TANZANIA – ZIMBABWE – UGANDA – KENYA – CONGO – MALAWI – MOZAMBIQUE – ZAMBIA – LESOTHO British East Africa – Columbia Masterworks Volume X – SL 213

TANZANIA – ZIMBABWE – UGANDA – KENYA – CONGO – MALAWI – MOZAMBIQUE – ZAMBIA – LESOTHO
British East Africa – Columbia Masterworks Volume X – SL 213, collected and edited by Alan Lomax and Hugh Tracey, 1955 (LP)

We now present an excellent panorama of East African music from the early 1950s recorded by the great American ethnomusicologist and folklorist Alan Lomax (1915-2002), whose many recordings helped preserve folk musics and was central in the American and British folk revival between the 1940s and 1960s. These recordings were edited by the distinguished English ethnomusicologist Hugh Tracey (1903-1977), who for five decades tirelessly traveled to Southern and Central Africa, where he made 35,000 recordings of disappearing traditional and folk musics.

 

These superb tracks, recorded in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Congo-Kinshasa, Mozambique, Malawi, Zambia and Lesotho in the early 1950s, are presented by type of instrument, including drum music, xylophones, the Mbira African thumb piano, musical bows, flutes, zithers, lyres, story songs and country dance songs.

Nous présentons maintenant un excellent panorama de musiques d'Afrique de l'Est enregistrées au début des années 1950 par le grand ethnomusicologue et folkloriste américain Alan Lomax (1915-2002) qui contribua à préserver les musiques folkloriques du monde et joua un rôle déterminant dans le renouveau folk américain et britannique entre les années 1940 et 1960. Ces enregistrements ont été édités par l'éminent ethnomusicologue anglais Hugh Tracey (1903-1977), qui parcouru sans relâche l’Afrique australe et centrale pendant cinq décennies au cours desquelles il réalisa 35 000 enregistrements de musiques traditionnelles et folkloriques en voie de disparition. 

Ces superbes morceaux enregistrés en Ouganda, au Kenya, en Tanzanie, au Zimbabwe, au Congo-Kinshasa, au Mozambique, au Malawi, en Zambie et au Lesotho au début des années 1950 sont présentés par type d'instrument notamment les tambours, les xylophones, le piano à pouce africain mbira, les archets musicaux, les flûtes , les cithares, les lyres, et chansons d'histoire et chansons de danses rurales.

 

Drum Music

A1 – Manyanga Drum Rhythms - Nyamwezi people, Mwanza, Tanzania. 

Drums by Husuni Isike, Ramadhani Knuluwa, and Salumu Athman;
Composed by Kasomangila.

 

A2 – Ntimbo Drum Rhythms - Nyoro people, Kikali, Hoima, Uganda. 

Ntimbo Royal Drummers; Leader and composer: Yohana Nyakayonga.

 

A3 – Nsiriba Ya Munange Katego - Ganda people, Lubiri (Mengo Palace), Kampala, Uganda.

Ensemble: Entenga Royal Drummers.

 

A4 – Mitamba Yalagala Kumchuzi (Madogili dance) - Zaramo people, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. 
Drums, rattles by Kitamba, Kilakala, Mashaka, Kawambwa, and Zaramo men.

Xylophones

A5 – Sabata (wedding song) - Luba people, Lubumbashi, Congo-Kinshasa.

Drums, rattles, two Malimba xylophones. 

 

A6 – Musingasinga Yakora Egali (Ntara dance) - Nyoro people, Masindi, Uganda.

Ntara xylophones by Misaki Muswankuli and Ruli men.

 

A7 – Hinganyengisa Masingita (Ngodo orchestral dance) - Chopi people, Zavala, Mozambique.

Timbila Xylophone Orchestra led by Pondekane WaMamzatu;
Composed by Katini WaNyamombe.

Mbira

A8 – Kyenda Ali Mugenyi - Nyoro people, Kigumba, Gombolola H.Q., Masindi, Uganda.

Likembe mbira; 
Composed by Bachumirwa Tugwenderwa.

 

A9 – Shumba (The Lion) hunting song - Zezuru people, Mutare, Zimbabwe.

Huru mbira by James Gwezhe Soko.

 

A10 – Harusi (Wedding Tune) - Nyamwezi people, Tabora, Tanzania. 

Malimba mbira by Ngayamiso Kitunga.

 

A11 – Kasadi Ngandu - Luba people, Lubumbashi, Congo-Kinshasa.

Chisanzhi mbira by Kankolongo Alidor.

 

A12 – Citombe (dance tune) - Shona/Karanga people, Masvingo, Zimbabwe.

Njari mbira by Mukomondera Moye.

 

A13 – Chirombo Weye Nditerere - Shona/Karanga people, Masvingo, Zimbabwe.

Kalimba mbira, vocals by Mugadzikwa Mwanagona.

Musical Bows 

A14 – Teera Machangwa - Shona/Karanga people, Masvingo, Zimbabwe.

Chizambi musical bow by Mukomondera Moyo.

 

A15 – Kwa Ambuya Asina Keriya - Zezuru people, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Chipendane musical bows by Muchabaiwa, Remigion, and Richard.

