listening to the following recording, the rare collection of tracks from the 1908s collected as the album oyiwane by a group of nigerian schoolchildren, induced a variety of feelings in mine chest.
i've been drawn to the sounds of niger for a little over a year, thanks to artists such as les filles de illighadad and mdou moctar (and many others found primarily through saharan-based recording project sahel sounds), and this album fulfilled many of the same searching beings within me.
aside from the monumental rareness of the circumstances leading to this recording being available for digital streaming in 2019 (the story of how sahel sounds acquired the recordings is quite extraordinary), the sheer timbre of children's voices singing atop such sparse guitar and rhythmic accompaniment is something i didn't know i would react to quite so strongly. the lyrical content of these songs deals primarily with the current political issues of the time, and served as a message to the greater nigerian population about the need for education (for all, but especially young women).
the group's song "oyiwane" (referring to the tuareg greeting "o-yi-wan") won first prize at a musical competition held in 1985 among city schools local to agadez, niger. due to this success, a generation of all-girl groups was cultivated and a popular genre was created.
for some reason this album made me think of the beauty some humans are compelled to create. whether knowingly or not, there is plentiful evidence that a decent number of humans, when confronted with life's hardships, resorted not to violence but to art and education. it moves me to see the creation of beauty in this world when logic and all things cold demand that there be nothing more than existence, nothing more meaningful in this life of ours than struggle and survival.
not sure why that got to me so, but damn!
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which reminds me, i have been meaning to post about the following artist, mdou moctar, for a while now. i am just now becoming re-acquainted with his solo folk album, sousoume tamachek (2017), and wanted to share the experience with you.
moctar taught himself to play a handmade guitar in secret while growing up in a village where popular music was initially frowned upon for religious and traditional reasons. after making himself known among friends and neighbors as an extremely gifted musician whose lyrics were respectful and spiritual, the attitude towards creating guitar music softened and moctar would often find himself among the people in the village performing soft and intimate songs that he had written.
this album collects, years later, these initial personal songs that moctar was playing with his friends, and it is one of my favorites for this very special reason.
i think i am going to get to see him perform live in april! the closest place he's coming to me is about 6.5 hours away, but that's not too bad. it would be cool to support something like this that i am so fascinated by.
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once a young woman said to me:
"hafiz, what is the sign of someone who knows God?"
i became very quiet, and looked deep into her eyes, then replied:
"my dear, they have dropped the knife. someone who knows God has dropped the cruel knife that too many use upon their tender self and others."
- hafiz (translated to english by daniel ladinsky)
"hafiz, what is the sign of someone who knows God?"
i became very quiet, and looked deep into her eyes, then replied:
"my dear, they have dropped the knife. someone who knows God has dropped the cruel knife that too many use upon their tender self and others."
- hafiz (translated to english by daniel ladinsky)
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