SAMITE, TRUST (MUSICIANS FOR WORLD HARMONY)
[DUNKELBUNT]
A NEW DAY; LAYA PROJECT REMIXED
ADDIS ACOUSTIC PROJECT
AFRO ROOTS WORLD MUSIC FESTIVAL
AMADOU & MARIAM
ANTÓNIO ZAMBUJO
APHRODESIA
BALKANBEATS
BANCO DE GAIA
BOBAN I MARKO MARKOVIC ORKESTAR
BOBAN I MARKO MARKOVIC
BOY WITHOUT GOD
C.J. CHENIER
CARLOS GOGO GOMEZ
CHOBAN ELEKTRIK
CHOPTEETH
CHRISTIANE D
CHRISTINE VAINDIRLIS
CLARA PONTY
COPAL
CUCHATA
DAMJAN KRAJACIC
DANIEL CROS
DEBO & FENDIKA
DEL CASTILLO
DR JAYANTHI KUMARESH
EARTHRISE SOUNDSYSTEM
EGYPT NOIR
ELIN FURUBOTN
EMILY SMITH
FANFARE CIOCARLIA VS. BOBAN & MARKO MARKOVIC
FEUFOLLET
FIAF PRESENTS WORLD NOMADS MOROCCO: MUSIC
FOOTSTEPS IN AFRICA
GECKO TURNER
GENTICORUM
GEOFF BERNER
GIANMARIA TESTA
GODS ROBOTS
GUARCO
HUUN HUUR TU
INDIAN OCEAN
IRENE JACOB & FRANCIS JACOB
JANAKA SELEKTA
JANYA
JERRY LEAKE
JOAQUIN DIAZ
JOEL RUBIN
JORGE STRUNZ
JOSEF KOUMBAS
JOYFUL NOISE (I GRADE RECORDS)
JUST A BAND
KAMI THOMPSON
KARTICK & GOTAM
KHALED
KHING ZIN & SHWE SHWE KHAING
KITKA'S CAUCASIAN CONNECTIONS PROJECT PERFORMANCES AND WORKSHOPS
KMANG KMANG
KOTTARASHKY AND THE RAIN DOGS
LA CHERGA
LAC LA BELLE
LAYA PROJECT
LENI STERN
LES TRIABOLIQUES
LISTEN FOR LIFE
LOBI TRAORÉ
LO'JO
LOKESH
MAGNIFICO
MAHALA RAI BANDA
MIDNITE
MOHAMMED ALIDU AND THE BIZUNG FAMILY
MR. SOMETHING SOMETHING
MY NAME IS KHAN
NAWAL
NAZARENES
NO STRANGER HERE (EARTHSYNC)
OCCIDENTAL BROTHERS ON TOUR
OCCIDENTAL GYPSY
OREKA TX
ORQUESTRA CONTEMPORÂNEA DE OLINDA
PABLO SANCHEZ
PEDRO MORAES
RAYA BRASS BAND
SALSA CELTICA
SAMITE
SARA BANLEIGH
SARAH AROESTE
SELAELO SELOTA
SHYE BEN-TZUR
SIA TOLNO
SIBIRI SAMAKE
SISTER FA
SLIDE TO FREEDOM II
SONIA BREX
SOSALA
SWEET ELECTRA
SYSTEMA SOLAR
TAGA SIDIBE
TAJ WEEKES
TARANA
TARUN NAYAR
TE VAKA
TELEPATH
THE MOUNTAIN MUSIC PROJECT
THE NATIVE AMERICA NORTH SHOWCASE
THE SPY FROM CAIRO
TITO GONZALEZ
TOUSSAINT
VARIOUS ARTISTS
VARIOUS ARTISTS
WATCHA CLAN
WHEN HARRY TRIES TO MARRY SOUNDTRACK
WOMEXIMIZER
WOMEXIMIZER
ZDOB SI ZDUB
ZIETI
Album Review

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Freegan Kolektiva, Album Review >>

This is an album rooted in East African tradition albeit with a sound that rarely springs out from that continent. Remarkably, there are no percussions here, which comprise the biggest and most celebrated part of the African sound. Guitars, cello, flute, bass and Samite Mulondo’s (the main composer of the album) kalimba nail down one eloquent melody after the other in imaginative song arrangements. The album is built on musical ideas of Samite, which accompanied the documentary ‘Addiction Incorporated’ – showcasing the corruption of the tobacco industries and the way they have been manipulating consumers. All proceeds from ‘Trust’ will be given to ‘Musicians For World harmony’, in support of people displaced or traumatised by conflict.

Samite Mulondo is a composer, multi-instrumentalist and humanitarian born and raised in Uganda but forced later to flee to Kenya. A Samite Mulondo livefew years later he migrated to USA, where he still resides between his frequent travels to war-torn regions in Africa and elsewhere. He was taught to play the traditional flute by his grandfather at a tender age. Since then he has performed countless times, he learned to play kalimba, marimba, litungu and various flutes and he has released 8 albums. Samite himself was the subject of the documentary ‘Song of the Refugee’ (1998) and in 2002 he founded the organisation ‘Musicians For World harmony’. Apart from ‘Addiction Incorporated’ he has scored the music for the film ‘Taking Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai’ (2009).

‘Trust’ is Samite’s 9th album but unlike his previous recordings it features a host of producers and different musicians. He worked with director Charles Evans and South African guitarist and friend Tony Cedras for the music arrangement: “We made most decisions between the three of us. It was the most democratic working environment ever” as Samite explains, “This made me discover myself in a different way. I didn’t have to play it all myself. We were behind the glass, on the other side of the screen, giving musicians ideas and direction about what to play, until we got emotional satisfaction.” Charles Evans Samite Mulondo Tony Cedras

from left to right: Charles Evans, Samite Mulondo and Tony Cedras

The multi-layered melodies on ‘Trust’ are striking as every instrument is tuned in harmonious interplay. ‘First Love’ is bursting from blooming emotions with all instruments in melodious synergy. ‘Girl Grown Up’ features awarded guitarist David Cullen in a relaxing Jamaican reggae groove; however this is a typical Bakisimba rhythm the comes from Baganda, the largest ethnic group in Uganda. The horns of ‘Empty Nest’ bring in mind the work of South African legend Hugh Masekela. Samite’s palpitating kalimba in songs like the title track, ‘On Our Own’ or ‘Infatuated’ generates a deeply African vibe while providing the groundwork for other instruments to compliment each track. Especially the later is an innovative track which combines kalimba’s captivating rhythmic melodies with traditional Ugandan verses sang by Samite himself as artfully amplified by Elizabeth Simkin’s cello. Uganda Refugee Camp

Refugee camp in Uganda

Samite believes in healing through music and this is what he wants to support with this album. Communities in countries like Uganda and Congo face war and terror while village life is at times totally disrupted. “People are now facing things they’ve never faced in the past, like kids who have been forced to kill their own parents and relatives” as Samite argues. “Music can help these children, but how do you approach it? We are both reminding people to use their culture for therapy, and in some cases, to learn from people trained in Western music therapy.

 06/29/12 >> go there

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