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May 24, 2018 · The Zulu (Zulu: amaZulu) are a Bantu ethnic group of Southern Africa and the largest ethnic group in South Africa, with an estimated 10–12 million people liv...
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- FOLK MUSIC WORLD
A new music service with official albums, singles, videos, remixes, live performances and more for Android, iOS and desktop. It's all here. The Best Of Traditional South African Music
U.P. Youth Choir, South Africa, aged 14 - 20 performs at their annual Gala Concert in the Musaion Theatre, University of Pretoria18 October 2014 - Conducted ...
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- U P Youth Choir
A new music service with official albums, singles, videos, remixes, live performances and more for Android, iOS and desktop. It's all here.
- Zulu
- Xhosa
- Basotho, Batswana, Bapedi
- Ndebele
- Xitsonga
Maskandi
The traditional music most associated with the Zulu nation is maskandi, a genre pioneered by migrant workers living in hostels and compounds (enkomponi) near mines in the 1960s. The music, which was typically played on guitar, conveyed a melancholic yearning for home and a desire for a better life. Originally the domain of men, female artists, such as the late Busi Mhlongo, have also made their mark. “Maskandi” is a derivative of the Afrikaans word “musikant” and uses vernacular lyrics – with...
Mbaqanga
Mbaqanga is another indigenous music style which sprang from the Zulu culture. Due to its use of Western instrumentation and indigenous vocal stylings, it is widely considered a form of jazz. It developed in South African shebeens in the 1960s out of Marabi (a style of township music) and Kwela (pennywhistle-based street music) and evolved to include heavy elements of American big band swing. Artists such as Miriam Makeba (famously known as Mama Africa), Dolly Rathebe and Letta Mbuli populari...
Isicathamiya
Isicathamiya is a type of acapella music, closely related to gospel, made famous by Ladysmith Black Mambazo (featured below). It is identifiable through its use of multiple voices and harmonies to create a single voice. Isicathamiya choirs are made up mostly of basses, a few tenors, alto and a lead voice. The sound heavily emphasises the bass voices In the early 20th century, Zulu migrant workers travelled from rural areas to urban areas to work in South Africa’s mines. These migrant workers...
The amaXhosa nation has a rich history of musical expression rooted in their oral tradition. Made up of subgroups such as amaThembu, amaMpondo, amaBhaca and amaFengu, they are a proud and diverse group of clans who each have distinct cultural practices that heavily influence their sound. Madosini Manqina (also known as Latozi Mpahleni) is considere...
Famo
In Lesotho the genre known as Famo – a combination of storytelling, accordion and oil-can drum – was born. With its origins in initiation ceremonies and other traditional celebrations, it was the foundation for many styles to come. Uhuru, later known as Sankomota, is one of the earliest music success stories to come out of this mountainous Kingdom. Famo originated from drinking holes frequented by migrant workers from Lesotho who were working in South African mines in the 1920s. It grew from...
Motswako
Like many others, the Batswana ethnic group is divided into a number of subgroups scattered along various regions, from the Okavango River in the northwest, to the upper parts of the Limpopo, the Kuruman area and the northeast of the Orange River inBotswana and Namibia. In South Africa, the Batswana are in the north. The Batswana nation gave the world Motswako, a genre of hip hop popularised by artists such as HHP and Khuli Chana. Motswako artists rap in their native Tswana, English and other...
Kiba
The Bapedi people in the Northern parts of South Africa – sometimes referred to as Northern Sothos, though this is considered a colonial classification – are known for music with a heavy use of flutes and a plucked instrument called dipela. Later instruments such as the Jew’s harp and the German autoharp became in use to make music known asharepa. Their most popular genres are Kiba– which is typically made by a group of men playing dinaka (open-ended flutes) – and kosa ya dikhuru(knee-dance m...
The Ndebele nation in South Africa consists of two distinct – and culturally diverse – groups. In the Northern Province they are made up mainly of the BagaLanga and BagaSeleka groups who over the years have been influenced by their Sotho neighbours in terms of language and culture. The Ndzundza Ndebeles of Mpumalanga and Gautengare probably the mos...
Historically, Tsonga people migrated from the Northern parts of South Africa to what was then known as Transvaal in the 18th century. During the period of warfare known as Mfecane, King Shaka ordered general Soshangane to conquer them. Terms Shangaan and Tsonga thus became interchangeable – this is now politically incorrect as not all Vatsonga are ...
South African Folk Music · Playlist · 49 songs · 86 likes. Preview of Spotify. Sign up to get unlimited songs and podcasts with occasional ads.
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South African Freedom Songs. Lalela Cape Town Choir. Amandla: Songs to Celebrate South African Freedom Day. Various Artists. Thokozile. Mahlathini & The Mahotella Queens. Miyela Africa. Vusi Mahlasela. Listen to South African Traditional Folk Music by Various Artists on Apple Music. 2010. 14 Songs.
