Central and Eastern Kenya: Day 2 – Muranga to Kangema to Nkubu Story
…ia Nyambura Mwangi. They are from Munuga Village, Munuga sub location, Muguru Ward, Muguru Division, Kamgema District and was formed in 2006 and dedicated to self-help. Their style is Ndumo, an old women’s dance purely for entertainment and preservation of culture. For all their songs, the ladies used the Kigamba (leg shakers). The group played 6 songs: Ndumo: sung by Wambui Mwangi. Ngucu: sung by Charity Muthoni and Grace Njuguini Muthuo: sung by…
Entenga: Performing twice for the king of Buganda News
…i. https://youtu.be/HgKF14j5LrM We were first introduced to the Entenga drums in 2015 and have since been supporting James in an initiative to revive the drums and teach younger musicians how to play them (read the field reports here or watch our documentary for more information of this project). The Entenga players were mentioned in the king’s speech, which James translated for us as: “ … I would like to thank especially those who played instru…
Central and Eastern Kenya: Day 1 – Nairobi to Kiongwe to Muranga Story
…nd is typically ‘super zoom’ or actually a wide angle shot to get a feel of the recording site. Typically, a final mix will be 90% Video 1, 8% Video 2 and 2% Video 3….
Central and Eastern Kenya: Day 0 – London/Nairobi Story
…e helping interview the groups (e mail: gregtendwa@gmail.com) Lewis Koome (Video 3), who is from the Meru ethnic community and has been our primary contact person to support this trip (e mail: lkoome2000@yahoo.com) Raphael Sipalla (Audio 4) our ‘Influences’ artist (e mail: ruffmaud@yahoo.com) We will be interviewing them throughout this trip to provide additional color to our Field Reports. We spent our Saturday packing and preparing the vans for…
A Tanzanian Effort to Salvage the Music of the Past News
…a – Kimulimuli – Chiku lala salama peponi Mziki wa dansi – Zilipendwa- Marijani- Fanya kazi Maestro king kiki – Maestro of Tanzania Rumba or Swahili Rumba kitambaa cheupe…
Central Uganda: Day 7 – A Magic Day in Entebbe Story
…hank them now for their patience with us. It is also important to say that today will be more unstructured. We have one formal new group, which we’ll describe below, but we have also invited artists from two of our trips to join us and create new music. For part of the session we were joined by Brad Gibbs from The Mara Group, who had sponsored part of this trip and wanted to see how things were going. Brad was joined by a colleague, Nicolas Farah,…
Central Uganda: Day 6: Kampala to Entebbe Story
…dingidi: Tube Fiddle Emlwanzi: Pan Flute Adungu: Harp Entongoli: Bow Lyre Drums: Engalabi (Long drum, longest) Empuny (Main Drum) Entujza, 2 medium drums Namunjoloba, 2 small drums, one pitched very high and one lower Their members include: Ronald Muwonge (drums and dances) Denis Kasasira (long drums) Samson Basoga (Tube Fiddle) Isabirye Basoga (15 slab xylophone) Jane Babirye (lead vocalist) They performed 4 songs and two magic moments, which the…
Central Uganda: Day 5 – Jinja to Kampala Story
…the music, we love it and felt we had no choice [The three founders are: Haruna, the MD who is running the group, Saul Kasule and James Isabirye]. The Journey Back After the performances, there was a lot of picture taking, hugs and farewells. We also said goodbye to a wonderful hotel filled with amazing hostesses that treated us very well. We then drove straight back to Kampala and even passed the President’s car on the way (it was unclear if the…
Central Uganda: Day 4 – Jinja Story
…st stay with them. Wandyaku Vooto (Dindu) Followed by a Magic Moment with Trumpet and Drums James Isabirye said of this group, “These are my darlings. They are trying to reconstitute a group that will lead the savior of the trumpets. There are two old men and the rest are younger trying to learn from the old men, who were master players. The National Council of Folklore for Uganda supports them. The trumpets are royal music, meaning they were perf…
Discussions with Peter Cooke: ethnomusicologist and Ugandan music expert News
…ur entenga restoration scheme to preserve and promote this traditional instrument for future generations. Students practice entenga drum-chime at Kyambogo in 1968 (Musisi is furthest from the camera) Peter’s research into African music is extensive. “It all began in 1964, a few weeks before travelling out to begin teaching in Kampala, Uganda,” says Peter. “On the stage of the Prince’s Theatre, London, I received my first lesson in playing the Kiga…
Central Uganda: Day 3 – From Mbale to Iganga to Jinja Story
…This makes the tone so rich and it is far richer than the skin sound of a drum. The drum sound of the slab, with the hole underneath is actually unique in the world of percussion. They are not limited to 22, because there is no royal role. Anything between 21 and 23 is fine. If they could extend it, they would. The limit is the deeper you go, you can no longer tune the slab. It stops going deeper. The nature of the wood limits the distinct notes t…
Before They Pass Away News
…that they continue to add to throughout their lives. He followed the Samburu people in Northern Kenya as they travelled across the land searching for new plains for their cattle, and the Maasai in Tanzania. Singing Wells too has travelled extensively across Kenya, meeting remote tribes like the Pokot Tribe, the Marakwet Tribe and the Ameru Ethnic Community. In a Ted Talk, he shared some of the fascinating rituals that he came across on his travel…
Happy new year from Singing Wells News
…e checked in on the preservation of the Bigwala trumpets The Bigwala is a trumpet-style instrument made from gourds. Singing Wells has been supporting the work of James Isabirye to preserve this fantastic traditional instrument, so in 2015 we went back to Uganda to check on the progress of the project. 4. We learned about the art of drum making During our 2015 trip to Uganda, we had the privilege of being able to watch and record the making of the…
We’re discovering the lost music of the Ugandan Kingdoms News
…the lost royal drums of the Buganda Kingdom Context on the Entenga royal drums we’ve been searching for The story of Musisi – a drummer from the royal palaces and the fall of the Buganda Kingdom Some information on the progress of the Bigwala trumpets – an instrument we restored on a previous field trip Interviews with the palace players and a great deal of information on the art of drum making You can also keep up to date with our latest news fr…
Central Uganda: Day 1 – From Entebbe to Kidinda Story
…da. They had 27 members join us (32 in total), roughly divided between instrumentalists (drums/shakers/Endingidi – the Luo Orutu) and dancers/singers. Their leader was Charles Dumba and they are from Masaka Nyendo. They have performed for roughly six years together and their musical style is Nganda from Buganda. They are called the ‘Boys’ band, but there are girls in the group too. They sang three songs: Mbidde (Medley): The Mbidde is the banana p…
The repatriation of Kenya’s music heritage News
…returned to the communities in which these songs were made in the 1950s by English ethnomusicologist, Hugh Tracey. The repatriation of these recordings began in August, during a two-week pilot project in Kenya’s Rift Valley led by Prof Diane Thram, Director of the International Library of African Music (ILAM) in South Africa and the team from Ketebul Music, supported and funded by The Abubilla Music Foundation as part of the Singing Wells project….