Flutes 

A16 – Okuzanyira Ku Nyanja - Ganda people, Lubiri (Mengo Palace), Kampala, Uganda. 

Flutes and drums.

                                                  Gourds 

B1 – Manyanda (Muganda dance) - Chewa people, Masula, Lilongwe District, Malawi. 

Malipenga singing gourds; leader Benson Phiri.

Zithers 

B2 – Hehe Song - Hehe people, Iringa, Tanzania.

Ligombo tube-zither by Pancras Mkwawa. 

 

B3 – Dale Wangu - Tonga people, Nkhata Bay, Malawi.

Bangwe raft-zither by Beti Kamanga.

 

B4 – Mugasha - Haya people, Bukoba, Tanzania. 

Nanga trough-zither by Habib Bin Seliman.

                                                 Lyres 

B5 – Naftali Ouko - Luo people, Kisii, Kenya.

Thum eight-string lyre, Gara leg bells by Daudi Otuoma.

 

B6 – Wachonge - Bukusu people, Mumias, Kenya. 

Litunga lyre and Luhungele inverted bowl by Maundo Waliaula.

  Story Songs 

B7 – Pfeni Nengoma - Ndau/Garwe people, Mutare, Zimbabwe.

Vocals by Muchaenna Sigauke and Ndau men.

 

B8 – Teya-Teya - Lozi people, Kitwe, Zambia.

Albert Mulope and the Barotseland Patriotic Society Choir.

 

B9 – Pi Mcinanga - Zezuru people, Penhalonga, Zimbabwe. 

Teacher Training College Choir and rattle.

 

B10 – Kamwezi Sensa Muyaya - Nyamwezi people, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. 

Vocals, Drums by Idi Selemani and Nyamwezi men and women.

Work Songs 

B11 – Mong'a Kobo - Sotho people, Roma, Lesotho.

Vocals by Simon Makhetha and Sotho men.

 

B12 – Ali Majengo - Haya people, Bukoba, Tanzania. 

Vocals, Drums by Kyomile Kabanyolekile and Haya men.

Country Dance Songs

B13 – Samandoza - Shona/Ndau/Garwe people, Mutare, Zimbabwe. 

Vocals and handclaps by Muchaenda Sigauke  and Ndau men.

 

B14 – Safari Ya Msanga-Tifu - Giriyama people, Majengo, Mombasa, Kenya.

Vocals, rattle, handclaps by Kanga Mayele and Giriyama men.

 

B15 – Ufalume Ni Jambo Bora (Vugo Dance) - Swahili people, Kenya.

Horn rattles, drums, Zumali oboe by Mwana Bibi and Swahili female vocals.

 

B16 – Lugendo Lwa Halaka (The Hasty Journey) - Nyamwezi people, Mwanza, Tanzania. 

Vocals, drums, anklet bells by Kasomangila Husen Ishla and Wachozaji Wa Manyanga.

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Check out Hugh Tracey’s impressive collection of recordings here

And some of Alan Lomax’s recordings here

Our other East African music posts:
Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda – Musical Gems from Lake Victoria – Sapra Ltd here

Tanzania – Fabulous Gogo Music from Tanzania – Sapra Ltd here

Kenya – Sounds of Masailand – Sapra Ltd here

The photographs below are from Sacred Dance – Encounter with the Gods by Marie-Gabrielle Woslen, Thames & Hudson, 1974, and a vintage postcard:

Fertility dance, Wakamba (aka Akamba or Kamba) people, Kenya:

Timbala xylophone and marimba ensemble, Chopi people, Zavala, Mozambique (see A7):

Please help me purchase important traditional records to pursue my global 

curation project and share the best finds with you on this blog:

INDIA – INDE Bismillah Khan – The Soul of Shahnai – His Master's Voice - ECSD 2833

INDIA – INDE
Bismillah Khan – The Soul of Shahnai –  His Master's Voice -  ECSD 2833, released 1979 (LP)

We now present a first-rate album by Bismillah Khan (1916-2006), the great master of the double-reed shehnai. Born into a family of court musicians at Bhirung Raut Ki Gali in Dumraon, Bihar State, Khan elevated this woodwind folk instrument, traditionally played during ceremonies (marriages, etc.), to the status of classical Indian instrument suitable for the concert hall.

 

Khan had a long and highly successful career, during which he released many recordings and performed widely onstage and for radio broadcasts, which brought him great fame throughout India. His name has become synonymous with his instrument.

Khan’s masterful heartfelt and imaginative melodic musings are accompanied by six unidentified musicians, including a chorus of three other shehnai players, two percussionists and a harmonium player. 

Nous présentons maintenant un superbe album de Bismillah Khan (1916-2006), le grand maître du shehnai à double anche. Issu d'une famille de musiciens de cour à Dumraon, État du Bihar, Khan a élevé cet instrument folklorique à vent, traditionnellement joué lors de cérémonies (mariages, etc.), au statut d'instrument classique de salle de concert.

 

Khan rencontra un grand succès tout au long de sa riche carrière, au cours de laquelle il a publié de nombreux disques et s'est souvent produit sur scène et pour des émissions de radio, ce qui lui a valu une grande renommée dans toute l'Inde. 

