Arts
Back To Our Roots: Uganda’s Uniqueness through Music
Music has for long shaped Uganda culture and heritage. Like a fabric of a cloth, one can clearly tell one’s origin through music. Besides the language, instruments too can tell where you come from.
Over the years, Uganda’s traditional music has been covered by the sounds from the west. Ever heard of the sounds of Wambuuza? Yes! The melodies of Ssemusajja agenda will be brought back to you on August 28, this year at the Uganda National Cultural Centre popularly known as the National Theater in a show dubbed Back to Our Roots.
Performers like Ronnie Bukenya, Lawrence Matovu, Brian Busuulwa, Julius Ssengooba and Aloysius Migadde will grace the stage with Ugandan traditional music from the 1930s fused with foreign music from Africa and their original traditional compositions performed with western instruments.
Back to Our Roots also happens to be a theme under one of Anita Asaasira’s projects called sound repatriation. Asaasira is a former music lecturer at Makerere University and is currently pursuing her doctorate in Ethnomusicology in Australia.
Aloysius Migadde, one of the performers told The Sunrise that they were chosen by their former lecturer because they chose traditional music after their music course and have not only played in different troupes as they are still composing and performing music that depicts Uganda’s heritage.
Asked why they chose Back To Our Roots as the theme: Aloysius revealed that Uganda’s culture has always been her originality and people always need to keep in mind where they come from. Western instruments will be used to relate with modernity.
“Our roots are our uniqueness and our pride. You cannot play western music like them. You have to play your traditional music because it defines you,” he added.
Other performers will be Barnabas Arinaitwe, Andrew Baguma, students ‘choir and former students of Makerere University. The sound will be created by the key board, electric guitar, percussion drums, Base Adungu, Thumb piano “Akogo” and an acoustic guitar.
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