NIGERIA – Obodo Uka Mba & His Igele Goup Obiaruku – Ekimogun – EKLP 057

NIGERIA – NIGÉRIA

Obodo Uka Mba & His Igele Goup Obiaruku – Ekimogun – EKLP 057, 1979 (LP)

I am thrilled to present music from the Ukwuani (Ndokwa) people of Delta State in southern Nigeria. The Ukwuani are a subgroup of the Igbo people and share their region and cultural landscape with neighboring Urhobo, Ijaw, Isoko, Edo, Ika and Enuani communities.

Bandleader Obodo Uka Mba, from Obiaruku in Delta State, launched his musical career in the early 1960s, eventually becoming one of the region’s most prominent artists. Celebrated for his pioneering work and unique style of Ukwuani traditional music, Mba toured extensively and released a string of popular albums between the 1970s and the 1990s.

The seven-man ensemble, Obodo Uka Mba & His Igele Group, features Mba’s lead vocals alongside backing vocals and a small, whimsical, high-pitched ceremonial horn that acts as both a musical thread and a ritual signal. The group rounds out its sound with rich polyrhythmic percussion, including a large Igele frame drum, a wooden slit drum, an udu clay pot drum, and handclapping.

I was immediately struck by the album’s cover art, which shows Mba standing with his right fist raised in the unmistakable posture of ritual authority. Observed closely, however, this clenched gesture reveals a carved wooden hand. A parallel symbol appears in the photograph below of an Igbo Agbo-Maw masquerade, where the performers' human hands are entirely concealed. In Igbo lore, hidden, absent or rigid wooden hands signify a non-human, supernatural identity—indicating a direct communion with divine entities. In his left hand, Mba carries objects of power, including a ceremonial staff draped with a white cloth. White is the sacred color of ancestors, denoting spiritual purity and communication with the spirit world. Along with his beaded necklace and a woven cap, these elements together establish Mba’s personal spiritual authority and command over both the music and the ceremonial space. 

Recognized as a defender and pioneer of Ukwuani traditional music, Mba’s enduring legacy continues to inspire artists and listeners to this day.

Je suis ravi de vous présenter la musique du peuple Ukwuani (ou Ndokwa) de l'État du Delta, dans le sud du Nigéria. Les Ukwuani sont un sous-groupe du peuple Igbo et partagent leur région et leur paysage culturel avec les communautés Urhobo, Ijaw, Isoko, Edo, Ika et Enuani voisines.

 

Originaire d'Obiaruku dans l'État du Delta, le maître de musique Obodo Uka Mba a lancé sa carrière musicale au début des années 1960 pour devenir l'un des artistes les plus éminents de la région. Célèbre pour son œuvre novatrice et son style unique de musique traditionnelle ukwuani, Mba a beaucoup tourné et a sorti une série d'albums qui ont connu un franc succès entre les années 1970 et 1990.

 

L'ensemble de sept musiciens, Obodo Uka Mba & His Igele Group, associe le chant principal de Mba à des chœurs et à un petit cor de cérémonie, qui tient à la fois le rôle de fil conducteur musical et de signal rituel. Le groupe complète sa riche palette sonore par des percussions polyrythmiques, notamment un grand tambour igele sur cadre, un tambour à fente en bois, un tambour udu en terre cuite et des battements de mains.

 

J'ai immédiatement été frappé par la pochette de l'album, sur laquelle Mba est représenté debout, le poing droit levé, dans une posture d'autorité rituelle. En l'observant de plus près, cependant, ce geste fermé révèle une main en bois sculpté. Un symbole parallèle apparaît sur la photographie ci-dessous d'une mascarade Igbo Agbo-Maw, où les mains humaines des danseurs sont entièrement dissimulées. Dans la tradition igbo, les mains cachées, absentes ou rigides en bois signifient une identité non humaine et surnaturelle, indiquant une communion directe avec des entités divines. Mba tient dans sa main gauche des objets de pouvoir, notamment un bâton de cérémonie drapé d'un tissu blanc. Le blanc est la couleur sacrée des ancêtres, symbolisant la pureté spirituelle et la communication avec le monde des esprits. Associés à son collier et à son bonnet tissé, ces éléments attestent de l'autorité spirituelle personnelle de Mba ainsi que de sa maîtrise de la musique et de l'espace rituel.

