the issue of the royal instruments. At the Kampala Museum, Singing Wells,…
Support for the Elgon Ngoma Troupe News
…e project, which houses children from disadvantaged backgrounds through performance of traditional music, through breeding and meat production. Donate to Elgon Ngoma’s gofundme page here! And you can watch one of their brilliant performances, recorded on our 2014 field trip, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkyDtBXfunI Watch Julius, the leader of the group, explain who the Elgon Ngoma troupe is, and their mission: https://www.youtube.com/watc…