MAGAZINE
By choosing to depict these specific sites Nhlengethwa views this work as an archive of the city and record of certain buildings that may not exist in the future. “When you look at what photographers like David Goldblatt did in the past, some of those structures no longer exist, but they’re on record.
Socially, I notice that white people have determined what white noise is. As an extension of the idea that whiteness yields its power from its “invisibility”, white noise is the backdrop to sounds that white people deem appropriate for their racial comfort. Noise made only for/by them
Kyle Shepherd is arguably one of South Africa’s leading progressive pianists, composers and band leaders of his generation. Internationally recognized for his distinctive compositional style & performances, Shepherd has made a huge impression on debut as a film score composer for the critically-acclaimed film, Noem My Skollie / Call Me Thief – South Africa’s official entry to the 2017 Academy Awards – for which he scored a nomination for the 2017 South African Film & Television Award [SAFTA] for Best Achievement in an Original Music Score in a Feature Film.
This past weekend I was honoured to hang with two best friends and new acquaintances with the purpose of unpacking all things related to the spirit. While floating through different kinds of subject matter we ended up talking sex, specifically BDSM and how even in those circles, presence needs to be quite well tuned.
Antigone then steps into her grave. When she opens her mouth to speak it is her own name. It rings out in a discordant harmony. Antigone plays with the pronunciation – ‘Anti-gon, Antee-go-nie, Antigone (said like a triplet). A hand shoots up from the mass which is her body and conducts the voices as they rise, fall and glide.
These songs of ours always get us into trouble. When we want peace, we sing. When we want to be heard we sing. Sound permeates our lives and like Fela Kuti said; Music is a weapon. Pipe smoking elders in Zimbabwe who spend lazy afternoons playing Mbira say a grunt in a chant spells trouble. This is the free voice of Afrikan music.