 

Reconnu comme un défenseur et un pionnier de la musique traditionnelle ukwuani, l'héritage durable de Mba continue d'inspirer les artistes et les auditeurs ukwuani jusqu'à aujourd'hui.

A1 – Mmgboto School 

A2 – Obodo Uka Jeni Record

A3 – Over Bulum Kaje

B1 – Uwe Enyashi

B2 – Okolobie Di Ule

B3 – Onye Nwenego Yaka Uche

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Many thanks to our friend João for sharing this fascinating rarity!

My other traditional and modern Igbo, and Urhobo music posts:

Nigeria III - Igbo Music– BM 30 L 2311 here

Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe – People's Club Special – Polydor POLP 070 here

Johnson Adjan and his Opiri Group of Orhokpo – MELP 006 here

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The Ukwuani people boast a rich musical heritage, having produced legendary artists such as Charles Iwegbue (?-1975), Sir Kendo, King Ubulu (1949-2004), Prince Smart Williams Achugbue (1969-2005), Issac Rogana Ottah (?-2006), Sir Daddy Kris, Agu Lato, and Franco Lee Elute (1949-2013); 

 

Listen to Okibo, a terrific fast-tempo 1962 hit from the Golden Age of Nigerian Highlife performed by lead vocalist and trumpeter Charles Iwegbue & His Archibogs:

Photographs below are from Masques d’Afrique by William Fagg, Fernand Nathan/L.E.P., 1980, and Arts du Nigéria dans les Collections Privées Françaises by Toyin Falola, Hélène Joubert and Alain Lebas, 5 Continents, 2012:

Agbo-Maw (Maiden Spirits) masquerade. Two men, representing the idealized spirits of two young women, are guided by an attendant through the traditional Igbo Nkpu initiation. This initiation includes a seclusion period during which elder women teach the young women about womanhood. The masqueraders perform intense, theatrical, trance-like dances as manifestations of ancestral spirits visiting the earthly plane. Photographed by George Thomas Basden (1873-1944) in 1938:

Igbo Mmwo mask from the Ni Awka Region.

This dance mask represents the female spirits from the invisible world: 

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INDIA – T.R. Mahalingam – Flute – His Master’s Voice – EASD 1343

INDIA – INDE

T.R. Mahalingam – Flute – His Master’s Voice – EASD 1343, 1969 (LP)

T.R. Mahalingam (1926-1986), also known as Mali, born in Thiruvidaimarudur in the Tanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, was a legendary musician who played a central role in popularizing the Carnatic flute in the 20th century. After his family settled in Trichy (Tiruchirappalli), he and his siblings began taking Carnatic music classes from their maternal uncle, Jalra Gopala Iyer. Iyer headed a renowned music school there, where he had tutored the great vocalist N. C. Vasanthakokilam (1919-1951). While studying singing, Mahalingam became interested in the flute and displayed such talent for the instrument that he performed his first concert at the Thyagaraja Festival in Mylapore at the age of seven, in 1933.

 

Mahalingam delivered intense, transcendent concert performances. But the mercurial artist would sometimes fail to show up for concerts or stop playing suddenly mid-performance. Despite his eccentricities, Mali's achievement was a complete transformation of the Carnatic eight-hole bamboo flute that was not used as a solo concert instrument until the late 19th century.

 

Before Mali, flute players followed the Sarabha Sastri style, playing in discrete, staccato bursts without gamakas—the ornamental inflections, slides, oscillations, and microtonal shadings applied to notes in Carnatic music. Many believed that the flute was incapable of reproducing the complexity of many ragas. Mali proved them wrong, pioneering innovations that resulted in an expressive, voice-like flute that could bend and shade notes with great subtlety and sustain long unbroken phrases with an almost seamless flow. His most famous disciple, N. Ramani (1934-2015), brilliantly expanded on his mentor’s legacy and flute-playing techniques.

Mahalingam is accompanied here by Trichy Sankaran (b. 1942) on the mridangam drum and an unknown violin player.

