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…in Kisoro, Uganda. UOBDU was created in the year 2000 with the help of the UK-based Forest Peoples Programme. Their sole purpose is to assist the Batwa in improving their lives so they may live on equal footing with all Ugandan citizens.” Two of the UOBDU staff accompanied us on our first trip to visit the Batwa in 2011, and were incredibly helpful with translations, and information about Batwa life. We continue to partner with UOBDU to support th…
Day Five: January 22, 2019 Mwanza Continued Story
…ded four performances: Wachumba Walya: A song about someone who is too mean-spirited to support his community even though he has lots of money, it is about a man “who eats along, without his brother’ Ntelela Engoma: A song about living with respect to traditional ways Basigazi Fura Emyende: A song about overcoming all of life’s challenges by working together Mwije Tuzane: We filmed this freestyle, where the group encourages the audience to get up…
Bigwala Instrument
…e to read our report from the field. Here is an extract from the UNESCO website, explaining about the Bigwala which was inscribed in 2012 on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding: Bigwala music and dance is a cultural practice of the Basoga people of Uganda, performed during royal celebrations such as coronations and funerals and, in recent decades, on social occasions. Bigwala describes a set of five or more mono…
Albums Introduction Page
…works artistically, we’ll arrange the tracks on the album in chronological order of the recording date – so you can experience the journey that we took through the music of the area we were recording in. Each album also contains a number of extra tracks that weren’t strictly part of the archiving recordings we were making. These recordings are of ‘Influences’ sessions – where a popular musical artist has joined us on our trip to collaborate with…
Day 5 – Wednesday 5th July 2017 Story
…ying in Europe, now the violin wants to come in, the guitar wants to come in, so now I need tuning.” In any case, both his tunings and his finger plucking techniques are very much different from the traditional nyatiti players. He says he created his own style of music and learned to “adapt in order to survive”. At his home, we encountered another talented musician – Martin Njoroge “Papillon”, whom Ayub has been mentoring. Papillon played for us a…
Ayub Ogada Group
…y much different from the traditional nyatiti players. He says he created his own style of music and learned to “adapt in order to survive”….
Victoria Denison Staff Profile
…2011). As well as acting as administrator to the Trustees, Victoria is the UK Project Manager for Singing Wells. Working closely with colleagues in London and Nairobi, she is involved in all aspects of the project including planning, fundraising, budget reconciliation, publicity and social media and website development. She has a passion for photography and has joined all three Singing Wells trips to Uganda (in 2011, 2012 and 2013) as a volunteer…
Day Five: February 20, 2020 (DCMA) Story
…and 1 tramboline. They produced a wonderful rich sound. Performers: Taimour Rukuni Taha (secretary general, accordian), Maulid Haji Mkadam (musical director) We didn’t get the rest of the names as there were so many. Singers in order of songs below: Amina Addalla, Sabina Hassan, Mtumwa Mbarauk, Mgeni Khamis, Fatima Abdi Sdam. Songs: Bashraf Waridi – Rose, instrumental intro Ume Washuka Kama Yalivyo Nipata Mapenzi Matamu Sikupendi Kwa Uzuri – Lo…
Culture Musical Club Taarab Orchestra Group
…nd 1 tramboline. They produced a wonderful rich sound. Performers: Taimour Rukuni Taha (secretary general, accordian), Maulid Haji Mkadam (musical director) We didn’t get the rest of the names as there were so many. Singers in order of songs below: Amina Addalla, Sabina Hassan, Mtumwa Mbarauk, Mgeni Khamis, Fatima Abdi Sdam. Songs: Bashraf Waridi – Rose, instrumental intro Ume Washuka Kama Yalivyo Nipata Mapenzi Matamu Sikupendi Kwa Uzuri – Love s…
Day Three: Bungoma Town to Kakamega Story
…instrument (is this really the Shirili?) Mirembe: Xylophone Olwika: Horn Isukuti: Hand-held ‘conga’ drums Kayamba: shakers Likata: sticks Ikengele: Ring Chapuo: Big bass drum They performed six songs, with the sixth song finishing exactly when the rains came crashing down on us. While they had a couple of traditional songs, most of their performances were to allow students to feature specific instruments. Songs were: Mwana Wa Mbeli: famous Lua Son…
Singing Wells Stories Page
…upported the release of his debut album: The Benga Blues. To listen to and buy a copy of that, head here: The Benga Blues Sagat Traditional Dancers We recorded the music of the Sagat Traditional Dancers as part of our trip to record the music of the Kalenjin in the Rift Valley of Kenya in March 2012. The recording location was stunning. The group performed their piece ‘Chemuso’, which tells the story of the Marakwet people and their journey from t…
Day 4 – Tuesday 4th July 2017 Story
…ther was gone. He also gave us an idea of the current purchase conditions (order completed in approx. 2 weeks, price of 6000 Kenyan shillings per nyatiti), while mentioning that most of the nyatitis he makes go to clients from outside the area (as far as USA). Ogwe considers that since the materials are becoming more and more costly, so does the instrument and consequently fewer people are purchasing it. When describing his manufacture process, Og…
Conclusion: Challenges and Recomendations Story
…it. I also openly advocate for a general meeting of all team members to be organised before envisaging another Masters programme, in order to correct any possibly biased conclusions made. The general impression that emerges from my own personal assessment of the success of this first recording mission is quite satisfactory. Considering the limited time and a number of challenges encountered, I believe we managed to accomplish most of the set objec…
Day 1 – Saturday 1st July 2017 Story
…ely, the different stages of nyatiti making before arrival to the field in order to plan on filming economically. According to what was explained by Rapasa, who also makes the instruments, we identified 9 stages of nyatiti making. This would later facilitate following the instrument makers narratives and allow for comparison. Other pertinent information provided by Rapasa during our drive to Kisumu included the types of trees used for nyatiti (wit…
Gacharaigu Gitiro Women Group Group
…uru Division, Kamgema District and was formed in 2006 and dedicated to self-help. Its style is Ndumo, an old women’s dance purely for entertainment and preservation of culture. For all their songs, the ladies used the Kigamba (leg shakers) The group played 6 songs: Ndumo: sung by Wambui Mwangi. Ngucu: sung by Charity Muthoni and Grace Njuguini Muthuo: sung by Mary Wambui Kimunya: sung by Grace Njuguini Gitiro: sung by Mary Njeri Njagi Magic Moment…
Day Three: February 18, 2020 (Stonetown, Mpendae, Maungani) Story
…e Gods Pakistan – written by Siti Binti Saad who loved Pakistan when she visited Kasha – Kenyan Taarab love song. A man singing about his “chest being opened and empty” In typical Taarab style this has sexual inuendo Hijjaz Solo – Jazz solo without the singer Ashikibaya – name of a city. Magic Moment of Christopher Weston on Cajon and High Hat Magic Moment of singer Regina singing Kasha Magic Moment of singer Regina and Hassan on Sax performing…