Finding the Spirit of Inanga – Stephen Sogo performs at Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology

In collaboration with the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology (HMA), PVD World Music Institute presents, Finding the Spirit of Inanga: A Learning-Centered Performance and Celebration  featuring the Burundian Inanga  on Wednesday, September 28th, 2024  from 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM in the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology at Brown University. 

We are thrilled to be joined once again by acclaimed  Burundian multi-instrumentalist and singer/composer Steven Sogo,  who will lead the live performance, and offer an interactive learning experience, sharing his rich musical knowledge of  the Inanga  and other Burundian instruments from the Haffenreffer Museum’s  collection. 

This event will provide a rare cultural learning experience, taking visitors on a spectacular journey through time and space, capturing the Inanga’s  unique and significant musical relationship to  the Burundian people and the people of the Great Lakes region of Africa. The event offers an exciting opportunity to learn directly from Steven Sogo both during the performance and afterwards, in  a panel discussion with Chance Kinyange, proud Burundian and founder of PVD World Music. . 

Curating this event is a part of PVD World Music’s  ongoing mission to celebrate, promote and enrich indigenous musical traditions and arts, with a special focus on African refugees and immigrants in Rhode Island, for present and future generations. We thank our partners, especially the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology, whose generous support has made this event possible. 

DETAILED SUMMARY

Finding the spirit of Inanga

Traditional musical instruments such as the Inanga give the world a look into prehistoric African traditions that are still practiced in modern times. These instruments point to a rich culture that is musical, mathematical, and marvelous to this day. These instruments are the essence of the cultural archive of the African people and offer a glimpse into what can often seem to be a transcendental society. The traditional instruments of the Urundi people include the Umwironge (flute); Umuduri (musical bow or berimbau); Ikembe (thumb piano, Mbira); Ingoma (drum), and Inanga (trough Zither). Variations of each of these instruments are also represented in other cultures, with one exception:  the Inanga. The Inanga is unique to the Urundi people (from modern-day Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, and Eastern Congo) and holds unparalleled cultural value to present and future Urundi within and beyond Africa. 

Despite its uniqueness, the Inanga is poorly represented in written publications, especially in the English speaking world. While literature regarding the other instruments is readily available, information about the Inanga is significantly limited.

As an organization working towards the mission of preserving African musical traditions through celebration and enrichment, we believe it is critical to preserve the rich history, culture and technical practice of the Inanga and contribute to raising awareness and building new knowledge about this unique instrument.  As the Inanga has been historically preserved through oral traditions, one of our longer-term goals at PVD World Music is to record these traditions and make them available to present and future generations of Abarundi through a living digital archive, workshops such as these, as well as published research. We hope to accomplish this by creating a permanent African Musical Instrument Arts Center within the next five years, which would host an open-access digital library of Inanga heritage for a global audience. 

​

About the Inanga:

​

The Inanga is a musical instrument that – although prehistoric in its construction and use – is still played by people in modern-day Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Eastern Congo, and Tanzania. Playing an important social and cultural role, the Inanga is used to transmit historical knowledges about ecology, society and politics to old and new generations and also ensure intergenerational learning and continuity. In fact, expert Inanga players had the honor of living  in permanent residences at the royal courts in the Urundi Kingdom, while serving as ntumwa (messengers) who disseminated important information and announcements to the general public. 

Another truly special feature of the Inanga is that it   has a living body. It is usually personified to convey the image of  an ancestor speaking, commanding us all to stop and listen. In that way, the Inanga is an extension of the mouth and a tool of speech. It has Amaso (eyes: which are the star-shaped openings), Amatwi (ears: the long openings), Amenyo (Teeth: the notches for strings), Inda (belly: the resonant cavity), and Umugongo (back: the bottom side). Not only was the Inanga a living instrument of history and knowledge, it also reshaped society. For instance, as Inanga players developed their performance of this musical instrument, they also developed unique linguistic characteristics because of it. Ikirundi or a creole version of the Ikirundi language continues to be sung during Inanga performances today. 