 

T.R. Mahalingam (1926-1986), également connu sous le nom de Mali, né à Thiruvidaimarudur dans le district de Tanjavur au Tamil Nadu, était un musicien légendaire qui joua un rôle central dans la popularisation de la flûte carnatique au 20ème siècle. Après l’installation de sa famille à Trichy (Tiruchirappalli), il commença, avec ses frères et sœurs, à étudier la musique Carnatic auprès de leur oncle maternel, Jalra Gopala Iyer. Ce dernier dirigeait une école de musique réputée dans laquelle il avait été le professeur de la grande chanteuse N. C. Vasanthakokilam (1919-1951). Alors qu'il étudiait le chant, Mahalingam se prit de passion pour la flûte et révéla un talent exceptionnel pour cet instrument. Il donna ainsi son premier récital à l'âge de sept ans, lors du festival Thyagaraja à Mylapore, en 1933.

 

Mahalingam était connu pour ses performances scéniques intenses et transcendantes. Cependant, cet artiste imprévisible ne se présentait parfois pas à ses concerts ou s'arrêtait soudainement de jouer au milieu d'une représentation. Malgré ses eccentricités, Mali transforma radicalement la flûte Carnatic en bambou à huit trous, qui n’était utilisée comme instrument de concert solo qu’à partir de la fin du 19ème siècle.

 

Avant Mali, les flûtistes suivaient le style de Sarabha Sastri, jouant par staccatos distincts et saccadés, sans gamakas — les inflexions ornementales, glissandos, oscillations et nuances microtonales appliquées aux notes dans la musique Carnatic. Beaucoup estimaient alors que la flûte n’était pas en mesure de restituer la complexité et les subtilités de nombreux rāgas. Mali leur apporta un démenti spectaculaire. Grâce à ses innovations techniques, il transforma la flûte en un instrument d’une expressivité remarquable, capable de se rapprocher de la voix humaine, de fléchir et de nuancer les notes avec une grande subtilité, mais aussi de développer de longues phrases ininterrompues avec une fluidité exceptionnelle. Son disciple le plus célèbre, N. Ramani (1934-2015), a à son tour développé avec brio l’héritage et les techniques de jeu de son maître.

Mahalingam est accompagné ici par Trichy Sankaran (né en 1942) au mridangam et par un violoniste inconnu.

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My other Carnatic, Hindustani and regional Indian flute posts:

N. Ramani – Flute – EASD 1390 here

The Great Tradition – EALP 1453 – Carnatic Music here

Inde du Sud – Les Grands Classiques – Ducretet Thomson here

Pannalal Ghosh – EALP 1354 here

Vijay Raghav Rao – Flute – ECLP 2357 here

Flûtes du Rajasthan – Le Chant Du Monde LDX 74645 here

Photographs below are from The Art Of India Through the Ages by Stella Kramrisch, The Phaidon Press Ltd, London, 1954:

Figurine of Mother Goddess, grey terracotta, Mathura, 

Uttar Pradesh, c. 3rd century BCE:

Dancing couple, Karla Caves, rock-cut Buddhist shrines, 

near Lonavala, Maharashtra, 2nd century AD:

A depiction of a mythical aquatic Makara beast at the gateway of the Bharhut Stupa, Madhya Pradesh, 1st century BCE:

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BHUTAN – Tibetan Buddhist Rites from the Monasteries of Bhutan – Volume 1 – Rituals of the Drukpa Order from Thimpu and Punakha – Lyrichord LLST 7255

BHUTAN – BHOUTAN

Tibetan Buddhist Rites from the Monasteries of Bhutan – Volume 1 – Rituals of the Drukpa Order from Thimpu and Punakha – Lyrichord LLST 7255, recorded by John Levy in 1971 (LP)

The Kingdom of Bhutan, nestled on the southern slopes of the eastern Himalayas, is a landlocked nation bordered by Tibet, China, to the north and the Indian states of Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam, and Arunachal Pradesh to the west, south, and east.

 

Long known as a remote "hermit kingdom," Bhutan spent centuries intentionally shielding itself from the outside world to preserve its sovereignty and rich cultural heritage. Driven by a desire to conserve these traditions, King Jigme Dorji Wangchuck (1928–1972) invited English ethnomusicologist John Levy (1910–1976) to record and document the nation's music.

