Group of the Month – Otacho Young Stars News
…im, just for doing his job properly. This was one of the songs the group re-recorded at Ketebul studios – re-named Mr Manager and available on YouTube here: You can find links to the field reports below – along with a link to the group page for the Otacho Young Stars. We’ll be posting clips and recordings of the group on the Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages over the course of the next few weeks – so keep an eye out for them!…
A recording studio which fits into the back of an SUV Story
…everything you need for a fully functioning, professional recording studio into the back of a small utility vehicle. Here’s a quick summary of what’s in all those bags…… We have two mobile recording units, each capable of recording from four microphones plus other sources at a high resolution to Apple MacBook Pro laptops. The benefit of the systems we have chosen is that they can run off the battery power of the laptops if we are in the situation…
The Key to Sustainable Aid in Africa? Perhaps we should follow the music. News
…cal troupe. Supporting tribal music, therefore, is a key component in sustaining a healthy village, which is a key conduit to delivering all the more urgent and important aid, from medicines, to clean water, to sustainable farming techniques and financing, etc… We are finding ourselves caveating what we do less and less – we are doing our little bit to support the leaders of healthy villages, so they do can help fascilitate all the other aid that…
The New Singing Wells website News
…that we meet and the journeys that we make – so we have split our stories into easy to read and find sections. Find them via the menu bar. Podcasts Our podcasts are now displayed with the full track lineup and listen, watch and group links where they are available. Click here to listen. Featured Content At the bottom of each post and story you’ll find a list of related posts so if you find something you are interested in then it’s easy to read mo…
Kampala traffic jam Story
…the infamous Kampala traffic jam! …
Group of the Month – Watmon Cultural Group News
We are pleased to announce a new project at the Singing Wells. Group of the Month sees us take one of the 50 groups we have recorded in the field since the beginning of the Singing Wells project, and feature recordings, stories, videos, interviews, and other content we have gathered in East Africa. Our first group of the month is the Watmon Cultural Group. We have videos from our Uganda 2012 trip, as well as recordings made in both Naguru and at…
The Beat of Kenya News
…l African musical instruments and during her research she had come across Singing Wells. We were able to provide Andrea with some information about the instruments and, importantly, some photos and videos of the instruments being played, which are from our field trip to Western Kenya in November 2011. The instruments now on display at the Manitoba Museum were donated to the museum in 2011 by a Canadian who had worked in Maseno, Kenya in the late 1…
A quick summary of the Singing Wells Project News
…village. But they went to the village and the village elder came out, explaining that he was a member of the Macedonia band, and proceeded to lead the village men in singing Uganda Land of Freedom, some of them playing the Likembe. The government forces in frustration spared the extended band and went to the next village. Again, the elder led the village men in a rendition of Uganda Land of Freedom. They went to village after village and everyone…
A new type of city Story
…llo told us many stories of the vibrant buzz in Kampala. Every night there’s music to listen to somewhere in the packed hub of 180,000 people . The image above of the tin houses and the Uganda House of Commons in the background was one of the first pictures I took on the trip….
The Influences Series from Singing Wells News
One of the keys objectives of the Singing Wells project is to introduce tribal East African music to a new generation of musicians and fans who might not consider it relevant today. So, we have developed the Influences series – a fusion of traditional and contemporary styles. Each time the Singing Wells team embarks on a field recording visit we are joined by a talented musician who works with us on ‘Influences’ songs. They work with us in the fi…
The First Singing Wells Influences Session Story
…ur fixer Ndeche. We journeyed further from the main road past a school and into the village of Sila. The welcome we received from the villagers was warm and kind, and we began recording, with the recording team sheltered from the blazing sun, under a gazebo, hastily bought two days before in Nakumatt in Nairobi. The recording of the groups went well. After Nyerere Wa Konde Music Club, we moved the set through 90 degrees and recorded Zaire Ndinding…
The origins of Singing Wells Story
…mals have had their fill the herdsmen climb from their wells and disappear into the bush. The songs tell stories of Samburu traditions and help the herdsmen keep a steady rhythm while they lower and raise their buckets. These ‘singing wells’ illustrate the importance of traditional songs in the life of the Samburu tribes people. We think that Singing Wells is a very good name for our project which aims to preserve, celebrate and share the unique m…
Hannah interviews Sabina – Acet, Northern Uganda News
…lyn Ojok her husband was killed in the war after he was abducted and taken into the bush by the LRA. She has 7 children and 4 of them love to sing and dance, mainly through learning at school. What does this music mean to you? The Acholi often give meaning and purpose to things in daily life. (The name of the primary school in this village translates to ‘The Drunk Huntsman’ and Acet, a town that perhaps used to be a bad place, we were told meant…
Returning to Uganda in Autumn 2013 Story
…on images and sounds in a single blog, we’ll try to summarize what keeps bringing us back… The individual voices The collective voices The exotic instruments The extraordinary dance, youth and energy The inspiration A performance or two for each of these… 1. The Individual Voices: Who can forget Francis, the lead of the Batwa musical community, singing with Jessie in the grounds of our hotel. Everyone stopped to listen and it remains one of our mo…
‘Missing’ – Singing Wells fundraising song for 2013 News
…March 2013 saw the release of an original track from Abubilla Music, re-mixed for the Influences series. The song is called (The only thing that’s) Missing and it was first recorded for the Abubilla Music album Misery Marmalade and other Spanish Jams. Here is the video of the new ‘Influences’ version, featuring musicians from Kenya, Uganda and the UK collaborating in this a unique song to celebrate and support Singing Wells….
Day 10: File Management at Ketebul Studios Story
…essons on this trip: Agree the ‘must do’ instruments/song styles at the beginning of trip planning and then make sure we have a group (and a back up group for each). On this trip we came close to missing a couple styles. We work ourselves too hard in the field and don’t leave enough time for file management. So, we have established two new ‘non-negotiables’: a) no driving at night, and b) all travel plans must assume an average speed of 50 kph. It…