South African Music Archive Project

A Msego mourning dance song with Kayamba raft rattles, a gourd horn and whistling. This Msego dance started with the sound of the horn, followed by the leader of the group who sings the first verse. This is repeated by the dancers whistling the melody twice over after which the dance proper begins with rattles. Details from ILAM field card D7N - 7 & 8

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

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

A topical song with accordian and struck iron. The accordian is used as a ground which creates a happy noise but has little, if any, melodic or harmonic relationship to the tonality or mode of the voice.
Song to accompany a town dance in which men and women dance together in pairs, after the fashion of Europeans.
Further details refer ILAM field card number: F3B 6

A Mamboko dance song with accordian and struck iron. The "struck iron" was an old starter ring from the flywheel of a car. It is necessary to have a circular or 'S' shaped piece of metal for convenient playing of the double beat. The performer called it 'Kengere' or 'Beru' bell.
The sweepers in Nairobi, they say, always come from Embu. Kibunga Waita, the iron player, was no exception. Elsewhere in Africa certain tribes tend to adopt one occupation exclusively.
After hearing a few Kikuyu songs to the accompaniment of the iron and accordian, the listener who is not case hardened to the noise, may experience a singing in the ears for several hours afterwards.
Listening to this kind of Kikuyu music is more a feat of endurance than an aesthetic pleasure.Further details refer ILAM field card number: F3H 3