Mark spent many years studying the mbira and its traditions, here’s a little background about his influences and teachers.

Tiri Chiongotere (Top Left):  I spent many wonderful weeks with Tiri in Zimbabwe, driving in his ancient Emergency Taxi - a Peugeot 404 estate – playing mbira, listening to his stories, interviewing mbira players and just getting along with stuff.  Tiri is the man playing the mbira in the photo on the inside of the album sleeve.  He taught me Nyamaropa Chipembere.

Chicago Dzviti: A wonderful photographer, and a dignified and resolute man.  Tiri, Chicago and I had a wonderful time together.  He took the picture of Tiri.

Chartwell Dutiro was my teacher and guide.  He opened up the doors.

Lindah Dutiro was my guide in the townships of Harare.  She introduced me to countless wonderful musicians, among them Hakorotwe Mude, Chris Mhlanga, Rinos Simboti, Tshaka Charasarira, Tute Chigamba, Manomano Chatambudza, Peter Bwalya, Ephat Mujuru, and Nyandoro. 

Melodic Dutiro is Lindah’s daughter and she sang the children’s song that became the link track “Melodic”.  She danced the song too, and the shuffles and scrapes of her feet are on the sample we use.

Ephat Mujuru: Such a sparkling man.  Tiri and I interviewed him one day in 1995 at the Harare School of Music where he taught Ethnomusicology.  Linda described him as “some one who didn’t sit nice”, meaning that he was so eager to tell you his stuff, he just wriggled about in his chair till he could speak.  And that’s where the words on the album come from. 

Luhalla Angelo, George Mbatta, Tumaini Samweli: Fifteen years ago, these three Tanzanian musicians started it all off for me at Chuo cha Ualimu Butimba, Mwanza, Tanzania. 

The mbiras: Chris Mhlanga and Richard Selman made the Zimbabwean mbiras played on mbira post.  This type of mbira is one of many played by the Shona people.  The Tanzanian mbiras were made near Dodoma, but bought at WOMAD and are played by the Wagogo people of central Tanzania. 

mbira calls the spirits to possess and advise.  Read the text below for more detail on the mbira.

The Mbira in Zimbabwe

The mbira is an indigenous African instrument that is played throughout Africa and beyond to the Caribbean and South America.  There are numerous types, with regional names, sizes, shapes, tunings and functions.  However, all mbira have certain commonalities in their construction: a soundboard, usually made of wood, and a set of keys, usually made of a metal such as steel, which are held in some sort of bracing device at one end leaving the other end free to be played by thumbs and one or both forefingers.  There is often a device for amplification, and a device to produce a sympathetic buzz.  In Ethnomusicology, the mbira is categorized as a lamellophone, while Western audiences may know it as a thumb piano or finger piano.

Within Zimbabwe there are many types of mbira.  They include: the karimba, the njari, the mbira dzavaNdau, the matepe and the mbira dza vadzimu.  The mbira dza vadzimu is also known as mbira huru and mbira dze midzimu but in fact many people just refer to it as mbira.

Archeological and historical evidence of mbira suggests that the instrument has been played in what is now Zimbabwe for hundreds of years.  Evidence unearthed at the ruins of Inyanga and Niekerk suggests that mbira was played as early as 1500.  In 1589, Fr. Dos Santos, a missionary, referred to mbira in his written descriptions of African life.  In 1856, Charles and David Livingstone published the first drawing of an mbira.

In its traditional place, mbira music is communal.  Alongside of the two or three mbira players, there will be hosho rattles, quite possibly drummers, spirited singing, clapping, ululating and dancing.  The mbiras will play interlocking polyphonic parts, improvising on the set patterns that define songs.  The rattles and drums add to the rhythmic drive and provide more polyphony.  The singing is joyously improvised from an imagined body of melodies, phrases and words, and the dancing is generally vigourous and often all consuming.

For centuries, the Shona speaking people of Zimbabwe have made mbira ensembles an integral part of spiritual ceremony and everyday life.  The ceremonies, such as bira and dandaro, often last the whole night.  They have various functions but all involve communication with the spirit world.  The mbira players and the other musicians and participants play, sing and dance songs that will attract the spirits to possess one or more of the participants.  As the dancing and music gets more and more powerful, the spirit medium will become possessed by a spirit that talks.  Once he or she is possessed the music stops and the spirit talks through the medium to the people, offering advice and guidance.  Calling the spirits and achieving possession in participants is the most important function of a traditional Shona mbira player.