Central and Eastern Kenya: Day 1 – Nairobi to Kiongwe to Muranga Story
…ed by Mumbi Wambua) and Vilingi (whistle): Mutambo wa iiu: This means the trunk of a banana tree; it says that the trunk can’t be climbed by boys. Mutongoi: This is a song sung to a political leader in the area. The song praises the politician and asks the people to vote for him – he’s Kyonekana na nengwe. His name means, “if seen give it to him”. Kolleji or College: This is sung in the Itheke genre. The song praises a local politician (Major Muti…
Entenga: Music that soothed kings News
…We’re delighted to annouce that our esteemed colleague and Singing Wells partner Prof James Isabirye has been featured in an article in Uganda’s Daily Monitor about his work to revive the Entenga Royal Drums. Read now. You can watch the full documentary of our initiative to save the Royal Drums here….
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…
Kenya’s Amazing Musical Instruments News
…on the role of the “fiddle” found in Irish or American country music. The Orutu is a one-string instrument played with a bow, whose notes are created by finger pressure against the central stick, producing the effect of ‘fretting’ notes. Watch here as the Aloka Ohangla Group plays “Nyar Karapul” (the Orutu is on the far left): Nyangile The Nyangile is a Luo instrument whose name literally means “box.” To play it, a musician holds two metal rings c…
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…
Discussions with Peter Cooke: ethnomusicologist and Ugandan music expert News
…usician Bulasio Busuulwa, one of the former royal flute players, who was already working with me at Kyambogo, I also recruited his young friend Musisi – a former member of the royal entenga group,” says Peter. “They made an excellent team – making numerous traditional instruments in the department’s workshop and teaching them to the music students and to music teachers who came for in-service courses. Like Musisi, Busuulwa had not found conditions…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
Meeting Ketebul: an interview with Tabu News
…moment. We need to look for a platform to promote our stuff, whether it’s online, digital radio, TV – we need to make the music more accessible to all. Why is Singing Wells important? Singing Wells is important because we’re trying to capture our East African heritage. Many of the musicians we record from remote tribes are old and we run the risk of the traditional music in Kenya dying out, we don’t want to see that happen. Further, most recordin…
From African Twist to Benga News
…o the ‘old masters’. Our recordings are particularly poignant as Ochieng Nelly sadly passed away shortly after the making of this album. Read our report from the studio sessions here. …