adminR-Kay The Big Stage
Today when people are rating music it seems the focus is more on entertainment value, a quick appeal, a catchy beat and it must be up tempo.
Judging from the general music from almost all radio stations, you can tell that ballads and well arranged music seem to be a thing of the past. Very few laid back songs get to bask in the limelight of commercial success so to say.
One perfect song that comes to mind is a song by Audius Mtawarira called “Chete”.
When you listen to the musical arrangement , the lyrical content and then the tempo of the song, it has everything to deserve unlimited airplay, but for some reason one wonders how the general person does not appreciate the fine elements of the art of music.
There is a lot of great music being produced by seasoned musicians, which at times because of its complexity and musical expressiveness has been sidelined and put behind the scenes in favour of the more upbeat bubble gum songs. Then the question comes, do we have to listen to upbeat music all the time especially computer generated loops? Surely not today! I want to introduce you to a band that has found an amazing musical formula which given a chance is destined for the world stage. I met these guys at a festival recently and what you hear on their recorded CD is what you get on their live stage performance.
Gwenga is an Afro-fusion group based in Harare. The group was started in 2010 by its front-man Kirby Chipembere. Their sound consists of a rich blend of ethnic African rhythms fused together with melodies from the rest of the world to give you the ultimate musical experience!
The group is made up of six members and they make use of both traditional and modern instruments, which include the mbira nyonga-nyonga, hosho (shakers), guitars, djembe, congas, bongos, keyboards and drums. I asked them about their inspiration and they simply said, “Our inspiration comes from the African culture and the African map that we use as our icon with the letters G.W.E.N.G.A inscribed serves to symbolise this. The words Culture, Rhythm, and Pride,further articulate that we represent- African culture, African rhythm and African pride!
To date, their performance history demonstrates that they are not just a wanna-be outfit, but there are serious about producing music that can take one to the kings courts
Since meeting these guys, I became interested in really understanding what their secret to such a solid group of young and very talented musicians was, and I came across their manager Kumbirai Mkudu who is a senior associate at Ernest&Young. His vision and efforts seem to have given them the hope to stay together and soldier on and its paying off. As I introduce this band ladies and gentleman, I will give you just a small biography of the members.
Their debut single “Wandipengesa” meaning you drive me crazy is taken off their upcoming debut album titled “Mazwi”. The album is a celebration of the evolution of African music and an expression of what we as young musicians have to offer.
Good music must not be side-lined and/or feared. What we term commercial is a choice we make to promote a particular style against another.
Let good music be heard on all radio stations.
We want to sit back and appreciate the artistic efforts of individual artistes and their bands especially Zimbabwean.
Online Reporter