What Boundaries?!

New German-Malawian compositions – supported by the TURN Fund

Das Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra & The Lusubilo Band & Musiker aus Nsanje. Lusubilo Music Centre, Karonga, Malawi. Foto: Christoph Rothmeier

The German-Malawian cooperation project “What Boundaries?!” incorporated the music of two continents into a series of new compositions. The Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra from Germany and the Lusobilo Band from Malawi teamed up to develop a joint repertoire comprised of Afropop, traditional Malawian music, contemporary New Music and jazz.

The Lusobilo Band was created at the Music Centre of Lusobilo in Karonga, Malawi, which has gained widespread recognition in recent years with a series of educational events and concerts. As an archive and communication platform, the centre safeguards the oral tradition of the region while regularly employing current Malawian stars as instructors who build bridges to contemporary music. The Lusobilo Band supports this approach by developing age-old traditions in a creative way. The 18-person Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra is known well beyond the borders of Berlin for its unconventional productions. The compositions by its director Daniel Glatzel combine the design and dramaturgy of contemporary music with elements from other styles and genres like rock or electronic music.

During a three-week rehearsal and working process in Karonga, the two bands practiced the new pieces and developed a choreography for their joint concerts in Malawi and Germany which united music, dance and spoken word poetry.

Artistic directors: Daniel Glatzel (DE), Tiwonge Hango (MW), Jörg Hochapfel (DE), Kennedy Phiri (MW), Johannes Schleiermacher (DE)
Participants: Musicians of both bands

 

Scheduled dates

Karonga, Blantyre, Lilongwe, Mzuzu: 26 Aug. 2016 – 31 Aug. 2016 (performances)
Malawi

TURN – Fund for Artistic Cooperation between Germany and African Countries

In 2012, the Federal Cultural Foundation established the TURN – Fund for Artistic Cooperation between Germany and African Countries in order to encourage a wide range of German institutions to shift their focus on the artistic production and cultural debates in African countries.

More about the TURN Fund (opens in a new window)

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