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Kékélé
Kinavana (Stern's)
It traveled from Congo to Cuba to Congo.... some say from Cuba to Congo to Cuba. No matter the origins, the roots of rumba are too intertwined to separate anymore, and the music is as strong today as it was at its birth. On their 2006 recording, Kékélé have created a tribute to Cuban songwriter, singer and guitarist Guillermo Portabales with a solid set, joined by legendary saxman Manu Dibango, singer Madilu "System" Bialu, the grande dame of Congolese music Mbilia Bel and some of New York's finest including Nelson Hernandez and singer Isabel Martinez. Rock solid roots!
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Press from the record label:
In 2000, at a time when Congolese music seemed to have severed its roots and lost its soul, Kékélé came together to revive Congolese rumba and its Cuban antecedents. Following their heralded debut album, Rumba Congo, and their widely acclaimed Congo Life, Kékélé's third album, Kinavana, is an homage to the Cuban songwriter, singer and guitarist Guillermo Portabales. In addition to guitarist Syran Mbenza and singers Nyboma Mwan'dido, Wuta-Mayi, Bumba Massa and Loko Massengo, the great guitarist Papa Noel is back with Kékélé after a hiatus forced by illness. The sax soloist is none other than Manu Dibango, who played rumba Congo with Grand Kallé's Orchestre African Jazz in the early 60s. Another guest is singer Madilu "System" Bialu of Franco's T.P.O.K. Jazz. Mbilia Bel, the grande dame of Congolese music in the past quarter-century, sings three songs. And joining this stellar African cast are some of the best Latin musicians in New York, led by Nelson Hernandez, who is best known for his work with Celia Cruz. One of his recent discoveries, Isabel Martinez, lends her thrilling voice to one song, qualifying her as a tried and true singer of Congolese rumba. For the music of Kinavana, like the title combining Kinshasa and Havana, is both Congolese and Cuban.
Rumba Cubana or rumba Congo, it's all rumba
Kinshasa-Havana First-Class Roundtrip
Ask Kékélé about rumba, and these veterans of the great Congolese bands of the good old days will tell you that it is Congolese and always has been. The music and dances and even the word rumba originated in the Congo region of Central Africa and were taken to the Americas centuries ago. Developed into modern styles in Cuba, rumba returned to Africa via recordings in the middle decades of the 20th century. Congolese listeners recognized their own music on those records and liked what Cubans had done with it, so local musicians began playing in a quasi-Cuban style, and by the time the future members of Kékélé started their careers in the 50s and 60s, Cuban music had been so thoroughly re-absorbed into Congolese music that it was impossible to tell which parts were indigenous and which had been imported. It was all rumba.
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