Mukhambira

Luka Mukhavele's 10 tone xitende -5 strings divided in half =10 strings

BELOW:

"Cooking the Xitende" Without Distorting It!!

"Experiment is the Mother of Science"

It's a matter of sensibly and "Methodically"  listening to it, to pick its quieter voices; Those, which it silently calls us to listen to, and not the louder ones. The louder ones are readily there, omnipresent. We do not need our intelligence to listen to the louder ones. As quiet as our souls are the over and undertones; And there lays the soul of the Xitende; And, then, we can build up on them! Whether you are the best bass, guitar, saxophone, or whatever instrument player! You must humbly listen to that "derogatorily" termed a primitive instrument by those who are insensible to it! Then, together with Nkovani, you can enjoy to build your melodies, ornaments, or fill-ins, and, thus begin a new musical experience.  

The video above is a rehearsal session, at my place, in Costa do Sol, Maputo, Mozambique, in preparation for a concert and a series of events that took place in Teatro Avenida and other venues  in Maputo.

Some clips from the concert can also bee seen under concerts in this site. 

BELOW:

Trial-and-error

. The Sound Laboratory is my Home!

. If you Fear Erring, you Fear Learning!

Erring is the actual learning process. Err as many times as needed, so you learn; Each error is a learning!

Trial-and-error is the motto. It is the only way we can produce new solutions! No matter where -can be on stage, in the classroom, in the studio.... Most important is that after erring, you should recognize it, and search to solve the error. It is tension and resolution that give a living character to music.

So! Let's err together, until we can produce the correction! For the good  of science.

Drying Mbira Keys in the Kitchen Oven

In order to produce good sound, mbira boards need to be dry. Usually, mbira boards are dry slowly, through the natural heat of the sun. At times they are deliberately exposed to sun, so they can dry faster. However, when there is time pressure, other alternatives have to be found, such as drying them in the open fire. In this particular case, the experimental trial-and-error  process was conducted in the kitchen oven, and The result was good! 

"Music Has Professions! And its Professions Have Hierarchy!"

Consciousness awakening is the oldest profession of music. Thereafter, followed communication, teaching, and entertainment, the later as an adjunct. If we are not conscious, we are not ready to communicate; if we are not communicable, we are not ready to learn; if we are not learned, we cannot entertain! not even be entertained!

Community is a bottomless and topless source of learning, exposed to us everyday. Thus, learning has neither beginning not end.

So, let's get started. Let's leave the last things for the last place. That said, let's start with the first things. Let's get conscious so we can communicate constructively, and get learned and cultured, through music before we can rush to being entertained by it. That is the sequence of the professions of music; the sources are readily around us, as part of our everyday life. Let's learn from them.

Conciousness is the First!