 

Les envolées mélodiques chaudes et imaginatives de Bismillah Khan sont accompagnées par six musiciens non identifiés, dont un chœur de trois autres joueurs de shehnai, deux percussionnistes et un joueur d’harmonium.

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Photograph of Ustad Bismillah Khan below is from Inde - Hommes, Rites et Dieux by Indira Gandhi and Jean-Louis Nou, Vilo, 1978:

Influenced by Bismillah Khan and other Indian masters, Jazz legend John Coltrane (1926-1967) crafted a shehnai-inflected sound on his straight soprano saxophone and presented some of his most entrancing experimental flights in raga-like fashion. Khan's influence is clearly audible on his stunning version of My Favorite Things performed live at the Newport Jazz Festival on July 7, 1963, featuring John Coltrane on soprano saxophone, McCoy Tyner on piano,  Jimmy Garrison on bass and Roy Haynes on drums:

Selflessness - Featuring My Favorite Things – Impulse! AS-9161

Please help me purchase important traditional records to pursue my global 

curation project and share the best finds with you on this blog:

CONGO (BRAZZAVILLE) Musique Pygmée de la Haute Sangha – BAM – LD 325 – Collection du Musée de l'Homme

CONGO (BRAZZAVILLE) 
Musique Pygmée de la Haute Sangha – BAM – LD 325 – Collection du Musée de l'Homme, recorded by Gilbert Rouget in 1946 (7 inch, 33 RPM)

In 1946, the 23-year old ethnologist Noël Ballif (1922-1993) organized and led the Ogooué-Congo scientific expedition, whose 12 team members included André Didier from CNAM (Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers), ethnomusicologist Gilbert Rouget (1916-2017), and the documentary filmmaker Pierre-Dominique Gaisseau (1923-1997). The team made 600 field recordings, took 3,000 photographs, shot film footage and collected artifacts of disappearing cultures and ways of life in the Republic of Congo and Gabon. 

Following our post of Bantu music collected during this same expedition, we now feature the spellbinding and complex polyphonic vocal music of the Babinga Bangombe and Babenzélé Pygmy peoples in the region of Ouesso, on the left bank of the Sangho river in Republic of the Congo (aka Congo-Brazzaville). These nomadic hunter-gatherer forest people’s collective music and dance accompanies many of their daily activities, most notably magical rituals for the hunt.

En 1946, l'ethnologue Noël Ballif (1922-1993), alors âgé de 23 ans, organisa et dirigea les 12 membres de l'équipe de la mission scientifique Ogooué-Congo, notamment André Didier du CNAM (Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers), l'ethnomusicologue Gilbert Rouget (1916-2017) et le documentariste Pierre-Dominique Gaisseau (1923-1997). Lors de cette expédition, l’équipe réalisa quelques 600 enregistrements sonores, 3 000 photos, et des films de cultures et de modes de vie en voie de disparition en République du Congo et au Gabon.

Suite à notre post de musique bantou enregistrée lors de cette même expédition, nous présentons l’envoûtante et complexe musique vocale polyphonique des peuples pygmées Babinga Bangombe et Babenzélé de la région d'Ouesso, sur la rive gauche de la rivière Sangho en République du Congo (Congo-Brazzaville). Ces chasseurs-cueilleurs nomades de la forêt accompagnaient nombre de leurs activités quotidiennes de musiques et de danses collectives, notamment des rituels magiques liés à la chasse.

A1 – Female Babenzélé solo singing. 

A2 – Female Bangombe two-voice singing. 

A3 – Yéli – Bangombe solo singing by the wife of the camp’s chief and most skilled hunter with women’s choir and hand clapping. 

A4 & A5 – Sandzo ritual hunting dance with women’s choir, the hunters’ shouts, drums and a struck iron bell. 

 

After the Bangombe have killed a huge long-tusked male elephant, they summon Edzingi, a spiritual entity from the forest, to a dance. Side B captures the music accompanying Edzingi’s hunting dance ritual featuring male and female vocals and shouts, clapping, drums and a struck iron bell:
B1 – Edzingi hunting dance ritual – Waiting for Edzingi. 

B2 & B3 – Edzingi hunting dance ritual – Dance around Edzingi. 

B4 – Edzingi hunting dance ritual – Edzingi’s agony and departure.

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Our other related posts:

Musique Bantou d'Afrique Équatoriale – BAM LD 324 here

Musique Pygmée et Musique Nègre – Barclay 86.019 here

Photographs below are from The Dance, Art and Ritual of Africa by Jean-Louis Paudrat and Michel Huet, Pantheon Books, 1978, and In a Pygmy Camp by Elizabeth Shepherd, William Morrow, 1969:

Mbuti Pygmy gentleman playing harp, Ituri region, Democratic Republic of Congo:

"One man brings out his bow and tests its strings. Then he holds it close against his cheek 

and taps the bow with an arrow. His mouth makes the sound box." 

Ituri region, Democratic Republic of Congo:

Please help me purchase important traditional records to pursue my global 

curation project and share the best finds with you on this blog: