Nick Abonyo (the ‘clapper-man’) News
…llar job in Nairobi but nothing materialised and he went back to Mirogi to live with his aunt. Nick really loves music – his favourite was a reggae group called Lucky Dube and their song ‘Crazy World’. He first thought of writing and recording his own music but ultimately decided that he loved the world of video, photography and computer animation. He first heard of Ketebul Music in 2008 when they were working on their compilation Retracing the Be…
Why “Singing Wells”? News
…ging wells of the Samburu tribes people. The singing wells of the Samburu During the dry season, Samburu herdsmen (and boys) draw much needed water for their cattle from deep wells which they have dug in the parched river bed. As they pull water from these wells they begin to sing, a different song eminating from each well. The animals appear from the bush, seeming to recognise the unique song of their master. Once the animals have had their f…
A Year in Review March 2011 – March 2012 News
…, you will discover the Otacho Young Stars, with their modern take on the Orutu. But then watch the magic of the Nyatiti and Luo drums in two ‘magic minute’ sessions: The Kalenjin project, Great Rift Valley, Kenya: Scheduled for March 2012, we will be travelling to the Great Rift Valley to record the music of the Kalenjin tribes. The majority the world famous Kenyan athletes are from this tribe and we will be capturing the traditional musi…
Sad News from Kenya News
…ear to all of those keeping track with the Singing Wells project. Some sad news. Okumu K’Orengo, one of the musicians we recorded in Kenya as part of the Singing Wells trip, had passed away. He was a master of the Nyatiti and performed for us in the village of Aluny, his final track on the day being a funeral dirge. We send our sympathies and condolences to his family and friends at this sad time. Here is an audio excerpt and video from his perfor…
AMF receive grant to fund Batwa recordings News
We have just heard the good news that the Institute of International Education has approved a grant to support the Singing Wells trip to Uganda to record the music and dance of the Batwa people. We are delighted that our proposal was successful and that the IIE agreed with our rationale for taking the project to the Batwa to increase awareness of their unique music and dance traditions. In our proposal, we outlined our rationale as follows: “The…
Singing Wells Project News Update News
…OCTOBER 2011 NEWS: Here is the latest news and itinerary for Phase 4 – the Batwa and Luo music recording trip in November. Click on the image to download the PDF: …
Recording music & dance of the Batwa News
…irunga mountains, when everything changed for the Ugandan Bawta. Unable to live and hunt in the forest, the Batwa were forced to live in areas not suited to their traditional way of life. They became largely excluded from Ugandan society. Batwa communities suffered from poverty and exclusion and were offered little stake in the tourist industry which has developed in forests where they once lived. The plight of the Batwa in Uganda is now being r…
Abubilla Music release fourth album News
The latest album from Abubilla Music has been released and there’s a launch party on 2nd October in Richmond when The Saturday Morning Canasta Club will play tracks to a (hopefully) admiring audience – more news about that to follow. Click on the cover for a sneak preview – the track ‘Breathe’ performed by the Singing Wells Project’s very own Andy Patterson……. Importantly, the album also includes the global remix of an origi…
AMF News Up-Date News
…There’s some exciting developments happening with all our projects and partners. Take a look at our news update here: …
May 2011 – Jimmy reports back on the pilot phase News
…ly “the nine clans”) also employ the use of a vast array of impressive instrumentation such as kayambas, marimbas, flutes, horns, various cow-hide drums and shakers. I often point out to the “misuse” of the synthesizer in generation of drums beats and percussion in modern recordings. However, modern technology can greatly enhance these acoustic sources of music if one chooses to start from there. Imagine the sound of the Chechemeko Raha group with…
Lake Turkana Cultural Festival 2011 News
…ed a perfect fit with the objectives of the Singing Wells project and the trustees were happy to approve a grant to cover the costs of travelling to the Festival with the new mobile recording equipment. The main purpose for the Festival, which is hosted by the German Embassy in Nairobi and the National Museums of Kenya, is to ‘overcome tribalism in the region and to promote peace and reconciliation among the local communities around Lake Turkana b…
Reflections on the pilot phase by Pato News
…he owner of the car and left me with his car, but not without detailed instructions on how to handle it and with a stern warning: don’t visit your girls friends with my car! We met them later that evening at a restaurant called Sippers in Hurlinghan, having drinks and enjoying live music by Samba Mapangala, Winyo and Ayub Ogada. Jimmy was not aware that I kept on peeping to see the images my love was capturing. Day 2: Off to Malindi I was up by 5:…
Discovering music roots with SWP News
…ly “the nine clans”) also employ the use of a vast array of impressive instrumentation such as kayambas, marimbas, flutes, horns, various cow-hide drums and shakers. I often point out to the “misuse” of the synthesizer in generation of drums beats and percussion in modern recordings. However, modern technology can greatly enhance these acoustic sources of music if one chooses to start from there. Imagine the sound of the Chechemeko Raha group with…
More Ketebul voices…Steve reports from the field News
…ti. Zigidigi Cultural Troupe, led by Matano Mwachiti They had an array of drums and a calabash like instrument that the player blew into through a thick pipe and it produced an interesting bass sound. They also had a flute, the Chivoti and the player played some interesting melodies. The ladies in the group looked very happy as they danced and sang. And as soon as they finished, they were again joined by Winyo for another magical moment as we wait…
What we learned from the pilot phase News
…f new folks that want to learn and take on similar projects. Fund Raising: We need funds to complete the pilot output and the November project. We are very confident that this project will be hugely appealing to NGO’s, Corporate sponsors and individuals who want to share what is truly a once in a lifetime experience. That’s it for now. Of course, there is far more we will be doing and we’ll update all of you on this website. Our final blog will be…
£25K donation from Abubilla Music Foundation News
…om the The Abubilla Music Foundation of £25,000 has been allocated by the trustees to the Singing Wells project. This has meant that all expenditure on the development of the Ketebul Music website has been covered and we are now able to go ahead with the purchase of the all mobile recording equipment which will be needed for the village recording sessions. Our resident technical expert and sound engineer, Andy Patterson, has sourced everything we…