African Food and Art

Thank you to our latest donor, Esther. Thank you, Esther. We were able to purchase a new cutting board.

Trumpeter Musician Hugh Masekela

Hugh Masekela was a world-renowned trumpeter musician and political leader who released over 40 albums.

Masekela trumpeter musical style was influenced by Miles Davis. Masekela performed at the Monterey Pop Festival alongside The Who. U2 front-man Bono said playing with Masekela was one of the highlights of his career.


Hugh Masekela world-renowned musician and political leader photo by afromusing

Trumpeter African Musician Hugh Masekela 20 Years of Freedom

Hugh Masekela was born 75 years ago in the town of Witbank, South Africa in 1939. Masekela began to hone his, now signature, Afro-Jazz sound in the late 1950s. In 1960, at the age of 21, he left South Africa to begin what would be 30 years in exile from the land of his birth.

On arrival in New York he enrolled at the Manhattan School of Music. This coincided with a golden era of jazz music and the young Hugh Masekela immersed himself in the New York jazz scene where nightly he watched greats like Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Mingus and Max Roach.

Under the tutelage of Dizzy Gillespie and Louis Armstrong, Hugh was encouraged to develop his own unique style, feeding off African rather than American influences – his debut album, released in 1963, was entitled Trumpet Africaine.

In 1967 Hugh performed at the Monterey Pop Festival alongside Janis Joplin, Otis Redding, Ravi Shankar, The Who and Jimi Hendrix. In 1968, his instrumental single ‘Grazin’ in the Grass’ went to Number One on the American pop charts and was a worldwide smash, elevating Hugh onto the international stage

In 1990 Hugh returned home, following the unbanning of the ANC and the release of Nelson Mandela – an event anticipated in Hugh’s anti-apartheid anthem ‘Bring Home Nelson Mandela’ (1986) which had been a rallying cry around the world.

In June 2010 Masekela opened the FIFA Soccer World Cup Kick-Off Concert to a global audience and performed at the event’s Opening Ceremony in Soweto’s Soccer City. The US Virgin Islands proclaimed ‘Hugh Masekela Day’ in March 2011, not long after Hugh joined U2 on stage during the Johannesburg leg of their 360 World Tour. U2 Bono described meeting and playing with Hugh as one of the highlights of his career.

According to his biography, Masekela is currently using his global reach to spread the word about heritage restoration in Africa – a topic that remains very close to his heart.

Masekela says “My biggest obsession is to show Africans and the world who the people of Africa really are,” Masekela confides – and it’s this commitment to his home continent that has propelled him forward since he first began playing the trumpet.

February and March 2015, South African musical legends Hugh Masekela and Vusi Mahlesela embarked on a North American musical tour, 20 Years of Freedom. The tour celebrated the 20th anniversary of South Africa’s social equality and the end of apartheid.



About Trumpeter Musician Hugh Masekela 
Birth name
Hugh Ramapolo Masekela.

Born
April 4, 1939 in Emalahleni, South Africa.
Died
January 23, 2018 at age 78 in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Genres played
Jazz, Mbaqanga and Afropop.

Instruments played
Trumpet, flugel horn, trombone, cornet and singer.

Together we build awareness that boost harmony, education, and success, below are more links to articles you will find thought provoking.

  1. Historical African Country Name
  2. Top 20 Largest Countries in Africa
  3. How many countries does Africa have?
  4. Roots of Africanized Christianity Spiritual Songs
  5. Paying Money To Tour Slums in Africa
  6. Awesome Kenyan Woman
  7. Land is Not For Women in Sierra Leone

  8. African Kente Cloth Facts
  9. Accra the Ghanaian Capital Ultimate Mall Experience


Chic African Culture and The African Gourmet=

Week’s Best African Culture Posts

Dehorning White and Black Rhinos

Image
Dehorning rhinos means taking off their horns to protect them from poachers. White rhinoceros and black rhinoceros is are heavily poached because of the size of their horns. Dehorning Saves White and Black Rhinos from Extinction  The official term for taking the horns off rhinoceroses is dehorning. Dehorning is a conservation technique used to protect rhinos from poachers by removing their horns.  Dehorning techniques for rhinoceroses have been used since the late 1980s. Namibia was the first country to implement dehorning as a strategy to protect rhinos from poaching. Poachers hunt rhinos for their horns, which are made of keratin, the same stuff as our hair and nails. They use the horns for medicine and fancy jewelry. Poachers sneak onto reserves, sometimes laying and wait for days using the skill of Wilderness survivalists.  In many cultures, but especially in Asian Cultures such as China and Vietnam the horn of the rhinoceros is believed to carry healing powers for everything from
Learn More About Africa

Nature Holds Many Secrets | Hurricanes, Angry African Ancestors

Image
Eastern coasts of Caribbean, United States, and South America, are in danger of being blasted by hurricanes wind and rain during hurricane season from June through November. But, why? The scientific reason why is because of Africa’s Sahara desert dust storms and the transition of thunderstorms off the west coast of Africa. The waters in the North Atlantic Ocean are typically at their warmest while the Sahara is at its hottest from July through October, so the chances of a hurricane are highest during these months. African legend, the paths hurricanes follow. Hurricanes are gigantic weather systems using convection, the movement of hot and cold air, to create dangerous storms. They are rotating heat engines powered by the warmth of tropical waters having three main parts, the eye, the eyewall, and rainbands. Hurricanes cannot form just anywhere in the world due to the need for hot and humid air. They normally form close to the equator and move west or northwest. Hurrica
Learn More About Africa

Top ten African countries with the most Gold Olympic medals

Image
Gold Olympic Medals Africa Kenya, South Africa, Ethiopia, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Zimbabwe, Tunisia, Cameroon, and Nigeria are the top ten African countries with the most Gold Olympic medals. 10 African countries with the most Gold Olympic medals How much do you know about Africa's history at the Summer Olympics Games? The 2016 summer Olympic Games in Rio officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad has been a part of Africa’s history since 1904. Also in Rio 2016, the first-ever Team Refugees will stand before the world and prove that you can succeed no matter where you're from. Top ten African countries with the most Gold Olympic medals African Country Gold Silver Bronze Total Kenya 24 33 29 86 South Africa 23 26 27
Learn More About Africa

What is the difference between ugali and fufu

Image
How to make the popular African recipes Ugali and Fufu and what is the difference.  Ugali is a starch dish in Kenya and Tanzania made of fine cornmeal cooked in boiling water into a soft dough. Fufu is a thick, dough-like West African food made by boiling then pounding a starchy vegetable such as yam, plantain, or cassava or a mixture of starchy vegetables. The main difference between fufu and ugali is fufu is boiled first then pounded while ugali is simply boiled. Ugali recipe. Easy Ugali Recipe Prep time 5 minutes Cook time 30 minutes Total time 30 minutes Ingredients 4 cups finely ground cornmeal 8 cups water Directions Heat water to boiling in a saucepan. Slowly pour cornmeal into boiling water stirring continuously. Add more cornmeal if necessary until it is thick as soft bread dough. Serve immediately with vegetables, stew, or any dish you would use a spoon with to soak up the sauce, ugali is purposely bland tasting on its own. What is the difference between ugali and
Learn More About Africa