mbira lessons for Kufunda kids

Every child should have the access and the right to inherit thier culture and traditions. Sometimes this is very difficult due to poverty, the influx of mainstream culture and urbanization, and yet this is when it is needed most. To ground into, to remember who you really are through the hard times, and to keep connected to community, your people and your past.

During my recent visit to Kufunda Village School (https://www.kufunda.org/school) in Zimbabwe, a dormant passion was lit in the children when they discovered I play mbira. They asked me if i could teach them. Of course I said yes, excited to offer back to the children the beautiful music that was given to them by their ancestors, and offered so generously to me.

Everyday after school, they would wash up, collect firewood and water for their household, and then we would gather -on the rocks in the forest- and play. Thanks to my Zimbabwean music teachers that taught me to play, I could offer them something.

Because of this sparked passion, we are asking for funds to pay for an Indigenous Zimbabean (Shona) teacher to attend Kufunda Village School once a week. He will teach mbira, as well as the tradtional songs and dances that accompany the music.

$25USD per week plus an extra few hundred to purchase more instruments. Its not much when you consider this music is an inheritance to the Shona people and the kids. The songs are ancient. They have been handed down for generations and as life in Zimbabwe continues to be a struggle, with most people living day to day, the high cost for school fees, and travel to visit family members, the continuation of the music and traditions becomes something on the back burner. Yet it is the anchor that they need and deserve in order to thrive.