Chaminuka: Music of Zimbabwe

From the masterful student of the great Ephat Mujuru comes this album of mbira pieces, both traditional and contemporary. The performances are perfect with respect to the virtuosity of Maraire, and the compositions written by him are also worthy of being heard. The tempos range from exceptionally slow, as in "Mudendero," to exceptionally fast and bouncing, as in "Machekeche" (actually transcribed over to the marimba by Maraire from the usual mbira repertoire). For someone looking for an introductory album to the music of the Shona mbira, this wouldn't be a bad place to start. Perhaps even better would be an Ephat Mujuru album, or better still, the Shona Spirit album featuring both the master and his student. Still, listen to any and all that you can if interested in the style to any degree whatsoever. This is powerful music performed by the masters of the genre.