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Kipsigis

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Alternatively all "blue" words below are links to records which have been so tagged

Title Audio Collection Descriptionsort icon Composer Date All terms
Talatany chebwomut | East African

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ILAM

A humorous song with Chepkongo 6 string bowl lyre. The mysterious singer and dancer, Chemirocha has been turned into a local god Pan with the feet of an antelope, half beast, half man. He is urged by the girls to do the leaping dance familiar to all Kipsigis so energetically that he will jump clear out of his clothes. The name Chemirocha is based upon the guitarist Jimmy Rodgers.
Details from ILAM field card number: D6L 22b.

 1950-09-15 Chepkongo bowl lyre | East African | ILAM | Indigenous music | Kenya | Ketienya, Chemutoi | Kipsigis | Kipsigis | Kipsigis
Chemirocha (III) | East African

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ILAM

A humorous song with Chepkongo 6 string bowl lyre. The mysterious singer and dancer, Chemirocha has been turned into a local god Pan with the feet of an antelope, half beast, half man. He is urged by the girls to do the leaping dance familiar to all Kipsigis so energetically that he will jump clear out of his clothes. The name Chemirocha is based upon the guitarist Jimmy Rodgers.
Details from ILAM field card number: D6L 22

 1950-09-15 Chepkongo bowl lyre | East African | Humorous | ILAM | Indigenous music | Kenya | Ketienya, Chemutoi | Kipsigis | Kipsigis | Kipsigis | Song
Chebusit | East African

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ILAM

A praise song with Kibugandet 5 string wish bone lyre, resonated on a parafin tin. The solo singer, singing in falsetto, praises his country and many of its desirable places. He mentions, among others, the Administrative centre at Kericho, some 25 miles away, which he says is 'full of words', referring to the information service supplied to the country by the office of the District Commissioner. This wishbone shaped frame lyre is help onto the top of an empty 4 gallon parafin tin. At the end of his song the lyre slipped off its resonator.
Details from ILAM field card number: D6L 4

 1950-09-15 East African | ILAM | Indigenous music | Kapkatet | Kenya | Kericho | Kibugandet lyre | Kipsigis | Kipsigis district | Ngasura, Kinutit Arap | Praise song
Arap Tapartele olei yo lalei yo | East African

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ILAM

A praise song with a Chepkongo 6 string bowl lyre. The player flips the bridge of the lyre with a finger tip as he plays. The song is largely a repetition by the chorus of the words "olei yo lalei yo" a kind of "Hey - nonny - nonny."
The singer also brings into his song the names of many places he has visited and likes in common with his audience.
Both Kipsigis and Nandi are noted for their patriotism, their love of country as such, which they frequently express in song. This is comparitively rare with Bantu people who do not, as a rule, praise the beauty of the countryside and are mostly insensitive to scenery. Details from ILAM field card number: D6L 1

 1950-09-15 Bowl lyre | Chepkongo bowl lyre | Chepkwony,Kepkoske Arap | East African | ILAM | Indigenous music | Kenya | Kipsigis | Kipsigis | Kipsigis | Praise song | Vocal
Ho - Jambo Bwana | East African

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ILAM

A praise song with a Chepkongo 6 string bowl lyre. The player flips the bridge of the lyre with a finger tip as he plays. The  'Hey - nonny - nonny' words of the song are " Ho - Jambo Bwana". "How do you do, Master."
This was impromptu refering to the recorder of the item. The remainder of the lyric mentions places of mutual interst and affection in the minds of the audience.
Both Kipsigis and Nandi are noted for their patriotism, their love of country as such, which they frequently express in song. This is comparitively rare with Bantu people who do not, as a rule, praise the beauty of the countryside and are mostly insensitive to scenery.
Details from ILAM field card number: D6L 2

 (Performer)
Kepkoske Arap Chepkwony (Composer)

 1950-09-15 Bowl lyre | Chepkongo bowl lyre | Chepkwony,Kepkoske Arap | East African | ILAM | Indigenous music | Kapsabet Kenya Nandi district | Kericho | Kipsigis | Kipsigis district | Praise song | Vocal
Arap Chemonget | East African

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ILAM

A praise song with Chepkongo 6 string bowl lyre. This lyre is strummed and fingered like the Bangwe zither of Nyasaland. The right hand strums the strings and the left mutes or opens the 6 strings, making it possible to play two or three chords on the open un-muted strings. The singer mentions by name his home village, places of common interest to his friends. The player flips the body of his lyre on the 2nd and 4th beats. In common with several African verse makers, the singer sings in couplets, repeating the second phrase and making it the first line of the next.
Details from ILAM field card number: D6L 3

 1950-09-15 Bowl lyre | Chepkongo bowl lyre | Chepkwony, Kepkoske Arap | East African | ILAM | Indigenous music | Kapkatet | Kenya | Kericho | Kipsigis | Kipsigis district | Praise song | Sitonik, Kipkemo Arap
Chemirocha (I) | East African

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ILAM

Praise song with Chepkongo 6 string bowl lyre. The main theme of this song is affection for the Kipsigis country. He also asks 'why the whitemen should have taken over the country' which incidentally they themselves took from others in the past. He comes, he says, from the Sotik nearby. The name 'Chemirocha' is their pronunciation of 'Jimmy Rodgers' whose gramophone records were the first to be heard in the district. It is now synonomous for anything strange or new.
Details from ILAM field card number: D6L 6

 1950-09-15 Bowl lyre | Chepkongo bowl lyre | Cheriro Arap | East African | ILAM | Indigenous music | Kapkatet | Kenya | Kericho | Kipsigis | Kipsigis district | Korogorem | Mosonik, Bekyibei Arap | Praise song | Vocal
Chemirocha (II) | East African

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ILAM

Topical song with Chepkongo 6 string bowl lyre. Chemirocha the mystical singer, (based on Jimmy Rodgers, the American guitarist) is at Kericho, they say. 'Why'. He is said to have visited a friend of his at Ituna! The similarity of the two instruments, the guitar and the local lyre has given rise to the legend of this wandering player whose records have been heard, but whose presence is a mystery.
The young men having sung this version of Chemirocha said that it was really their sisters' song, but they were too shy to sing it. Eventually the girls were persuaded to sing and gave us the next version.
Details from ILAM field card number: D6L 19

 1950-09-15 Chepkongo bowl lyre | East African | ILAM | Indigenous music | Kenya | Kipsigis | Kipsigis | Kipsigis | Ng'asura, Charondet Arap | Topical song
Chebo Moire |

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ILAM

An old fighting song. Refer ILAM field card D6L12

Hat Arap Kotut
Kipsigi men

 1950-09-15 East African | Fighting song | ILAM | Kenya | Kipsigis | Kipsigis | Kotut,Hat Arap
Oronet |

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ILAM

An old fighting song. Refer ILAM field card D6L12a

Hat Arap Kotut
Kipsigi men

 1950-09-15 East African | Fighting song | ILAM | Kenya | Kipsigis | Kipsigis | Kotut,Hat Arap
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