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By Chimeno Azriel
Zimbabwe’s Mbira orchestra is set to assemble and record songs in a historical first. Thirty artists comprising twenty-one mbira players and nine traditional instrumentalists are expected to assemble and play the instruments together. Dzepamvura Mbira Art Centre is spearheading the project which will see Mbira Artists playing at the same time. The project seeks to preserve Zimbabwe’s heritage through the revival of cultural norms and values.
Dzepamvura Mbira Art Center Director Mr. Valiant Kandororo said that the first-ever assembled project will create unity and confidence among visual performing artists who have been set back by COVID-19.
“This project will see artists uniting and at the same time reviving their talents that had been affected by the Covid 19 pandemic. The project is going to scream out the preservation of our own Zimbabwean musical heritage that is the Mbira instrument.
“The fusion of Mbira and traditional instruments are set to market Zimbabwe on its Cultural heritage and thereby putting Zimbabwean Culture on the map. The sweet melodies to be produced by the Mbira orchestra band will be of great value on the export market as we would have marketed our own culture,” Kandororo said.
The thirty artists will go to boot camp for 30 days of rehearsing and they will play their songs in September which will be the Mbira month. The camping activities will be recorded and later be screened on national television if all gets according to plan. The group is set to record in the studio which will be the first-ever Mbira Orchestra sound in the world.
The Dzepamvura Mbira Art Centre is appealing to individuals and the corporate world to come on board and help in this project which is expected to attract the attention of the whole world as Zimbabwe seeks to preserve Zimbabwe’s cultural heritage – both tangible and intangible.
At the time of going to press, the Dzepamvura Mbira Art Centre was in the process of collecting videos from artists who want to be part of the group. The centre calls for artists of all ages across the country to send their 60-second videos on the Centre’s Facebook event page ‘ Mbira Auditions’ for auditions. Mbira DzeNharira – a renowned Mbira outfit will be the leading group and will help in the selection of the Mbira players who will be part of the project.