CASTLE OF OUR SKINS
  • ABOUT
    • WHAT IS COOS?
    • LEADERS
    • ARTISTS
    • COLLABORATORS
    • CREATIVE IN RESIDENCE
    • CONTACT
  • CAREERS
  • SEASON
    • 2022-2023 SEASON
    • MassQ Ball
    • Black Composer Miniature Challenge >
      • #BCMC 1.0
      • #BCMC 2.0
      • #BCMC 3.0
    • Black Poet Miniature Challenge
    • BSU Fellowship
    • REPERTOIRE
  • EDUCATION
    • EDUCATION
    • AS TOLD BY
    • BIBA Blog
    • RESOURCES
  • PRESS
    • IN THE NEWS
    • Videos & Images
  • CONTRIBUTE
    • DONATE
    • VOLUNTEER
    • Join the Board
    • SPECIAL THANKS
  • Store

8/31/2020

Artist Spotlight: Tanyaradzwa Tawengwa

0 Comments

Read Now
 
Hello, BIBA fans! This BIBA Monday blog is a feature of our inaugural Shirley Graham Du Bois Creative-in-Residence, Tanyaradzwa Tawengwa! A musical powerhouse with a wealth of experience in performing, composing, and scholarship, Tanyaradzwa is a vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and scholar whose work bridges Zimbabwe’s past and present in order to inform a self-crafted future. Her performance style connects the seemingly disparate worlds of Western classical music and Zimbabwean classical music in a trans-continental hybridity. She is part of the 2020 National Sawdust New Works Commission cohort, and has been recently profiled in I Care If You Listen and the Boston Globe. Check out her BIBA feature below! 
Picture
BIBA : How would you describe your overall practice?

TT : My practice is a healing practice. My work is about coming back to the self and the journeys we take to rediscover our wholeness. For me, that journey is rooted in Chivanhu healing practices and ancestral guidance. This modality undergirds all aspects of my creative practice, from process to performance. 

BIBA :  As a scholar, what do you focus on and how has this journey developed?

TT : The creation of self-liberated zones is the focus of my scholarship, i.e. Chimurenga chePfungwa. This mandate takes on many forms, namely, the centering of African epistemologies, modalities, forms and voices in my work. This journey has evolved over time, and is continuing to evolve. At this moment, my focus is Love, and how the existential journey to find yourself is actually a journey to Love and accept yourself. 

BIBA : What is your relationship with your voice and how does that relate to your culture?

TT : I come from a voice practice that celebrates each individual’s inherent creativity.  On my mother’s side of the family, my great-grandfather was an evangelist, and my great-grandmother would translate his sermons into 11 languages. My grandmother and her siblings were the choir, singing all the hymns. 

My father’s side of the family didn’t convert to Christianity. They are rooted in Chivanhu practice and it was during our family ceremonies that I connected to mbira music. Mbira dzaVadzimu is the instrument we use in ceremonies to connect with our ancestors. These ceremonies combine body, voice, spirit and all members of the community. 

All these influences are embodied in my voice practice.

BIBA : Who are some influential people in your life (past, present, or future) and why?

TT : I have a robust support system that is always there for me. Love is the greatest influence in my life, and it shows itself in many ways:

Through my great ancestors who walk with me: Charwe, Dumakude, Pfute, Mbvonyoza, Sekuru Philip, Gogo Soneni, Gogo Lynah, Sekuru John Melusi, Matemai George, Mabel, Auntie Tino, Sekuru Godwin, Uncle Eddie, Itayi and many more known and unknown...

Through my teachers, many teachers, and mentors: Mr. Musindo, Mr. Chikaka, Sr. Loyola. Ron Maltais, Uncle Carlton, Everett McCorvey, Dr. Angelique Clay, Somi and many more...

Through my friends, family and lovers: Ademisola, Aria, Carly, Ijeoma, Saru, Munashe, Tadisa, Tawanda, my mother and my father, and many more…

Through my enemies who are actually divine mirrors, put here to make me the strongest warrior I can be: They have no names. 

All these names influence my work, and their Love sustains me and shines Light upon me. This Light helps me to see myself clearly and to channel the creativity that resides within. 

BIBA : I give you the commission of a lifetime: unlimited time, funds, resources, and whatever else you need. What piece would you compose?

TT : I would write my story, because my life is the greatest work of art I will ever encounter.

​

Share

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

Details
    Picture
    Writings, musings, photos, links, and videos about Black Artistry of ALL varieties!
    Feel free to drop a comment or suggestion for posts!  

    Archives

    February 2023
    November 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    July 2017
    June 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    September 2016
    June 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014

    RSS Feed

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
ABOUT
WHAT IS COOS?
LEADERS
ARTISTS
COLLABORATORS
CREATIVE IN RESIDENCE
​CONTACT
SEASON
2022-2023 SEASON
MASSQ BALL
​BPMC
​BSU FELLOWSHIP
​REPERTOIRE
EDUCATION
EDUCATION
AS TOLD BY
BIBA BLOG
​RESOURCES
PRESS
IN THE NEWS
​VIDEOS & IMAGES
CONTRIBUTE
DONATE
VOLUNTEER
JOIN THE BOARD
SPECIAL THANKS

STORE
A LITTLE HISTORY
X: CURRICULUM GUIDE
#BCMC VOL. 2 
#BCMC VOL. 1
JULIUS EASTMAN
FLORENCE PRICE

Member Login
Black concert series and educational programs in Boston and beyond
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
PRIVACY POLICY
  • ABOUT
    • WHAT IS COOS?
    • LEADERS
    • ARTISTS
    • COLLABORATORS
    • CREATIVE IN RESIDENCE
    • CONTACT
  • CAREERS
  • SEASON
    • 2022-2023 SEASON
    • MassQ Ball
    • Black Composer Miniature Challenge >
      • #BCMC 1.0
      • #BCMC 2.0
      • #BCMC 3.0
    • Black Poet Miniature Challenge
    • BSU Fellowship
    • REPERTOIRE
  • EDUCATION
    • EDUCATION
    • AS TOLD BY
    • BIBA Blog
    • RESOURCES
  • PRESS
    • IN THE NEWS
    • Videos & Images
  • CONTRIBUTE
    • DONATE
    • VOLUNTEER
    • Join the Board
    • SPECIAL THANKS
  • Store