From Kisoro to Nairobi to Lake Victoria Story
…We check in with police and then go to Rwanda passport control to enter. This is now 7:20 or so and a big crowd is forming but luckily, as we were so early arriving,we got through okay. By about 7:40 we were done, but the cars were not yet allowed to pass, as the Uganda exit border had not yet opened for vehicles. By about 7:55 it opened and we climbed in our cars and were off again. And, as you might recall, we were now driving on the ‘other side…
Day 6: The Studio @ Traveller’s Rest Hotel, Kisoro Story
…inyo. Here, they put down their track. Not at all phased by the use of headphones and mics, they take everything in there stride, performing a number of takes as the song develops. We start by giving them a simple click to follow the beat but quickly realised that their tempos are far more subtle than this. Francis comes back to set the rhythm with their natural clapping and it suddenly all came together again. Once we have the female vocals recor…
Kenya (Coast): Day 4 – the road back to Nairobi Story
…nce Francaise. We picked artists from all over Kenya to create an album. This is first move to culture things. Tabu was on the committee for Spot light and he would go out to select folks for the later recordings but the recording happened at the Go Down Arts Centre. The Spot Light series brought up the whole richness of Kenyan music. Some of the groups were very large, but because of budgets we could only bring a small number. We had good product…
On the eve of our very first field recording trip….. Story
…elebrate the partnership of Ketebul and Abubilla): Kothbiro: Ayub Ogado. This is the song everyone remembers from the Constant Gardner. Written by the legendary Ayub Ogado. He opened the ‘meeting’ and this was his final song. The instrument you hear is the nyatiti (a lyre-like stringed instrument) which he played. Marina, Samba Mapangala: This is the song that Samba opened his piece with. He followed Ayub Ogado who played percussion throughout. Th…
Lake Turkana Cultural Festival 2011 News
…to ‘overcome tribalism in the region and to promote peace and reconciliation among the local communities around Lake Turkana by giving them an opportunity for cross-cultural cooperation and exchange, both in the preparation and in the course of the Festival. During the three days Festival, representatives of the Rendille, El Molo, Pokot, Samburu, Turkana, Gabbra, Dassanech and Borana present their respective customs and living conditions, spectac…
Reflections on the pilot phase by Pato News
…out of Paradise Hotel but what was funny was the look Andy gave the receptionist at Paradise Hotel when he asked us to visit again. The day’s program was long because we had four groups to record, two in Kilifi and the two in Kaloleni, Mombasa. We left early picked Deche our fixer who had chosen to stay in Watamu with his relatives, tand proceeded to Kibarani village in Kilifi. A point to note is that what was becoming common was that whenever we…
Discovering music roots with SWP News
…art that I have a passion for, rising to become one of the most read cartoonists in the region. But my enthusiasm for music remains intense. So when I am not drawing caricatures of politicians or throwing barbs at societal misfits, I try to be part of the forces that shall try shape a revamped local music theatre. I hosted jazz sessions in the late 1990s and have occasionally assembled a group to do brief stints at pubs. I also presented an “R&B”…
More Ketebul voices…Steve reports from the field News
…ols 9, MOTU traveler interface, a 500mb external hard drive, and 2 ART headphone amps. There was also a 2 bags with mic and instrument cables, power extension cables, 8 pairs of headphones, mic stands, boom poles, 2 Rodes NT5 mics with dead cats (no animals were harmed in the acquisition of the dead cats!), 1 shure sm58 and 1 shure sm57 mic, and 2 AKG C414 mics. Patrick, our video guy, also made it to the studio a short while after me, and Jimmy h…