South African Concertina

[twisper]

Here's a video I ran across from the 90's of Johnny Clegg, very talented musician and songwriter from South Africa, usually pictured playing guitar, here he's performing on concertina in the Zulu style, which some might find an interesting departure to what we're used to. He is performing with his band of the time, "Savuka", and does some pretty knocked out dance moves here too. Hope you enjoy it...

 

Edited September 1, 2012 by twisper

[michael sam wild]

Thanks a brave man in apartheid times. I was watching a BBC $ proghramme last night on the making of paul Simon's Graceland album and struck by how Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes took the concertina and accordion style and built on it. Clegg was doing the same sort of stuff, as a white South African, earlier on but got no mention which I thought was an omission.

[David Barnert]

I don't know anything about in the Zulu style, but it looks like he's doing all the playing with his left hand.

[twisper]

Yes...the Zulus embraced this instrument (also melodeon) and used it in a very rhythmic and interesting way. Here's one by Johnny that seems to use a few more keys and both hands....

 

Edited September 1, 2012 by twisper

[Daniel Hersh]

Yes...the Zulus embraced this instrument (also melodeon) and used it in a very rhythmic and interesting way.

and

are an examples of Zulu playing. Edited September 1, 2012 by Daniel Hersh

[Don Taylor]

Wow! This is great stuff.

 

So what is he doing? What are those chords?

[michael sam wild]

There are earlier threads. Just search in the box on the front page of conc.net. Zulu, South African Music, Squash Box etc

Harry Scurfiled and Dan Worrall are pretty knowledgeable. Dan has some info in his admirable book

 

 

Bastari seems to be the make and it's used as a generic term for a concertina I believe

Edited September 19, 2012 by michael sam wild

[michael sam wild]

I got that Echoes of Africa CD via EBay and it is very interesting. One of the tracks early on sounds just like The Internationale!(composed 1888) which in turn sounds like parts of Slaidburn a Brass band piece by Wm Rimmer ( composed in the 20th C) from Lancashire I heard recently ( any help welcome there) so goodness knows where the tune got into the African tradition.

Edited September 20, 2012 by michael sam wild

[Dirge]

As I remember it, to make a 'squashbox' to play authentic Zulu style you need to move a fair number of reeds around, so some dedication is required...