Also significantly, the Inanga  plays a central part in  Abarundi communal living traditions, holding a special place in  their religious practices. Abarundi people also play the Inanga when they travel from Imbo (grasslands) to Ruguru (hills) each season. The instrument is used to help soothe cows during the milking process. When Abarundi people listen to the Inanga, we don’t merely listen; we understand the story and meaning of the songs and the lessons they hold for us.  Abarundi people lived and played inanga in the Great Lakes Region of Africa for thousands of years. The  Inanga tradition and the Kirundi language indicate that the Abarundi are in fact a very old and well-established large community that has been in existence long  before the 15th century in contrast to modern research. Most Abarundi people today identify with the Inanga as a big part of their heritage. It has always been a reminder of what it means to be Burundian. 

Like in most ancient cultures, anything important and worth remembering was held in communal memory and passed down through songs. The Inanga is part of a musical tradition that goes far back into African prehistory for its role as an archive of cultural knowledge in every domain. For example, Inanga ya Mbanzabugabo (Mbazabugabo song) is a folk story told by Amuganwakazi (a princess descendant  of the last Ntare, king of Burundi before the arrival of Portuguese missionaries). The song is a true story about a quarrel between two princes who were strategically divided by Arab slave traders and early missionaries who needed access to Burundi, who tragically end up killing each other. In recounting this story, the Inanga remains  critical to recording, sharing and remembering  Abarundi history and politics. 

So listening to the Inanga today also provides an opportunity for Burundians to look into their past through a wider lens that brings together culture, history, geography and politics. 

In many ways, the Inanga also provides an opportunity for the Urundi people in and from the Great Lakes region of Africa to discover their unique identity as the region emerges from colonialism and civil instability. This is especially critical as this rich culture and its knowledge have historically been passed down orally to the next generation, a process that has been severely impacted by colonialism.  The Great Lakes region has been in a state of civil unrest since the 18th century. In fact, Abarundi territories  have been under continued  warfare and instability since the arrival of Arab slave traders and European missionaries in the 19th century. Colonialism and so-called decolonization happened in the 20th and 21st centuries, respectively. Yet, now In addition to the historical and cultural erasures that happened under colonialism, new challenges have arisen with the recent onset of  globalization and industrialization. 

Among other impacts, there also continues to be a shortage of efforts aimed at documenting the rich history of the Urundi people to collectivize the knowledges that currently exist and fill gaps to address erasures. This is where the Inanga soars to significance. It is an intangible heritage. Not only for the Abarundi, but also for anyone interested in understanding our shared ancestral histories as humans. Taking a longer view of history, the Inanga is also key to understanding the index of our human ancestors who migrated from Africa and spread throughout the rest of the world.

We propose to host an event that offers a rare and important opportunity to listen to the Inanga and learn about its significance to Great Lakes peoples from its master musicians. Finding the Spirit of Inanga is a celebration of the rich and diverse cultural heritage of African people and the lessons and joys it holds for peoples around the world. This event will showcase the Inanga that is currently present in the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology’s permanent collection by having it displayed and played by a traditional Inanga player, Steven Sogo. Inanga performers from Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda will be invited to travel to Providence to perform for a live audience, as well as a virtual audience through video documentation. The Inanga players will also participate in a short video documentary to share techniques for tuning the Inanga. The video will eventually become a part of the cultural archive held at the at PVD World Music.

This event will also help raise awareness of the museum’s collection and celebrate the rich heritage behind the Inanga. It will also bring awareness of the Inanga tradition to the greater public here in the United States, as well as to the members of the Abarundi diaspora who currently reside in New England.

In a so-called postcolonial world, there is growing concern that these important traditions may be lost forever as generations of displaced and dispossessed peoples become alienated from their cultural heritage. By hosting this event, the museum achieves a twofold objective of showcasing this unique item in all its cultural glory to the wider public, and bringing its true significance back to life for the Abarundi people who call New England home. Since traditional Inanga performers are exceedingly rare in the United States, such opportunities are few and may soon disappear altogether unless younger generations of the African diaspora, and other interested youth are introduced to its musical magic and deep cultural value. With that in mind, we (Providence World Music) appreciate the Museum’s interest in supporting this event and showcasing its historical and cultural significance, which holds deep value for all people.   

Please join us in celebrating the rich heritage and continued significance  of the Inanga at Finding the Spirit of Inanga, where we will do more than listen to music– we will elevate Inanga artists and learn more about our shared history to broaden  our understanding of ourselves as individuals and as a global community.