Mail & Guardian
Mail & Guardian

African Drumming

latest news & developments
One in a long line: Songbird Thandiswa Mazwai says she’s merely a conduit in the tradition of using their voices that was started by her forebears and will continue into posterity. Her upcoming Sankofa Music Fest will showcase this tradition. Photo: Supplied
AFRICAN DRUMMING

Thandiswa Mazwai: Still speaking for future generations

Thandiswa Mazwai celebrates 50 years and 30 years in music with the Sankofa Heritage Festival, blending heritage, innovation, and generational continuity

  • Kibo Ngowi
8 min read
Tony Allen (1940 – 2020) performs live on stage at the Melkweg in Amsterdam, Netherlands on 11th March 1988.
AFRICAN DRUMMING

Of drumming, Tony Allen, Charles Mungoshi and my cousin

Drummers have the power to allow Zimbabweans to commune with their ancestors, and none more so than those with elevated talent on the skins.

  • Percy Zvomuya
11 min read
Serious yet content: Ayanda Sikade was coached by maestro Zim Ngqwana
AFRICAN DRUMMING

Drummer Ayanda Sikade unearths the lost gem ‘Movements’

It took years for Ayanda Sikade to release the album Movements, which secures his place in the jazz idiom

  • Kwanele Sosibo
7 min read
Drumming therapy can help to reduce anger and tension and increase a sense of wellbeing.
AFRICAN DRUMMING

African rhythms heal around the globe

Nicola Plastow looks at some of the settings in which African drumming has been used to improve mental health.

  • Nicola Plastow
  • Bhekisisa Team
3 min read