26/10/2018
Growing up in Australia since age 9 from 1979 has truly been an amazing adventure. I couldn’t be more grateful for those experiences, albeit dragged kicking and disgruntled through my pre and early teens and subsequently the good fortune and friends that carried me thus far (despite having experienced the loss of a music studio through a spectacular blaze).
I'm sure if I'd have grown up in South Africa, I will have been different and not known any better, of course, but it is easy to see how this country opened up the entire world to me. My greatest realization early on in Australia was what Apartheid actually was. Being brought up a catholic with all the trimmings and more it was irreconcilable to me that such cruelty and judgement and fear would rule people and it actually caused me to be discriminatory at that formative time, myself feeling the deep sadness and anger and rage of this conundrum.
I read books like Roots by Alex Hailey that really had a huge impact on my life I felt the injustices of the ages and really it took some years before I could take a reasoned approach to the whole thing. It was the love of music, that unapologetic ambassador of good feeling and expanded sharing that was the glue that bound our community of beginning artists to remain solidly till this day as colleagues, friends, soul mates and in the end family.
I got my dreads as a consequence of listening word for word to the messages in Bob Marley's music and Peter Tosh. It was definitely a symbol of defiance against authority given that especially my father's sensibilities dictated the precise style and cut allowed much to my ongoing frustration and of course also for defiance to intolerance and discrimination.
My unusual introduction to African music in Australia, despite being always sizzled by the sound of drums in any music and brought up on jazz and Brazilian music and piano players my father included, was a wayward Nigerian so called master drummer that in a haze of smoke disappeared me for 8 months at 18 yrs old after 1 year of an architecture degree at Curtin Uni, from my parents' radar going walkabout in the wilds of the south west the wheat belt and beyond. I had a great amazing adventure so much fun so much drama and a new-found knowledge of what goes on in those liddle cundri towns with travelling “exotic musos” haha.
When I came across the book The Drummers Path and more so the The Healing Drum (Yaya Diallo from the Kingdom of Mali) and the beginning part of Roots (Kunta Kinte ) about Village life and the role of music as the healer the psychologist and bringer of harmony and so much more really sorted my fundamentals in this vein although somewhat fancifully. It was only in 1996 on a study tour to Zimbabwe and South Africa with Keith Kirkwood and Sundiata Marimba Band that a truer sense of reality further cemented these foundations.
The cross-cultural pollination of nations’ music and influences afforded by Sundiata Marimba Band through opportunity and exposure and of course sound organization was mind blowing with a number of tours to the east on the national scene. Not enough can be said about the life changes that Keith Kirkwood the founding forefather of the Australian Zimbabwean worldwide wing forged in my life. Thankyou brother for showing me the way.
It was meeting and hanging around with all sorts of African cultural groups in particular The National Ballet du Guinea doing a stint at the Opera House that side walked my enormous pumpkin brain of possibilities about my calling. I watched the documentary about Mamady Keita going back to his village and his ballet roots in Guinea and was transported and inspired beyond for the love of djembe and dun duns and dance. I must also mention here my friend Lenny van den Haak who introduced me to playing djembe and taught me how to skin drums.
I also can't express adequately the profound effect the Chipow Marimba ensemble from Zimbabwe our teachers yet our friends had on my physical experience. It was the experience of being moved beyond what is familiar, the power of musicians so cooperating as to invoke the spirit in an almost miraculous orchestration of all that is beautiful about being an expressive human. It was more than an honor to be included and coaxed to be just as free. So, I learned to build the marimbas and make them strong, mathematical and natural to relive and enable the same thing. Thank you to my brothers Yonah Zhoya. Farai Geze and his family and George Joe and so many others that taught us opened our eyes and shared the love.
Another major influence was the mbira music of Zimbabwe and so much thanks to a departed teacher Christopher Chaitezwi and Fabio Chivanda in the east of Oz and our dear brother Garikayi Tirikoti who showed me how to make an mbira key and was able to spend time with us in Australia teaching mbira all enabled by mover and shaker Shane Kearney a steadfast musical ally.
Amonst this all was the love of Senegalese music and the influences of my deeply musical master drummer Brothers Mabeye Diagne and Djibril Diagne and the rhythms of the sabar drums.
Further to this was playing Gamelan music for 7 years and thanks to Mike Burns and others before him for this amazing twist. Fundamental to this whole musical menu in my life though was Bossa Nova and Samba music it was a dream come true to go to Brazil with Sambaliscious thanks to Tom Foss Taciano Cavacante and Marcio Mendez and Most especially to Beleza Samba and Michael Boase for so much knowledge inspiration and ongoing connection with all things samba.
And of course, I've been playing salsa music for some years now another deep love thanks to Simon Fryda and Danca Loca.
This was a long way I guess of describing the inspirations behind the name Village Vibes and to, as modern parlons would have it, share one's story and generate interest and of course the all allusive fliting yet fulfilling and sustainable vibes. After many attempts to be business minded about making it all happen with love, I understand the incongruency but no good trying to protect my instruments living on the street and trying to eat to remain alive lol. I have a new house with so much space dedicated to village living and the activity of learning and exploring music and being conversant ordinarily with rhythm and melody. Of course, I've outlined my experience and love of teaching and am all ready to go in Starting classes first in Marimba and drums. Ideally from those student's I'd like to have an ongoing marimba and drum ensemble reflecting the music and styles of the world eventually also a samba group a sabar group mbira ensemble and so if that’s remotely you and you are interested and inspired please contact me about classes (I will make specific events). Anyway, forgive me for any spelling errors or gramatical errors or general verbosity but there ya go.
HOUSE WARMING VILLAGE VIBE LAUNCH still on the 10/11/2018
DRUM CLASSES WEDNESDAY EVENINGS 7.00 PM TILL 9.00PM
MARIMBA CLASSES SUNDAYS 1.00 PM TILL 3.00 PM
So here we are the aspirant ol' coggers are still a marchin and there is still a click in them heals to live the harmony that is our ancestral roots that we have all shared aside from the fb clutter and state of the world etc, etc, etc.
Come ON LETS HARMONISE TOGETHER WITH BEAUTIFUL AND PROFESSIONAL INSTRUMENTS AT THE NEW VILLAGE VIBES
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