 

The result was a seminal four-disc collection, recorded in 1971 and released by Lyrichord in 1972. The first volume of this collection here showcases the sacred rituals of the Drukpa Order, performed by monks from Thimphu and nuns from Punakha. Originally brought to Bhutan from Tibet in 1222 by the lama Phajo Drugom Zhigpo (1184–1251), the Drukpa lineage was later established as the country’s official state religion in 1616.

These stately tracks weave rich, meditative and esoteric acoustic tapestries created by the deep chanting of the monks of Thimphu (A1, A2, A3, A6, A7, A8, B1, B2, B3, B4, B5) and the nuns of Punakha (B7-B8), as well as instruments including long dungchen trumpets (A1, A3, A5, A6, A8, B11), high-bone kangling trumpets (A1, A6), conch-shell trumpets (A1, A6), oboe-like gyaling shawms (A3, A6, A8, B9, B10), large double-headed nga frame drums (A1, A3, A6, A8), an hour-glass pellet drum (A8), silnyen cymbals (A1, A6, A8), handbells (B1, B2) and percussion (B10).

 

Le Royaume du Bhoutan, niché sur les versants sud de l'Himalaya oriental, est un pays enclavé bordé au nord par le Tibet (Chine) et, à l'ouest, au sud et à l'est, par les États indiens du Sikkim, du Bengale occidental, de l'Assam et de l'Arunachal Pradesh.

 

Longtemps considéré comme un « royaume ermite » isolé, le Bhoutan s'est en effet délibérément coupé du monde extérieur pendant des siècles afin de préserver sa souveraineté et son riche patrimoine culturel. Animé par la volonté de préserver ces traditions, le roi Jigme Dorji Wangchuck (1928-1972) a invité l'ethnomusicologue britannique John Levy (1910-1976) à enregistrer et à documenter la musique de son pays.

 

Le résultat fut la publication d'une collection phare en quatre disques enregistrés en 1971 et publiée par Lyrichord en 1972. Le premier volume présente ici les rituels sacrés de l'ordre Drukpa, exécutés par des moines de Thimphu et des nonnes de Punakha. Introduite au Bhoutan depuis le Tibet en 1222 par Lama Phajo Drugom Zhigpo (1184-1251), la lignée Drukpa est ensuite devenue la religion d'État officielle du pays en 1616.

 

Ces morceaux imposants et majestueux tissent de riches tapisseries sonores, à la fois méditatives et ésotériques, créées par les chants profonds des moines de Thimphu (A1, A2, A3, A6, A7, A8, B1, B2, B3, B4, B5) et des nonnes de Punakha (B7-B8), ainsi que par des instruments tels que les longues trompettes dungchen (A1, A3, A5, A6, A8, B11), des trompettes kangling à anche haute (A1, A6), des trompettes en conque (A1, A6), des hautbois gyaling (A3, A6, A8, B9, B10), de grands tambours sur cadre nga à double tête (A1, A3, A6, A8), d’un tambour à billes en forme de sablier (A8), des cymbales silnyen (A1, A6, A8), de clochettes (B1, B2) et des percussions (B10).

 

A1 – In Praise of Genyen

Monks of Thimphu;

Chorus of 17 monks, two conch-shell trumpets, two thigh-bone kangling trumpets, two long dungchen trumpets, two large double-headed nga frame drums, a pair of silnyen cymbals.

 

A2 – Offering of ''Golden Drink''

Monks of Thimphu;

Unaccompanied chants.

 

A3 – Exhortation to the Guardian Goddess of Long Life

Monks of Thimphu;

Chorus of 17 monks, two gyaling shawms, two long dungchen trumpets, large nga drums and silnyen cymbals.

 

A4 – Long Trumpets / ''Throat Ornament''

Monks of Thimphu;

Two long dungchen trumpets.

 

A5 – Long Trumpet / ''Two Notes Prolongued''

Monks of Thimphu;

Two long dungchen trumpets.

 

A6 – Invitation to Gongpo

Monks of Thimphu;

Chorus of 17 monks, two conch-shell trumpets, two thigh-bone kangling trumpets, two long dungchen trumpets, two large double-headed nga frame drums, a pair of silnyen cymbals and two gyaling shawms.

