
Zivanai Masango and Pachedu
Fri, October 6th, 2017
8:00 pm
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The Williams College Department of Music presents Zivanai Masango and Pachedu on Friday, Oct. 6 at 8 p.m. in Chapin Hall on the Williams Campus. This event is free and open to the public.
Star African band leader Zivanai Masango fronts Pachedu, a multinational and multicultural collective of super-talented musicians. The band’s performances are accessible, fresh, and steeped in Afropop, Afrojazz and traditional Zimbabwean and Southern African music. Joining Zivanai as a special guest is his countryman Tendai Muparutsa who is known for his unique guitar and vocal styles, as well as his mastery of marimba, percussion, and the African instrument mbira. Professor Muparutsa teaches African music performance at Williams.
About Zivanai Masango
In the past decade, Zivanai Masango has emerged as a bright star of Southern African music. His sweet, tasteful, and sincerely heartfelt style of guitar playing wins the hearts and minds of audiences and fellow musicians alike. His first three albums; Pachedu (2005), Dutu-Storm (2007) and It’s Time (2013), showcase Zivanai’s progressive, fresh, and familiar sound. It is a music unmistakably steeped and deeply rooted in the cultures and traditions of Zimbabwe and Southern Africa. Singing mostly in his native Shona language, Zivanai seeks to preserve and promote the beauty and expressiveness of this rich language as he brings a message of hope, joy, justice, and perseverance. These songs also address issues affecting the Zimbabwean people and the general African diaspora in the face of economic and socio-political turmoil.
From the stadiums and music halls in Zimbabwe to the Hollywood Bowl, Central Park Summer Stage, The Blue Note, Dimitrou’s Jazz Alley, and everything in between, Zivanai has toured the world while backing and sharing stages with legendary artists such as Oliver Mtukudzi, Bonnie Raitt, Jimmy Cliff, Habib Koite, Thomas Mapfumo, The String Cheese Incident, Hugh Masekela, Giovanni Hidalgo and many others.
Zivanai Masango and Pachedu
Zivanai Masango (Zimbabwe) – guitar, vocals
Helen Masango (Zimbabwe) – vocals, percussion
Matt Wasowski (USA) – guitar, vocals
Tendekai Mano (Zimbabwe) – bass
Jacob Nortey (Ghana) – drums
Cleopas Simbi (Zimbabwe) – keyboards, vocals
Catherine Hunziker (USA) – mbira
Special Guest:
Tendai Muparutsa (Zimbabwe) – mbira, marimba, percussion, vocals
Zivanai Masango and Pachedu are presented by the Williams College Department of Music with the generous support of the W. Ford Schumann ’50 Performing Arts Endowment.