Namibians Bring Traditional Music To Washington

By Louise Fenner
USINFO Staff Writer

Namibian Musicians Bring Traditional Music to Washington

Audience members usually do not dance during concerts at Washington's Kennedy Center, but by the time Ounongo Pamwe -- an ensemble of some of Namibia's finest musicians -- played its final number, about 100 people, joyfully swaying to the music, filled the space in front of the stage.

"It was a beautiful crowd," said ensemble member Jackson Kaujeua following the October 6 concert. "I just didn't know what to expect. It was amazing."

A standing-room crowd of about 400 heard the group perform on the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage. Perhaps a third of those in the audience were Namibians, many in traditional dress, and some had traveled from New York, Boston and elsewhere for the event.

The musicians were on the first leg of a 10-day State Department-sponsored visit to Washington, Baltimore and New York City. They are in the United States to promote Namibian traditional music and learn how American institutions preserve traditional music and foster new talent. They also want to meet American artists and musicians, particularly those involved in the fight against AIDS.

Kaujeua and Papa (Ndasuunje) Shikongeni are the band's coordinators. The other musicians are Tunakie (Maria Uushona), Set-son Wahengo, Axue (Sebulon Gomachab) -- all Namibians -- and Manda Saize, a Zimbabwean. They sing in several Namibian languages including Otjiherero, Damara/Nama and Oshiwambo.

"It's what I call the melting pot of cultures," Kaujeua said of the various regions, cultures and musical forms represented by the band, which came together specifically for this tour. "It's like a pot you put on the fire; it's up to us to add different spices to the meat. ... We are not from the same band, but we came together backing each other, and it's just beautiful."

Namibian Ambassador Patrick Nandago, who hosted a luncheon at the embassy for the band, told the concert audience the musicians "show our culture in all its diversities." It is through cultural exchanges like this, he said, that "our people get to know one another better."

Among the band's favorite stops in Washington were the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, a secondary school for talented young musicians and artists, and the Smithsonian Institution's Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage.

Namibian musicians Axue, Jackson Kaujeua and Tunakie perform traditional music at a Kennedy Center concert. (Kennedy Center photo)"I want to learn about the real American culture and music, not the hip-hop or other kind of music they always show on TV," Wahengo told USINFO.

"I want to see the original American cultural music." On television in Namibia, he said, "you only see [rapper] Snoop Dogg and the other young guys. I was thinking America is just those guys, there's no traditional music."

In fact, many radio stations and music venues in the United States focus on jazz or traditional genres such as bluegrass, an onlooker noted. "Yes, that's what I'm finding out," Wahengo replied.

During the concert, the group played traditional Namibian music rearranged to give it an innovative style. Instruments included acoustic guitar, electric guitar and bass, congas, cymbals and snare drums, harmonica, egg shakers and a tambourine.

"We are trying to transform our traditional music into modern using modern contemporary instruments," said Shikongeni. The group wants to raise awareness and respect for traditional music among young Namibians. "This is important," he said. "Music is our heritage."

Kaujeua, who is well-known for his participation in the Namibian independence struggle through his music, said foreign music has dominated the Namibian market, but "we've noticed in recent years that people are beginning to listen to their own thing, and in their own language."

Axue, for example, released a top-selling album in 2006 of modernized Damara music, and the Mighty Dreads -- featuring Wahengo and Saize -- have created a popular new genre called Shambo, featuring traditional Oshiwambo music played with modern instruments.

Tunakie, the youngest in the band at age 24 and a popular singer and dancer among young Namibians, was a big draw for some in the Kennedy Center audience. "I just had to come," said Liz Jonas, a student at the University of Massachusetts, who drove from Boston. Jonas wore a traditional Ovambo scarf and dress and was one of the first people to start dancing during the concert.

"I love that Tunakie is singing the traditional music our grandmothers and great-grandmothers sang, but in a much more rhythmic way," she said. "It's more energetic."

"I love the message behind it," she added. "Respect your parents and your culture and know who you are."

Free Kennedy Center Millennium Stage concerts are held 365 days a year. Live and past performances can be viewed on the Millennium Stage Web site. See Ounongo Pamwe's October 6 concert.

For more stories about musicians and their influence in society, see The Arts.

(USINFO is produced by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

ENDS

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