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Photo: Jak Kilby
Mhuri yekwaRwizi, 1983 – Cosmas second from right.
a fully qualified nurse, rebuilt homes, provided supplemental food
to families suffering continued hunger, and trained 50% of local
adults in HIV-AIDS awareness. It’s about empowering people to
look after themselves and each other. Neighbouring projects, also
led by other mbira masters and their families, have extended the
reach of support from Ancient Ways.
I
n May of this year, Cosmas and Paul returned to Britain, their
first time together in the UK since 1983, to play a reunion
concert and workshop at SOAS. Though sadly missing valued
members of the original ensemble, their powerful perfor-
mance left the audience enchanted, having had the blessing
of the spirits before Cosmas left Zimbabwe. Cosmas was moved by
the energy and involvement of the audience, a mixture of faces old
and new, and could not express enough how grateful he feels to
all the people who have supported his work in so many different
ways, for their interest and for their belief in what he is doing.
Based on over 30 years of collaboration and 10 years of deci-
sive and focused action the two have been working on a second
book. “It’s the presentation of the music and also telling stories,
about late friends who were assassinated or killed during the lib-
eration war, who were mbira players. But the stories could not be
told so soon after independence because people were afraid… but
now we feel it’s the right time, because some members of those
families have approached us to say ‘Why can’t you write the truth
about these things and what was happening?’ So that’s what we
have been doing. There are going to be some very exciting stories
and some will be sorrowful but that’s the truth about the whole
thing. I need to give credit to people who also taught me who are
now late [deceased].”
Much to the delight of mbira devotees, the book will contain
details of different musical variations to traditional songs and
insight into which mbira players led which variation, from Cosmas
himself to Bandambira through all the greats, plus certain ques-
tions on improvisation will be answered too.
It sounds like the perfect time for this type of publication to
be released. A fresh and deeper look into such an incredibly rich
and meaningful culture, that we only hear about in the news
where there is little other information than corruption, torture
and famine, is welcome.
His melodious intonation doesn’t detract from his serious atti-
tude towards such corruption. “I say this as a village head: practi-
cally you need to show love to one another, but you cannot show
love to one another when you are destroying somebody or steal-
ing from someone or doing some corrupt things, because that also
brings down the whole nation.”
The calm determination and limitless faith of this man whose
own personal losses could easily have taken away his will to get up
in the morning is nothing short of heroic. But it is the understated
manner with which he carries himself that is truly inspirational. His
achievements stand as testament to the strength and goodness of
human nature and a belief in the power of his own ideas.
It’s too much for me. I want to jump up now, run to the nearest
internet café, buy my ticket back to Zimbabwe, roll up my sleeves
and get stuck in. And I believe Cosmas when he tells me: “I know
you’ll come one day. You’ll raise some finances.” There, if he’s said it,
it’s definitely going to happen.
See www.kutsinhira.org and www.ancient-ways.org
The work of Nhimbe For Progress can be accessed through the
Ancient Ways web site. F
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