Zimbabwe Archives

13th Annual Payangan Festival in Bali

May 26, 2015/in CWM Events/by Lance Nelson

Flower Mountain, Payangan, Bali

Lewis Peterman, Artistic Director / Wayan Tubek, Technical Director

Created by the distinguished American ethnomusicologist and former president of the Center for World Music, Dr. Robert E. Brown, an annual summer world music and dance festival was established in Payangan village, Bali in 2002. The multi-day Payangan Festival’s primary focus has always been the performing arts traditions of Indonesia (music, dance, and theater), especially Java and Bali. However, traditional performing arts from Africa, China, India, and Europe have also been featured.

The 2014 Payangan Festival in Bali features two similar musical traditions from two different cultures thousands of miles apart: Indonesia (Bali) and Africa (Zimbabwe). The gamelan selunding music of Bali and the mbira music of Zimbabwe share characteristics in common: ancient musical instruments fabricated from metal that produce complex interlocking musical parts appropriate for sacred ceremonies where both the music and the ritual are intended to induce an altered state of consciousness as a pathway to the spiritual world.

Payangan Festival 2014

Mbira Get-Together in Memory of Robert E. Brown

November 25, 2015/in CWM Events, SDCAC-Supported Event/by Lance Nelson

The Center for World Music presents a Zimbabwean mbira get-together in memory of the Center’s founder, Dr. Robert E. Brown, who passed away 10 years ago on November 29, 2005.

Admission for this special house concert is free. The venue will be a private home in San Diego. Please contact Lewis Peterman for event details.

Robert E. Brown in Central Java, nr. Mt. Merapi

Read Dr. Peterman’s tribute to Robert E. Brown.

Download an event flyer here. Financial support provided by the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture.

Passport to Worlds of Music Series

January 5, 2016/in CWM Events, Passport Series, SDCAC-Supported Event/by Monica Emery

The Center for World Music and the Kalabash School of Music and the Arts presents Passport to Worlds of Music, an informal concert series of classical and folk music traditions from Asia and Africa. This unique music and lecture series will introduce you to the sounds, aesthetics, and cultural significance of the music of Thailand, Zimbabwe, and Iran.

February 27, 2016 — Music of Thailand
Presented by internationally renowned khaen performer Christopher Adler, Ph.D., USD, and Supeena Insee Adler, Ph.D., UCLA.

March 26, 2016 — Music of Zimbabwe
Performed by the mbira and marimba group Zimbeat, featuring Center for World Music teaching artist Garit Imhoff and Professor Randall Griswold, CSU San Marcos.

April 30, 2016 — Music of Iran
Kourosh Taghavi, master traditional musician from Iran and Center for World Music teaching artist, will perform and provide insight into the exquisite world of Persian Classical Music.

5:30pm Doors Open
6:00pm Introductions and Performance Begins

Proceeds support world music programs for school children across San Diego County.

We highly recommend purchasing tickets in advance to reserve your space. Because of the intimate and informal nature of the space, tickets are limited to 35 guests. A small number of tickets will be sold at the door.

These are casual BYOB events. Feel free to bring refreshments for yourself and your friends.

Passport to Worlds of Music: Zimbabwe

January 5, 2016/in CWM Events, Passport Series, SDCAC-Supported Event/by Monica Emery

This is the second concert of the Passport to Worlds of Music series. This special music and lecture concert will introduce you to the sounds, aesthetics, and cultural significance of the music from Zimbabwe.

Music of Zimbabwe
Performed by the mbira and marimba group Zimbeat, featuring Center for World Music teaching artist Garit Imhoff and Professor Randall Griswold, CSU San Marcos.

Enjoy the hypnotic melodies and spirited rhythms in the captivating and compelling music that is found in traditional and contemporary Africa. Zimbeat will perform the dynamic village music of Zimbabwe–music that is based on the Shona peoples’ traditional instrument, the mbira dzavadzimu.

5:30pm Doors Open
6:00pm Introductions and Performance Begins

Proceeds support world music programs for school children across San Diego County.

We highly recommend purchasing tickets in advance to reserve your space. Because of the intimate and informal nature of the space, tickets are limited to 35 guests. A small number of tickets will be sold at the door.

This is a casual BYOB event. Feel free to bring refreshments for yourself and your friends.

Zimbeat: Music of Zimbabwe

March 23, 2016/in CWM Events, SDSU-CWM World Music Series/by Lance Nelson

The 2016 SDSU-CWM World Music Series

Zimbeat: Music of Zimbabwe

Hypnotic interlocking melodies and spirited African rhythms culminate in the captivating and compelling music that is found in traditional and contemporary Zimbabwe.

Admission: $15 general/$12 students (advance purchase or at the door)

Cosponsored by the SDSU School of Music and Dance, Compassion for African Villages, and the Center for World Music.

Directions: SDSU Parking Map and Instructions

2016 CWM Summer Series: Music of Zimbabwe

May 17, 2016/in CWM Events, Summer World Music Series/by Monica Emery

The 2016 Center for World Music Summer Series at Seaport Village, East Plaza Gazebo

Zimbeat: Music of Zimbabwe

Featuring: Max Berry, Randy Griswold, and Garit Imhoff

Enjoy the dynamic village music of Southern Africa with Zimbeat. The music is based on the Shona peoples’ ancient musical instrument, the mbira dzavadzimu. Get carried away by the hypnotic interlocking melodies and spirited rhythms in the captivating and compelling instrumental music that is found in traditional and contemporary Zimbabwe.

Admission: Free

Directions: Park in the East Plaza parking lot accessible from Kettner Blvd. Headquarters and Seaport Map

Flyer: Download the 2016 CWM Summer Concert Series flyer.

Financial support provided by the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture.

Photograph by Jolyne L. Harris