Our Sponsors Page
…rata for their continued help and support. To find out more, go to: http://www.nebulostrata.com Clarkson, Wright & Jakes Type of Sponsor: donation in kind Thanks to Clarkson, Wright and Jakes solicitors who were a big help when we set up our charity, The Abubilla Music Foundation. For more information on their services, head to their website at: http://www.cwj.co.uk/ Sheen Sports, London SW14 Type of sponsorship: donation in kind Thanks to She…
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…y Magazine (link to https://nairobiwire.com/2020/02/meet-kahithe-kiiru-head-of-choreography-at-bomas-of-kenya.html): “In the Kenyan context, little has been done to document and promote our dance heritage. And even less to develop and market it to the extent that other countries in this world have done. So, this is about way more than just a paper and a title. I take it as my duty to use the power of academia to preserve and restore our traditiona…
1. Introducing the Naizungwe drums Story
…s talks about: http://www.singingwells.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Peter-Cooke-naizungwe-recording-1.mp3 http://www.singingwells.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Peter-Cooke-naizungwe-recording-2.mp3 What makes this project particularly exciting, is the difference of approach required compared to the entenga drums. With the entenga we found a surviving old master player (Musisi) who was able to teach a younger generation of musicians about the mu…
Day 1: Saturday, 2017 February 18th Story
…which involve acrobatics, ‘clown acts’ and yes – snakes. Our snake was an 8-10 foot python, fat and seemingly healthy, feeding on 4-5 live chickens or rabbits a week. The Snake Dancers came out masked in Unga (flour), with a big box (spoiler alert: contains a snake). The first part of their act is pure comedy and acrobatics. One dancer knows what is in the box and is teasing the other to open it. There are mock fights, gymnastics, clown faces and…
Fundraiser for Matthew Watmon News
…ease get in touch with Matthew’s brother, Constantine Odida ((MTN) +256-782-236-742 and (Airtel) +256-704-261-037). If you are based elsewhere in the world, we have created a GoFundMe page: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-mathew-watmon The donors of Abubilla Music Foundation, who support the Singing Wells project, will match these contributions up to £1000 so we greatly appreciate your support at this time. We are sending our prayers to Matthew…
Ketebul Music presents Shades of Benga Online News
…Music have just launched Episode 2 of their online series Shades of Benga Online, to go alongside their book ‘Shades of Benga: The Story of Popular Music in Kenya 1946 -2016’. You can watch the latest episode below, and also find out more at their website here. Shades of Benga: The Story of Popular Music in Kenya delves into the foundations of modern Kenyan music, examining external influences from the English waltz to Afro Cuban Rumba and how…
Central & Eastern Uganda: Day 3, Part 1- Drum Making and Palace Players Story
…s do), but you can’t pitch lower without going back to the drum maker to re-tighten the skins. Abass makes beautiful drums and he is very generous with his time. He educated us for almost two hours during a very busy day in his shop. We are proud that we have his drums as part of our royal drums. We asked him if the royal drums used in the palace pre-1966 would have been made in his village. He responded, “They would all have been made by people i…
The Revival of Ohangla Music! News
…’s song Kanungo Eteko is massive on Youtube, and we were lucky enough to record him in one of our sessions in Nyanza here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPaBQwODTtU…
Rediscovering the lost Royal Drums of the Buganda Kingdom: Day 1, Uganda Story
…in the palace before 1966 had died. But in 2015 James discovered the sixty-something Musisi, possibly the last surviving drummer. Musisi was just a teenager at the time of attack and barely survived the night of the attack itself (more on this here). James met him and realised that together they could begin to build the drums. Working closely with Albert and Shaban, a professional drummer who now leads the new band, they built a new set of Royal…
Support for the Elgon Ngoma Troupe News
…eld trip, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkyDtBXfunI Watch Julius, the leader of the group, explain who the Elgon Ngoma troupe is, and their mission: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5Wk0YnbByk&fbclid=IwAR27BBeDBEx-5jMqkKxFTL9vtS5NxBwun0psDF9hCNmfQe0PQodki2Cns3U…
Remembering Our First Ever Influences Session 8 Years Ago News
…ng as his family and Winyo performed this great improvised session. Stay tuned for exciting announcements about the 10th anniversary of Singing Wells! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8zR1Hq0VXc&lc=z232gt5hrrr5jbjpz04t1aokg3gsm0mrvnsg3wkih113bk0h00410…
The History Of Benga Music: A Report by Ketebul Music Story
…n” of Benga by encouraging bands under his stable, who included his brother-in-law Dr. Collela Mazee’s Victoria Kings, to copy Congolese bands like Orchestre Kiam and Lipua Lipua that were being promoted by Congolese musician and businessman Verkys Kiamuangana, who was his business associate. Many of their recordings blatantly lifted recognizable sections of these Congolese songs. This copying was also being replicated at Verkys’ end. A case in po…
The Return of Bigwala News
…ad in the tapestry of Uganda’s cultural history. Sources: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/ugandan-music-bigwalahttps://ich.unesco.org/en/news/uganda-young-ugandans-mobilized-for-safeguarding-bigwala-music-and-dance-00251https://www.newvision.co.ug/new_vision/news/1333991/bigwala-busoga-royal-music-dance…
Central and Eastern Kenya: Days 5-11: Ketebul Studios, Nairobi Story
…a lot of records. The early sixties was mostly about studio work but by 70-71, when Benga was really at its peak the Sega Sega band was very big – we were always performing out in events and functions. We did okay and I made enough to buy my farm and build the house in which I still live. My biggest song was Baba otonglo which was about how hard it was to make ends meet. It was very popular but the government didn’t like it and I was interviewed…
Central Uganda: Day 7 – A Magic Day in Entebbe Story
…, ‘When you came things changed for us. We received money which we used to buy household things, chickens and clothes. We now have a plan to buy goats, a male and female for every member of our community. You changed our lives and we invite you to come back and see us again so we can show you what has changed for us. You have invited me to Entebbe and I want to jump up so high! I feel so good from deep within me. I am no better than the other Batw…
Central Uganda: Day 4 – Jinja Story
…rds in the right shape – so he has a standing order throughout the area to buy any gourd that can be shaped into the horns (he is also trying to start a gourd revolution so people start using them again to store liquids and stop using plastic) The coordinator and lead female vocalist in the group is Irene Nabirye. The group is made up of 6-7 Bigwala players and drummers, plus dancers and singers. They performed four songs and then we did a magic m…