Day 3: Kitale to Kapsokwony, Kenya Story
…alist. They were a great choral group with some wonderful dancing using shields and spears. Again, Eddie stepped in for an Influences session with a subgroup to record. Please click here to read the meaning behind the songs of the Chebonet group: Song translations of Chebonet Teriet We then recorded Teriet, a guitarist with a wonderful acoustic guitar with a lot of miles. His best song was ‘Sigerer’. Kathy interviewed him about all his songs and t…
Day 2: Nairobi to Kitale & an interview with Pato Story
…oing studio recording and renting out PA equipment for DJs. His focus was relatively typical for young Kenyans at the time – Hip Hop inspired by US rappers. He joined Ketebul Music in 2006 and built up the video department there. While there, he was exposed to the Spotlight Series. He began to really love tribal music and so when we started developing the Singing Wells project he jumped on it, keen to head up the video recording department . We as…
Day 1: In Nairobi, packing and talking to Tabu Story
…eople are confident. They have their families and friends there who they feel comfortable and proud to perform in front of. Studios don’t exist near these villages so they would have to come to Nairobi to be recorded. Only the people who can afford to travel to Nairobi come so we miss all the talent in the villages. Also if we bring the villagers to the studio they are nervous and not as confident as they are at home. Once we’ve recorded them in t…
Victoria’s reflections on the music of the Batwa Story
…tle itself. There’s no shortage of water herev- it rains a lot – but a vessel for collecting and carrying the water is a very valuable thing. As we wait to leave, the children gather round me near the van. They are peering in the window wondering what else I might have in there. Another prized water bottle perhaps. It’s hard to turn away and leave when they are so expecting. They’ve seen me give out a gift and hope I’ll do so again. It’s an awkwar…
Return of the Batwa @ Ketebul Music Studios Story
…iful voice. Vastina Ayinkamiye Gasoda “DJ” Yohanandj DJ is the lead dancer for Tiny Moses. A lovely man who was a big hit in our Kisoro sessions, the whole group insisted that we could not even consider recording the Batwa in Nairobi unless he was included. Gasoda Yohanadj Mbirikimu Mbarushimana – “Challenger” The magic bass player (beat boxes into a pot) with Tiny Moses. Great backing vocals as well. Mbirikimu Mbarushimana Gaudancia (and baby Ste…
Day 3: Homa Bay and the Kochia Dancers Story
…t the hotel in a beautiful field against the lake – we’re surrounded by camels and pelicans, which is frankly a bit off putting. The pelicans are big enough to fly us away, but luckily we don’t smell like fish. We smell like a lot of other things by this time – there aren’t a lot of opportunities to wash and you’ll notice a lot shots of us in the same Singing Wells t-shirt – but luckily not yet fish. Fish would turn their noses at us. Our set, bel…
Day 2: Focus on the Nyatiti, Orutu and DRUMS! Story
…es are recorded with six mics (two centre, one far right, one far left, lapel mic for singer, lapel mic for lead instrument) and three cameras (Camera 1 stationary, Camera 2 close in, Camera 3 roving). So there’s quite a big crew setting things up and recording both audio and video. So here’s the view from behind the scenes: A young audience watches proceeding (performers are on far right, tent protecting recording equipment far left against back…
Day 1: The music of the Luo – starting at Rang’ala Village Story
…n turn heavily influenced by Cuban music. The big guy in Luo Benga was Daniel Owino Misiani who developed the style in the 60’s. A big reason to return to Luo-lands is to trace back to the origins of Benga, understanding in more detail the core instruments. Here, we almost start at the end, recording Osumba Rateng’s band, the Sega Sega Band: 5-6 vocalists and a couple of guitarists. https://youtu.be/pp_O-MYVbjg https://youtu.be/BUttehOfnKk https:/…
From Kisoro to Nairobi to Lake Victoria Story
…ee them dig up the right earth, make the bricks, dry the bricks and ultimately sell them to the passing vans. You ain’t fit ’til you’re Batwa fit: We continue to be amazed at the fitness of the Batwa and continue to tell the story of one young man carrying a generator on his head 800 metres, with 400 metres elevation. We will get T shirts made. Francis Playing Kid Golf: Francis is the music leader of most of Kisoro Batwa, knowing all the clans – h…
Day 6: The Studio @ Traveller’s Rest Hotel, Kisoro Story
…e of our hosts from the hotel then join the group for the second shot. Now for a formal photo with Jesse, Jimmy, Francis and Tabu The ladies came to work on an ‘Influences’ session with Winyo. 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…
Day 5 (much later): The Micyingo Group – guitar and bass! Story
…singing groups… This man was a wonderful dancer and he took centre stage. For us, he symbolised the essence of how life is for the Batwa today – a very hard life, but a life full of spirited song and dance… and this lady is their wonderful lead vocalist… https://youtu.be/pZzgr2PXZ3s https://youtu.be/gt4_CaZNN2c Then the guitar and bass took to the stage….if you are wondering where the bass is, the plastic bag turn out to be significant. We were…
Day 5 (PM): The ‘Togetherness Group’ from Kanyabukunga Story
…inue her education into High School and beyond. She is a wonderful role model for the Batwa and is proving how, with the right opportunity, Batwa children can achieve the same educational goals as any other child. Here are the videos which include a Batwa song called ‘Abagyeni Beza’ which is in praise of visitors to the community, telling them that they are beautiful. A lovely song for us to hear! https://youtu.be/MIxv2AOZ7XU https://youtu.be/iYuE…
Day 5: Recording the Mperwa Dancers Story
…And the inevitable narrow path leading up to the village…. And after a relatively short climb this time, we reach our destination… The small village consists of a handful of traditional thatched huts, some with fires burning inside…. More and more people arrive….and find our cameras and recording equipment interesting… The Singing Wells audio team – Nick, Andy & Willie – start to set up the mixing desk while Patrick and Steve place the mics… Th…
Day 4 (later): Recording for ‘Influences’ with the Birara Dancers Story
…e performers (Francis and the three lead female vocalists) back to the Traveller’s Rest Hotel in Kisoro. Jennifer who manages the hotel is brilliant. She allowed us to set up a recording studio, under the verandah of her hotel, just outside the bar. We were able to record there over the next three days, rain or shine, night or day. Which was good, because it rained a lot. https://youtu.be/c1XBVlNQL6E We continued to use this ‘hotel studio’ to reco…
Day 4: UOBDU and the Birara Dancers Story
…: After breakfast our first stop was the office of the United Organisation for Batwa Development in Uganda (UOBDU), where we met Henry Neza, the Capacity Development Co-ordinator, and Alice Nyamihanda, Tourism Officer and the first University graduate amongst the Batwa communities. They are to be our hosts and translators for the two days – we were lucky to be joined by Precious as well, Alice’s five month old daughter. Patrick photographs Alice a…
Day 3: From Nairobi to Kigali to Kisoro Story
…Rest in Kisoro. Five quick things: Rwanda: Beautiful country known positively for its gorillas, green hills and beautiful lakes. What strikes you immediately is the deep terracotta of the soil, which covers the roads, and seeps up the foundations of the houses, combined with the deep green of the vegetation. It is known negatively, of course, for the horrible 1994 genocide that was launched from its capital. Rwanda is roughly the size of the US s…