About Us
Our mission is to entertain and to spread the art of
traditional African music and dance all over the world
in an exchange of culture, and to leave audiences spellbound
with our acts.
To find out more about us and our music, please click
on the names of the sections below:
Our
Music & Dance Style
Hohodza band consists of:
- Portia
P. Gwanzura and Simbarashe "Simba"
Mudzingwa on lead vocals
- A
very well-polished group of male musicians and dancers
- A
selection of glamorous dancing queens - the girls
also do the backing vocals
Our unique sound is a product of traditional and modern
elements of music and style, fused with a solid electric
rhythm section, giving the band an easily identifiable
contemporary edge. It is the African Traditional type
of music associated with hard-hitting beat from old
beat, although ours is unique, in that it is a combination
of low bass and newly composed beat.
Our fast-paced, highly danceable music features not
only the rapid-fire guitar people have come to expect
from Zimbabwean compositions, but excellent harmonies,
as well.
Portia composes most of the songs herself and some are
done by some of the band members. Our songs are written
and arranged to suit dance routines performed in our
Country and are meant to be very educational too.
When you experience Hohodza's music, you will experience
a new feeling and rhythm that you will never forget.
To find out more about our dance routines,
click here.
To find out more about Mbira (the name of both
the instrument and the music), click here.
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The
Meaning of "Hohodza"
"Hohodza" is the name for "woodpecker"
in the Shona language. The woodpecker is a bird that
hungers and craves for the true, old traditions. Wherever
we perform, we quickly set our audiences alight with
the feeling that there is the spirit inspiring our dances
- the spirit of the woodpecker / Hohodza.
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Our
History
Hohodza band was formed in 1992 by
Professor Portia P. Gwanzura. One of
the main reasons that the band was started was to promote
Zimbabwean culture, as well as to provide some kind
of gainful employment for its members.
All of the members of Hohodza were exposed to music
during their childhood, and therefore have a long musical
background. Straightaway, the band put their heads together
and dug through the dustbins of history to come up with
age-old dance patterns and traditional music as a basic
for their own unique compositions.
In Zimbabwe our live performances were strong and good.
Our first show was at one of the most prestigious five
star hotels in the capital city, Harare in 1992.
Equipped with our traditional instruments only we released
our first album, Mudzimu Hautengwi,
in 1995. At that time, the Zimbabwean
music industry was dominated by many other musicians,
but through the years, we matured to become real experts
in the music Industry in Zimbabwe.
The Hohodza name became popular over the years because
of our various albums and songs. Dande
was released in 1996, and contained the blockbuster
track "Chinyakare Makaisepi". Ndotamba
Naniko, our 10th album, was released in 2002
and contained the following popular tracks: "Farai"
and "Mudiwa". Some of our other albums include:
Dzorai Moyo, Hupenyu,
and Zvinoda Kushinga (which included
the hit song "Gwengwendere").
Portia become the first black female musical promoter
in Zimbabwean music. In 1997, she promoted
a show that featured not only her band, but also one
of Zimbabwe top stars, Oliver Mtukudzi and the
Pied Pipers. She was also the president of
the newly founded Zimbabwe Women Musicians Association
that comprises female musicians such as Busi
Ncube, Benita Tarupiwa, Mbuya
Djoko and Tracy Zengeni. The
association's aim was to promote women's musical groups
in Zimbabwe.
In Zimbabwe we rose through the ranks to be one of the
best bands in the country - we were voted the
third best band in Zimbabwe in 1998.
Besides Thomas Mapfumo and Oliver
Mtukudzi, Hohodza are possibly Zimbabwe's most
internationally successful group.
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The
Present & Future
We have played in South Africa, Belgium, England, Wales,
and Holland. We have received wide acclaim at every
venue and the reception has always been incredible.
We touched people’s hearts - the shows were excellent
- the experience was wonderful.
We have also shared the stage with some international
artist like Clarence Carter from America,
Koffi Olominde, Kanda Bongoman,
Alan kounkue and Yondo Sister,
who are all based in France, and other top African artists
from around the world.
While on European tour, we had thousands attending our
shows and we had similar audiences in Zimbabwe. The
girls always keep the audience at their feet with their
unique dancing antics.
When people come to our shows, we want them to get a
feel of our traditional values, and when they leave
we want them to feel as if they have just visited Zimbabwe
and Africa.
We have just released our eleventh album Chaitemura
Chave Kuseva, the first to be released here
in the UK. To listen to samples from the tracks and
to buy it, please click here.
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