March 10, 2006
By Shamin Chibba
FRESH from an acclaimed season of Elephant at the Market Theatre, Metséelelo Ya Sankofa, the Wits marimba band, is presenting Let's Celebrate MaAfrika at the Wits Amphitheatre in Braamfontein.
The show runs from 8 to 18 March. It incorporates poetry, dance and drama, and features students from two universities - eight from the University of the Witwatersrand School of Arts and one from the University of Johannesburg.
The band recently performed at the Market Theatre as part of the successfully production, Elephant.
It was set up by Wits's music department and "mainly focused on African music", says David Letholo, the chairperson of the band.
The marimba is a traditional African instrument that consists of a row of wooden bars that generate sound when hit by two small mallets, much like a xylophone. It is a popular instrument in Mexico's southernmost province of Chiapas, where marimba competitions are held each year.
The word "marimba" originates from the Angolan language, Kimbundu.
According to Letholo, the instrument was first used in Zimbabwe. "Marimba is [also] a Shona word that comes from Zimbabwe," he says.
"Most of our repertoire is from Zimbabwean folk songs." However, there are some South African songs that will feature in the performance."
To hear the instruments' richest sounds, the Wits Amphitheatre was chosen as the venue, as it has "the best acoustics for the music we perform", says Letholo, adding, "and it is intimate".
After the Wits concerts, the band will next perform at the Chamber Music Festival at the University of Stellenbosch in July.
The shows at the Wits Amphitheatre run from Wednesday, 8 March to Saturday, 11 March and again from Tuesday, 14 March to Saturday, 18 March. Each performance starts at 7pm.
Tickets are available at the door or can be booked at Computicket on 011 340 8000 or through the Computicket website. They are R24,50 each. A discount price of R14,50 each is available for block bookings of 10 and more. Both prices include Computicket's service charge.
Parking is available at Senate House on Jorissen Street.
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