Episodes
| Title | First Broadcast | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Chamber Music And Instrumental Legacies | 20231008 | Composer and multi-instrumentalist Tunde Jegede grew up inside two musical traditions: the Western Classical music of his cello studies and schooling in London; and the kora repertoire of The Gambia, where he spent his school holidays as a young mentee of the griot musician Amadu Bansang Jobarteh. As his musicianship in the UK developed, Jegede began to find it strange how the music of western composers was so easily considered to be art music worthy of the title `Classical`, while African pieces were often talked about as culturally-confined curiosities, regardless of how complex or canonical they are. In this series, Jegede sets out to celebrate a variety of African Classical traditions on their own terms, picking out musical details and offering connections and contrasts. In this first episode, he explores the instrumental legacies of West African Griot music as well as thumb piano polyphony from Zimbabwe. Plus there's the opportunity to consider the work of African composers operating within Western Classical Music who incorporate into their solo studies and chamber works the sounds, structures and approaches of their own African classical traditions. Produced by Phil Smith A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3 Cellist and master kora player Tunde Jegede celebrates the classical musics of Africa. |
| Innovators, Pioneers And Orchestras | 20231022 | Composer and musician Tunde Jegede presents the music of artists and ensembles who offer unique approaches to African Classical traditions. Drawing parallels with the role of ancient courts in providing patronage for musicians, Jegede highlights the importance of the newly-formed African nation states in fostering creativity and innovation in the post-colonial era. His selections include landmark recordings from L'Ensemble Instrumental National Du Mali (formed in 1961) as well as Guinea's Sory Kandia Kouyatè?, whose recitative singing brought him international recognition. Plus, there's work by musicians seeking to combine legacies, including Nana Danso Abiam's Pan African Orchestra and the Orchestra Ethiopia project which brought the country's diverse musical styles together for the first time. Mali's Cheick Tidiane Seck, meanwhile, translates a classic kora theme into the jazz idiom through a collaboration with American pianist Hank Jones, and Nigerian contemporary Ibukun Sunday experiments with field recordings and traditional instruments. Produced by Phil Smith A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3 Tunde Jegede presents ensembles with unique approaches to African classical traditions. Cellist and master kora player Tunde Jegede celebrates the classical musics of Africa. Drawing parallels with the role of ancient courts in providing patronage for musicians, Jegede highlights the importance of the newly-formed African nation states in fostering creativity and innovation in the post-colonial era. His selections include landmark recordings from L'Ensemble Instrumental National Du Mali (formed in 1961) as well as Guinea's Sory Kandia Kouyate?, whose recitative singing brought him international recognition. Plus, there's work by musicians seeking to combine legacies, including Nana Danso Abiam's Pan African Orchestra and the Orchestra Ethiopia project which brought the country's diverse musical styles together for the first time. Mali's Cheick Tidiane Seck, meanwhile, translates a classic kora theme into the jazz idiom through a collaboration with American pianist Hank Jones, and Nigerian contemporary Ibukun Sunday experiments with field recordings and traditional instruments. |
| Vocal Music And Sacred Traditions | 20231015 | Cellist, kora player and composer Tunde Jegede continues his celebration of the classical musics of Africa, focusing on a variety of vocal traditions from across the continent. From the Senegalese Sufi incantations of Ida Faye to the trance-inducing Gnawa music of Morocco's Mahmoud Guinia, Jegede considers how the use of musical devices like repetition and subtle variation help to serve the spiritual purpose of the singers. “The voice is really the first instrument and it carries so much of a people and culture's identity, memory and spirit. It bridges from the sacred to the secular and in many societies holds the thread of nationhood. ? ~ Tunde Jegede Produced by Phil Smith A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3 Cellist and master kora player Tunde Jegede explores vocal traditions from Africa. Cellist and master kora player Tunde Jegede celebrates the classical musics of Africa. `The voice is really the first instrument and it carries so much of a people and culture's identity, memory and spirit. It bridges from the sacred to the secular and in many societies holds the thread of nationhood.` ~ Tunde Jegede |