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International collaborative album on cards

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SEASONED musicians Charles Charamba and Sandra Ndebele-Sibindi have completed recording their songs to be included on a musical album on libraries and reading under the Zimbabwe Rural Schools Library Trust for release later this year.

SEASONED musicians Charles Charamba and Sandra Ndebele-Sibindi have completed recording their songs to be included on a musical album on libraries and reading under the Zimbabwe Rural Schools Library Trust for release later this year.

BY ARTS REPORTER

Pastor Charles Charamba
Pastor Charles Charamba

Upcoming musician Denzel Mombeyarara was also part of the project dubbed Musicians United for Library Development.

The album, believed to be the first of its kind, will also include songs by musicians based in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

Ndebele-Sibindi said she was excited to be part of the social responsibility project that will see children in rural schools access libraries.

“The books we collect will encourage children to read and transform their lives,” the singer-cum-dancer whose contribution to the project is titled Library Makhekhe said.

Mombeyarara was ecstatic about the prospects of sharing the stage with established musicians when the album is launched.

“I feel great working alongside established musicians… I am inspired by the fact that we all have a common interest to uplift the lives of rural school children by empowering them through provision of library material,” Mombeyarara whose song, Remember Your Roots, will feature on the album said.

Local music legend Oliver Mtukudzi has offered an old song of the trust’s choice from his collection, according to his manager, Sam Mataure.

The Trust’s musical album initiative was part of its efforts to create awareness of the importance of libraries and to encourage a reading culture among Zimbabweans while New Zealand-based project manager Driden Kunaka said they needed $50 000 to see through the project.

“Some of the musicians involved have been very understanding and have used their personal resources to record their songs. We do not expect every musician to do the same. We are fundraising in various ways to raise money needed for musicians to record, to print the CDs and meet logistical costs,” he said.

Jeys Marabini, Prudence Katomeni-Mbofana and Leonard Zhakata have also shown interest in the project.

A class at Hamilton West School in New Zealand were creating a song, while Jesse O’brien, also based in Hamilton, has offered a song from his collection.

Canada-based Ronald Nyandoro and the Renaissance Mbira Group were also creating a song, Mukana Unawo, for the album.