Biography
The Pygmies of the Ituri rain forest in present-day Zaire (a.k.a. Mbuti Pygmies), are an ancient, indigenous people who lived in relative isolation from the modernized world until very recently. In the 1950s, they were very much untouched by modernization, industrialization, and population growth. It was then that anthropologist, Colin M.Turnbull, was able to study their culture and music in their undisturbed, age-old form. He made field recordings of their music. Some of these are included in the album, Music of the Rain Forest Pygmies. Others were originally released on the Smithsonian/ Folkways Series.
The Mbuti Pygmies are one of the oldest indigenous groups in the region of Central Congo. Turnbull was one of the first cultural anthropologists to engage in musicological studies along with his ethnographies The Mbuti Pygmies are organized into small groups (approx. 30-40 persons), and live as hunter-gatherers, much as their ancestors have for thousands of years. Hunting, leaf-gathering, marriage, and funeral songs are among the selections presented here. The open, interval-based, vocal harmonies of the Pygmies are mesmerizing and unique, as are the layered poly-rhythms created by both voice and hand. These rare sounds transform this recording into a testament to the musical genius of a little-known culture at the very time that industry and population growth threaten their forest home and way of life. Music of the Rain Forest Pygmies is a vitally important, pivotal recording in the fields of African music and cultural studies
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.