 

A7 – Petition to Chakchen

Monks of Thimphu;

Unaccompanied chants.

 

A8 – Invoking Tshetro's Blessings

Monks of Thimphu;

Chorus of monks, two gyaling shawms, two long dungchen trumpets, two large nga drums, silnyen cymbals, an hour-glass pellet drum.

 

B1 – Supplication to the Buddhas

Monks of Thimphu;

Chorus of Monks, two gyaling shawms, two long dungchen trumpets, four large nga drums, a handbell, a pellet- drum, two pairs of silnyen cymbals.

 

B2 – Aspiration to Be Reborn in the Western Paradise

Monks of Thimphu;

Chant and handbell.

 

B3 – Petition to Dramar

Monks of Thimphu;

Unaccompanied chant. 

 

B4 – Prayer for Lama's Long Life

Monks of Thimphu;

Unaccompanied chant.

 

B5 – Large 'Mani-wheel' with Mantra

Lay monks recite a mantra.

 

B6 – Rite to Cure Disease

B7 – Rite to Cure Disease

B8 – Rite to Cure Disease

Nuns of Punakha Nunnery

Chanted by nuns of Punakha Nunnery accompanied by two gyaling shawms, two conch-shell trumpets, two long dungchen trumpets, two large nga drums, and a handbell held by the Abbess.

 

B9 – 'Tibetan Shawm' / Processional Music

Monks of Punakha;

Paired gyaling shawms using circular-breathing techniques.

 

B10 – Processional Music for Shawms and Percussion

Monks of Punakha;

Paired gyaling shawms using circular-breathing techniques.

 

B11 – Long Trumpets / ''Auspicious Ending''

Monks of Thimphu;

Two long dungchen trumpets signaling the end of the monastic ritual.

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Englishman John Levy (1910-1976) spent many years in India studying with his guru, Shri Krishna Menon (1883-1959), and bringing the knowledge of Advaita philosophy to the West. Levy was also an expert on Asian music and made many seminal field recordings in India, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, China, Taiwan, South Korea, and Bhutan.

 

Vintage postcard of The Cosmic Mandala or The Mystic Spiral, 

Paro Dzong monastic fortresses, late 17th century:

 

“We entered the temple court of Paro Dzong, the monumental fortress of Western Bhutan. Rows of wooden arches, supported by columns, overhung wall paintings on three sides of the court. We could hardly believe our eyes: the temple door was flanked by frescoes which, step by step, portrayed the radiating evolution of energy into matter. To the left of the eastern gate the fresco of a gigantic mandala shone from the wall. This mandala is surrounded by a 'fire circle' of flaming red. Blue clouds of ether form the background of the circle's inner sphere and at its centre a small triple spiral seems to spin rapidly. It is the symbol of first movement surrounded by large circles floating on the clouds of ether. The circles are painted in fine lines of black and white and in all colours of the rainbow. The latter are symbolic of the four compass directions, red for west, blue for east, yellow for south, and green for north; black stands for the nadir and white for the zenith. The circles intersect and form ellipsoidal lines, emphasising the spherical dimensions. This is a visionary rendering of primary movement: the 'Mystic Spiral' in the universe. In this mandala, movement was still symbolised by the three-footed spiral, while in later renderings a four-footed swastika was substituted. Around this spiral a whirl circle indicates energies moving in a sphere of future materialisation, in which geometrical figures appear. They are the symbols of the four 'elements', earth, water, fire and air… Originally painted by an old Lama, the deeper meaning of this fresco has become remote and difficult to comprehend even for his successors, but to us it appears strangely real and unbelievably modern.”*

*Bhutan – Land of Hidden Treasures by Blanche C. Olschak, Stein and Day, 1971.

Photograph below is from 150 Ans d'Explorations. Les Archives de la Royal Geographical Society, Place des Victoires, 1999:

 

Musician holding a two-stringed chiwang spike fiddle – similar to the Chinese erhu – photographed by Benjamin Simpson (1831-1923) during a 

British military mission in Bhutan in 1863-1864:

Please help me purchase important traditional records to 

pursue my global curation project and share the 

best finds with you on this blog here below: