(Mpho Molikeng)
In association with Concerts SA, Mpho Molikeng presents Of Bows & People Tour, a musical
journey through the indigenous music of Southern Africa. It covers the
experience of a man who has spent a number of years finding and playing
Southern African indigenous musical instruments (flutes, whistles, horns, bows,
drums, shakers, hand-clappers, ankle-rattles, wind-stringed, mbiras and
marimbas) and discovered that the future of African music lies in its
indigenous music as a whole.
Lesotho-born multi-facet artist (musician, actor, curator,
poet, painter, storyteller and cultural activist/entrepreneur) Molikeng trained
with Bloemfontein College (Fine Art, 1995) and Soyikwa Theatre Institute
(Drama, 1998). He has dedicated the past 12 years to learning, then playing and
teaching, indigenous musical instruments of Southern Africa and sharing them
with Africa and Europe in the age of technology.
For this tour Molikeng is putting the microscope on one
family of these amazing musical instruments to explore their play nuances,
ethnicity and their harmonious distinction in a collaborative set-up. He will
be exploring a family of bow instruments, both mouth resonated and tin/gourd
resonated. Some instruments that will form part of the collaborations are
Umakhoyane / Umakhweyane, Uhadi / Thomo / Dende / Ughubhu, Umrhubhe / Mokhope
/Utiyane, Umqangala / Lekope/ Lugube, and the Mamokhorong / Tsijolo /
Sikhelekhehle.
His tour will touch on seven different cities, collaborating
with individuals or groups who are masters of their instruments for many years:
In Durban, he will be working with Gog’ Bavikile Ngema.
“Indigenous music
should be made relevant to today, in the ever-changing world full of zillion
sampled and computed genres of music, in so doing younger generations would
start picking up indigenous instruments,” says Molikeng. “Second, it should be
given the same platform afforded to international and pop stars in our own
backyard before selling them international. Lastly, collaborations across
different cultures and gender should be promoted, to do away with tribalism
and/or one-wo/man instruments, but still keep their identity.”
Mpho Molikeng can be seen on December 5 at Cool
Runnings, 49 Milne Street, Durban.
Bookings on 031 368 5604
Of Bows & People
Tour is supported by Toms, the Alliance Française of Southern Africa and the
Music Mobility Fund, a funding mechanism administered by Concerts SA which
offers opportunities for South African musicians to undertake live music tours.
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