2. Naizungwe Drums – progress report 1 Story
…urs have all been drum makers. This begins to make sense when he says that one drum offers 54 different jobs: cutting the tree, shaping the trunks, putting cow dung on frames, drying skins, making strings etc. For the 24 individual drums that we are making, the amount of work quickly adds up. Why are we making 24 drums? James answers: “The set we are making comprises 24 drums of big, small, medium and small sizes. We decided to make many because w…
Day 2: Sunday, 2017 February 19th Story
…ing for three reasons: We had the whole day so were able to record a large number of songs and do an “Influences” session. This gave the village children time to get to know us and understand our mission. By the end they were singing along to all the songs. In addition to being a professional musician, Leo also teaches music to school children so he is a natural with kids. On all the songs that he did, he had the whole village singing and laughing…
Day 1: Saturday, 2017 February 18th Story
…s. At 14 years old, I would sit at my drums just trying to recreate that one riff. It took me three months of non-stop listening to get it down. And that was just 30 seconds of his lifetime of drumming. All I want to do is master his style.” As Daudi mentioned, Mzee Morris became the sound of Tanzanian news. The TBC announced each hour with a drum riff of his drums. Every hour, for decades. He was honoured in his time, with the then Prime Minist…
Our journey to the Royal Drums: in the words of James Isabirye Story
…e drummers. I thought I was in great shape, because I knew Sebuwufu, a xylophone player who knew all about the drums and agreed to help me. Together, we found out that Peter Cooke had recorded the drums and we listened to some of these recordings. But then, Sebuwufu passed away in August 2015 and I realised I had a big problem now. He might have been the last person who knew the drums. But I remembered that Sebuwufu had heard of someone named Musi…
Central & Eastern Uganda: Day 4, Part 2 – Flutes Story
…orm and packed ourselves up for the hotel, and packed in the hotel for our flight on December 4th back to Nairobi. We will not provide a field report for December 4th, but stay tuned for December 5th, when we continue recording Uganda musicians, but not in a field. In a studio. To a click track. With other professionals. As we seek to revive these sounds… Read part one: reflections from our time exploring the royal instruments of the Kingdoms of U…
Central and Eastern Kenya: Days 5-11:An Interview with Gregg Story
…tation partner and has none of the ‘funder’ hang-ups I see elsewhere. Everyone digs in to get the job done. Second, you get it – it is about stories and I greatly respect the amount of time you invest The second thing is stories. You guys look out for real stories and try to tell the stories. This is really important. I think development is really about stories. And I watched out much you invest in telling the stories of these people. You care. Th…
The History Of Benga Music: A Report by Ketebul Music Story
…963, the Ogara trio recorded the song “Selestina Juma” at the African Gramophone Stores, famously known as AGS, in Nairobi. Curiously, the song bears a distinct beat of ska, the precursor of today’s reggae. The trio’s guitar work was evidently inspired by influences from way beyond Luoland and was pretty much ahead of its time. It is possible that its ingenuity came from itinerant guitarists from the Congo, Uganda and Zambia who were already visit…
Central Uganda: Day 5 – Jinja to Kampala Story
…e players and 2 thumb pianos. They also have the traditional Ugandan Xylophone. All instrumentalists also sing and are supported by three ladies who sing and dance. The three core members are: Walusimbi Nsibambi Haruna: He the Founding Director of Nile Beat Artists. Walusimbi was once the Global Youth Earth Day Ambassador for Africa after winning the Global Youth Earth Day Ambassadors Competition in Marikina-Philipines. Nabayaza Sumaya Baiga: She…
Discussions with Peter Cooke: ethnomusicologist and Ugandan music expert News
…re, London, I received my first lesson in playing the Kiganda amadinda xylophone from the South African musicians Andrew and Paul Tracey before their evening show Wait a Minim.” “My work in Uganda led me to begin exploring that country’s traditional music initially with the aim of collecting useful materials for teaching purposes. That exploration has continued since then, apart from during the chaos of the periods of the rule of Amin and the Seco…
Central Uganda: Day 4 – Jinja Story
…s/traditions and can train the youths. One already died in May to move the number from 4 to 3 and one of the three surviving is very ill. But it is almost certain, now that the trumpets won’t disappear. Young people have some interest, thankfully, and are learning.” Click here for further reading on the Bigwala. Here’s their music: Adagha Nalya Drama Group Our second group was from the Bukoona Village and called the Adagha Nalya Drama Group. Their…
Central Uganda: Day 0 – Nairobi/London to Entebbe Story
…he hotel. We had a quick dinner and a few free drinks (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 engin…
Singing Wells in Numbers…. News
…Andy did a litte homework for this one: Number of recordings of groups: 374 (this does not include other recordings like Magic Moments, Influences, etc…) Number of groups recorded: 83 Number of hours of music: 27 hours and 30 minutes. …
Report from Womex 2013 News
…onsuming music. In Africa – 60% have electricity whereas 86% have a mobile phone. This is again another area in which the Singing Wells project may be interested in the future – mobile phones and ring back tones as a method of delivery for music. Mike and I also attended the African music networking session which became the launch for a new initiative by the Cape Verde government. It has been calculated that music is their biggest export and so ha…
SWP Uganda 2013 – our proposed itinerary News
…ce) and ‘Nasale’, playing traditional instruments such as the Embaire (xylophone), Ndingidi (tube fiddle) and Efumbo (long drum). Once the recording sessions are finished we will pack up the studio and drive the short distance to Mbale, the location of our recording session on Thursday morning. Day 4: Mbale & Nakisenyi – Music of the Bagisu and Basoga On this morning we will meet the Elgon Ngoma Troupe who perform Bagisu music. Steve met the leade…
A recording studio which fits into the back of an SUV Story
…ftware – an industry standard for recording and music production. The microphones we have chosen are industry standard models used in studios the world over but, most likely, not seen in the villages of East Africa. The equipment has been carefully selected so it can easily fit into a few holdalls and four rugged peli-cases which protect everything while in transit, whether it be on a plane from Nairobi or in the back of the van on a bumpy track t…
A quick summary of the Singing Wells Project News
…ds that are ready for prime time – someone just needed to give them a microphone. Here are the Otacho Young Stars…. Why aren’t they the biggest sound of Kenyan music? Has the Otacho ever sounded cooler? Is this a song in priase of Mr Manager? Or does it say something far deeper – why do we need to praise a leader simply for doing his job? What does it say that this needs praise? 8. Singing Wells is about discovering roots and recovering the great…