What's moving in African music
Editorial, producer tips, and partner coverage from across the continent — refreshed throughout the day.
THOSE THAT CAN DO, THOSE THAT CAN’T… START A YOUTUBE CHANNEL
The Joys of Youtube One of the cool things about being alive today is that you can learn anything you want from YouTube. I had a go at ‘teaching myself’ to play the guitar when I was a teenager (back in the dark ages) – and it really was…
TELL ME YOUR MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY
I came into formal music education through the back door. As a schoolgirl in the 70s, if you wanted a musical career, there was only one route – through the graded system of the external examination bodies.
WANTED: DYNAMIC AND HARDWORKING MUSIC TEACHER (excellent accompanying skills would be an advantage)
I am still thinking about job advertisements for music teachers in South Africa, (which is where I live, and where AMI is). And since my recent, rather cheeky post about pianists, I have been thinking about them some more.
REMEMBERING ANDREW TRACEY AND HIS CONTRIBUTION TO EDUCATION
Decolonising music education Andrew Tracey, former owner of African Musical Instruments, Director of the International Library of African Music (ILAM), and our friend, died this month on 12 January, aged 87.
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A PIANIST AND GOD?
Jobs for pianists Occasionally, job ads for school music teachers pop up on my social media feeds. I am casually interested in who is hiring, what they are looking for, and usually repost for the sake of job seekers in my network.
IT’S NOT JUST A MIRROR, IT’S A DOOR
When you look in a mirror, you expect to see yourself. Using the analogy of a mirror that reflects the values of a school gives a slightly different perspective.
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS VS CURIOS
I was at a teacher’s workshop a few years ago, and one of the attendees told me that their school had very little money, and while she would have loved to invest in AMI instruments, they were beyond the school’s budget.
AMI MARIMBAS: MAINTENANCE AND TUNING
What we see on our tuning trips This blog was originally part of a follow up letter to our marimba customers after Christian and Ben did a tuning and maintenance trip.
BONDING WITH INSTRUMENTS
It’s personal A couple of weeks ago, this guitar was stolen from its home in Cape Town. The thing is folks, this is no ordinary guitar. It belonged to Bood Carver, who died tragically in 2017. Bood was a one-in-a-million type of character.