Ayub Ogada Group
A musician we choose to bump into frequently is that of Ayub Ogada, 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 nya…
Support Singing Wells Page
How you can sponsor the Singing Wells Project Singing Wells is a charitable project, managed and funded by the Abubilla Music Foundation a UK registered charity (reg. no: 1142173). Our work to record, archive and share the music of East Africa is funded by donations. Funds are used to support our field recording trips, provide a permanent music archive and also to help the communities we visit gain an income from their music. You can help us sup…
A Report by Professor James Isabirye – Indigenous music learning in contemporary contexts: Nurturing learner identity, agency, and passion News
…Isabirye has recently had a report published, after his in depth research into music learning practices. After extensive work reviving the Bigwala, his report focuses on the indigenous teaching methods used with the young people involved in the project, what this meant for the sustainability for the instruments future, and how this impacted the young people’s identity and associations with the Bigwala-playing community. You can find the full repo…
Fundraiser for Matthew Watmon News
We are sad to say that a special talent, and a dear friend of Singing Wells, Matthew Watmon is currently in a critical condition in hospital. We are urgently trying to raise funds to support him and his family in this difficult time, and we hope that some of our followers may be able to help us. If you are based in East Africa, please get in touch with Matthew’s brother, Constantine Odida ((MTN) +256-782-236-742 and (Airtel) +256-704-261-037). I…
Ketebul Music presents Shades of Benga Online News
…ebsite here. Shades of Benga: The Story of Popular Music in Kenya delves into the foundations of modern Kenyan music, examining external influences from the English waltz to Afro Cuban Rumba and how they helped mould new music styles across Africa. Rumba was brought to Eastern Africa via the itinerant Congolese musicians Edouard Masengo and Jean Bosco Mwenda who’s intricate guitar-picking styles largely shaped the present Kenyan sound, with the…
Central & Eastern Uganda: Day 4, Part 1 – Reflections Story
…villages that focused on instrument making or villages that focused on training potential musicians for the palaces. This patronage was not free, however, and the resources to fund the palaces and their music ultimately came from the same villages, through taxation and food contributions. Moreover, these musicians were not empowered to create, to lead rich musical lives, to become artists, to use the palace as a stepping stone to develop their ar…
Central and Eastern Kenya: Day 3 – Nkubu to Mariene to Murungurune to Nkubu Story
…c… In this context, the knife is cutting away his old life and forcing him into a new life. Ruuji rukuru, led by John Gitoriga, means ‘old water’ and is a song to prepare a boy for manhood. Water is a cleanser so the water cleanses the boy and moves him from childhood to a new life. The boy is taken to one of the old rivers and hot mushrooming spring. Hence ‘old water.’ Remember that in all cases the boys are led to a river, covered in mud, and th…
Central Uganda: Day 0 – Nairobi/London to Entebbe Story
…inks (we had charmed some flight attendants on the plane to contribute to Singing Wells with a few whiskeys). Most of us then went to bed for the night, deciding to have one final evening free of our London friends. Patrick, however, woke up in time to be a ‘greeting party’ to the London arrivals. Message from Abubilla Music Foundation Team Representing the AMF are Jimmy Allen (Founder), sound engineer Andy Patterson and Vicki Denison, charity adm…
Music Depositories and Archives around the World News
…undergraduate and post-graduate degrees in Ethnomusicology that include training in performance of African music. Diane Thram became Director in 2005 and, under her leadership, an online listening library has been created, in line with the cutting edge of content access, to allow anyone to listen to Hugh Tracey’s recordings, with work currently being done to also make the Dave Dargie and Andrew Tracey Collections available for online access. There…
Report from Womex 2013 News
…their work, and it looks great. Hopefully we can help the project and work together in some way in the future. Showcases Visited Mike and I were present at the opening concert – curated by Cerys Matthews at the fantastic Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff Bay. The show was a showcase of traditional Welsh music including performances from Matthews herself, The Welsh Ballet and The Treorchy Male voice choir. I heard a bit of a day showcase from th…
A quick summary of the Singing Wells Project News
…village. But they went to the village and the village elder came out, explaining that he was a member of the Macedonia band, and proceeded to lead the village men in singing Uganda Land of Freedom, some of them playing the Likembe. The government forces in frustration spared the extended band and went to the next village. Again, the elder led the village men in a rendition of Uganda Land of Freedom. They went to village after village and everyone…
Northern Uganda: Day 6 – Soroti to Kampala (a driving story) Story
…right 3 or 4 repeatable models that will drive our success. If we can get into the right routines, we can learn more and more from each trip and get better and better. For the March Pilot in 2011, simply getting audio equipment to work in the field was the most important routine. Don’t underestimate the learning required to set up 8 mic recording session in the dirt, surrounded by cows. By Kisoro and the recording of the Batwa, audio was fully so…
Northern Uganda: Day 6 – Soroti to Obuell-Lira to Soroti Story
…ar these villages were under rebel control from 1989-1992. The rebels came into the village to kills the men and seize the boys to take into the bush to fight. But the Macedonia band began to play Uganda Land of Freedom and the rebels started to gather round, starved for music and a chance to relax. An argument broke out amongst the rebels – most wanted to continue the raid and kill the musicians but a small group started to argue that the band co…
Northern Uganda: Day 5 – from Pakwach to Soroti (a road trip) Story
…then laid down to dry, looking like long carpets. They are then bundled up into long packets, about 6 feet long and 18 inches thick. The bundles are tied with ropes made of other plants. Each woman then pops one on her head and marches into the local market to sell a packet for about 2,000 Ugandan shillings ($1). By our calculation, that is a 15-30 kilometer round trip the market, giving her time to make two runs. Most of the women carry empty bot…
Northern Uganda: Day 3 – from Gulu to Awach to Pakwach Story
…Here’s a video of their ‘magic moment’: Their first song was Kica Watimon Nining, which is a song of forgiveness. Two men start the song fighting (and it is a pretty good tussle) before they are encouraged by the band and woman dancers to calm down, solve their differences and forgive. Given the recent wars in Uganda and given that we are in formally held Kony territory, this song is pretty important. https://youtu.be/_u4-hVbcVV0 In the same vein,…
Northern Uganda: Day 2 – from Gulu to Acet Story
…ick up a generator, a bunch of electric cables and Big Jimmy our Acet Coordinator, below). It was a beautiful day with stunning blue skies and we drove for about 80 kilometers in glorious sunshine through village after village until we reached Acet, where we will meet Acholi musicians (hundreds, in fact). We landed in a field, pock marked with cement block buildings. Not the best site. But in the middle of the field was the most stunning tree that…