Singing Groups in the Afrikan World: Ladysmith Black Mambazo... Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a male choral group from South Africa that sings in the vocal styles of isicathamiya and mbube. They rose to worldwide prominence as a result of singing with Paul Simon on his album, Graceland, and have won multiple awards, including four Grammy Awards. They were formed by Joseph Shabalala in 1960 and later became one of South Africas most prolific recording artists, with their releases receiving gold and platinum disc honors. The group has now become a mobile academy, teaching people about South Africa and its culture. History Joseph Shabalala formed Ladysmith Black Mambazo because of a series of dreams he had in 1964, in which he heard certain isicathamiya harmonies (isicathamiya being the traditional music of the Zulu people). Following their local success at wedding ceremonies and other gatherings, Shabalala entered them into isicathamiya competitions. The group was described as so good that they were eventually forbidden to enter the competitions, but welcomed to entertain at them. Although they had been recognised as an isicathamiya group in 1964, they had been singing together since the early 1950s. They released their first album, Amabutho, in 1973. The album, along with many other releases by the group, received gold disc certification. Ladysmith Black Mambazos collaboration with Paul Simon in 1986 paved the way for international releases. The first incarnation of Ladysmith Black Mambazo was Ezimnyama (The Black Ones), formed by Joseph Shabalala in December 1960. The members of the group were relatives (mostly brothers and cousins) of Shabalala, with many having sung with him while he was growing up on the farm where he was born. Although the group did sing well together and captured the sound of cothoza mfana (tip toe boys, a 1960s slang term for isicathamiya) and mbube groups of the time, they were unknown outside of the Ladysmith district. In 1964, Shabalala had a series of recurring dreams during his sleep, over a period of six months, featuring a choir singing in perfect harmony. Shabalala described this as a beautiful sound, and one not yet achieved by his group of the time. As a result, he reformed the group, bringing on board newer (younger) relatives but keeping the group name. He strove to teach them the harmonies from his dreams, creating what was to become a signature tune for the group: Nomathemba (a girls name - meaning hope). After deciding that this group well replicated the beautiful, soft sounds from his dreams, Shabalala entered the group into isicathamiya competitions, held on Saturday nights in the halls of hostels in Durban and Johannesburg. The group managed to win nearly every competition that was held. As a result, Shabalala decided to change the name of the group to be more descriptive of its talent. The name Ezimnyama was replaced by Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The three elements of the new name were: the hometown of Shabalalas family, Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal; the black ox, considered to be the strongest farm animal; and mambazo, which means axe in the Zulu language, and is symbolic of the choirs ability to chop down the competition. Eventually, by the early 1970s, the group was forbidden to compete in the competitions because of their continual success. They were, however, welcome to perform without taking part in the competition itself. In 1967, the group began to make recordings for the SABC station Radio Zulu, appearing in DJ Alexius Buthelezis popular Cothoza Mfana programme which spotlighted the music of several local choirs. Their success was so great that music producers began enticing the group to sign a recording contract. In 1972 the group signed with Gallo Record Company under producer West Nkosi at the organisations African music division, Mavuthela Music Company (Nkosi was also well known in South Africa as a saxophone jive star). Ladysmith Black Mambazo released their first album the following year, Amabutho, which received gold status and was the first album by a black musician or group in South Africa to do so. Their subsequent albums also received gold or platinum certification. With the release of their second album, they had become professional singers. The group saw many changes; whereas the early line-ups were formed of a few Shabalalas and two (Funokwakhe and Joseph) Mazibukos, the group largely included members unrelated to Joseph. Joseph Shabalalas cousin Mdletshe Albert Mazibuko (the eldest of the six brothers) joined Mambazo in 1969 as a tenor voice, with his younger brother Milton as an alto voice. Albert is the longest remaining member of Ladysmith Black Mambazo aside from Joseph Shabalalas and has been a full-time member of the group since 1973. After the killing of his brother Milton in 1980 Albert remained in the line-up. By which time his brothers Funokwakhe and Joseph Mazibuko had left, and his youngest brother Abednego had joined. In 1973 Joseph Mazibuko a master accordion player (and former member of Mambazo) recorded Lamuza Ndoda with the Boyoyo Boys. A cassette tape of Boyoyo Boys Accordion jive Hits (vol II) was amongst the music that first enticed Paul Simon to use real South African Musicians on his Graceland Album and not just simulate the sound. In 1976, Shabalala converted to Christianity and a host of religious material now entered the groups repertoire. Mambazos first religious album, Ukukhanya Kwelanga, was released soon afterwards. It earned a double platinum disc award, and the groups repertoire came to be dominated by hymns, mostly Methodist. Their 1977 LP Ukusindiswa became one of their most popular religious albums, selling double gold discs within three weeks of release. By 1981, the groups popularity was such that the apartheid government allowed the members to travel to Cologne, Germany as part of a South African folk music festival. The group toured West Germany and appeared on television, and learned some of the German language; for the groups 1981 album Phansi Emgodini, Shabalala composed a song titled Wir Grüssen Euch Alle (We greet you all). The following year, the group traveled back to Germany to appear on a televised quiz programme, bringing about requests for more live appearances. A track by the group also appeared on the groundbreaking British compilation album The Indestructible Beat of Soweto. Foundation In January 1999, Joseph Shabalala founded The Ladysmith Black Mambazo Foundation. The aim of the organization is to teach young Zulu South African children about their traditional culture and music, isicathamiya. Today, the Mambazo Academy is currently being built, with plans for a rehearsal hall, teaching areas and a professional recording studio. The main aim is to promote and teach the history of isicathamiya music to young people. Source: Wikipedia
Posted on: Sun, 03 Aug 2014 21:33:54 +0000
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