Grocott's Mail
  • NEWS
    • Courts & Crime
    • Features
    • Politics
    • People
    • Health & Well-being
  • SPORT
    • News
    • Results
    • Sports Diary
    • Club Contacts
    • Columns
    • Sport Galleries
    • Sport Videos
  • OPINION
    • Election Connection
    • Makana Voices
    • Deur ‘n Gekleurde Bril
    • Newtown… Old Eyes
    • Incisive View
    • Your Say
  • ARTSLIFE
    • Cue
    • Makana Sharp!
    • Visual Art
    • Literature
    • Food & Fun
    • Festivals
    • Community Arts
    • Going Places
  • OUR TOWN
    • What’s on
    • Spiritual
    • Emergency & Well-being
    • Safety
    • Civic
    • Municipality
    • Weather
    • Properties
      • Grahamstown Properties
    • Your Town, Our Town
  • OUTSIDE
    • Enviro News
    • Gardening
    • Farming
    • Science
    • Conservation
    • Motoring
    • Pets/Animals
  • ECONOMIX
    • Business News
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Personal Finance
  • EDUCATION
    • Education NEWS
    • Education OUR TOWN
    • Education INFO
  • Covid-19
  • EDITORIAL
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Trending
  • In the words of Nelson Mandela, “To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity”
  • Flooding at the James Kleynhans Water Treatment Works
  • Avbob 2023 Poetry Competition Second Place: Jeannie Wallace McKeown
  • Avbob 2023 Poetry Competition Winner: Sithembele Isaac Xhegwana
  • Residents of Extensions Nine, 10, Transit Camp, Phumlani and Enkanini voice discontent!
  • Makhanda Creatives Speak Out
  • Running towards a drug and alcohol-free Makhanda
  • What’s On 23 – 30 March
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Grocott's Mail
  • NEWS
    • Courts & Crime
    • Features
    • Politics
    • People
    • Health & Well-being
  • SPORT
    • News
    • Results
    • Sports Diary
    • Club Contacts
    • Columns
    • Sport Galleries
    • Sport Videos
  • OPINION
    • Election Connection
    • Makana Voices
    • Deur ‘n Gekleurde Bril
    • Newtown… Old Eyes
    • Incisive View
    • Your Say
  • ARTSLIFE
    • Cue
    • Makana Sharp!
    • Visual Art
    • Literature
    • Food & Fun
    • Festivals
    • Community Arts
    • Going Places
  • OUR TOWN
    • What’s on
    • Spiritual
    • Emergency & Well-being
    • Safety
    • Civic
    • Municipality
    • Weather
    • Properties
      • Grahamstown Properties
    • Your Town, Our Town
  • OUTSIDE
    • Enviro News
    • Gardening
    • Farming
    • Science
    • Conservation
    • Motoring
    • Pets/Animals
  • ECONOMIX
    • Business News
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Personal Finance
  • EDUCATION
    • Education NEWS
    • Education OUR TOWN
    • Education INFO
  • Covid-19
  • EDITORIAL
Grocott's Mail
You are at:Home»Uncategorized»Reaching out with rhythm
Uncategorized

Reaching out with rhythm

Grocott's MailBy Grocott's MailMarch 29, 2012No Comments2 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

The soft, wooden sounds of marimbas pulsated around the small amphitheatre. The metallic thrum of the Mbiras accompanied these sounds while guitars and drums carried the beat. The blend of African instruments with bass guitars created a sound that was at once traditional and modern – a sound that invited the listener to identify with a story and a time so different to their own.

The soft, wooden sounds of marimbas pulsated around the small amphitheatre. The metallic thrum of the Mbiras accompanied these sounds while guitars and drums carried the beat. The blend of African instruments with bass guitars created a sound that was at once traditional and modern – a sound that invited the listener to identify with a story and a time so different to their own. An audience comprising students, school children and local residents listened with rapt attention.

Last Friday, the International Library of African Music (Ilam) held its first outreach concert of the year.
Ilam was first started in 1954 by ethnomusicologist Hugh Tracey and was specifically designed to create awareness about African music and the oral tradition, while at the same time acting as an outreach programme. Diane Thram, Ilam's current director explained, “the organisation's biggest purpose is to bring people into the musical setting and concerts like these are used to showcase the students.”

The majority of the musical performers were Ethnomusicology students at Rhodes, and their course is designed around outreach programmes, so Friday’s concert spoke to both their needs and Ilam’s. “We hold these concerts three to four times a year,” Thram told Grocott's Mail. “They are a both a gesture from Rhodes University and to just have some fun.”

Storytelling was also an enthralling feature of the event. Andrew Tracey, the son of Hugh Tracey and the previous director of Ilam, told a Zimbabwean folktale while Dr Edward Nambile from Ghana also gave a rousing rendition of a story from his home country.

“It was hugely interesting to watch,” said Rebecca Glover, a first year Ethnomusicology student. “It didn't just focus on South African culture but brought together different parts of Africa through music.”
The concert gave insight into an organisation that many people are unfamiliar with, and provided a good opportunity for anyone with musical skills to get involved.

Previous ArticleComputer science professor wins Community Engagement Award
Next Article Shark spottings ahead of triathlon
Grocott's Mail

Comments are closed.

Tweets by Grocotts
Newsletter



Listen

The Rhodes University Community Engagement Division has launched Engagement in Action, a new podcast which aims to bring to life some of the many ways in which the University interacts with communities around it. Check it out below.

Humans of Makhanda

Humans of Makhanda

Weather    |     About     |     Advertise     |     Subscribe     |     Contact     |     Support Grocott’s Mail

© 2023 Maintained by School of Journalism & Media Studies.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.