Stanley Nthenga dates Katelele in fundraiser

Sena Jive master Stanley Nthenga faces Katelele Ching’oma as the musicians fundraise for the launch of the newly-formed Mgumano wa aSena na aMang’anja.

The event takes place on October 1 at Nyamithambo Arts Palace in Lilongwe.

Nthenga has since said patrons should brace for a lively, but culturally-rich performance as they have known him for.

The musician currently performs with a four-piece acoustic band, but said he will engage electronic guitars so that people jive to his danceable Sena beats.

Said Nthenga: “I am prepared to perform and entertain to the maximum. I have changed direction of my music and I am now performing completely acoustic music which is then amplified.

“But come October 1, I will do electronic music as the people know me for since this event has been organised as a dance event. This event is about promoting my culture and people must expect fireworks.”

He said in the current setup with the four-piece band, he uses Sansi, two acoustic guitars and one percussion to produce 100 percent acoustic music with a touch of Sena rhythms, which he has popularly dubbed Sena Jive.

The organisers have promised to showcase cultural stuff of both the Sena and the Mang’anja ethnic groups, who have merged in the Lower Shire Valley.

Mgumano wa aSena na aMang’anja aims at revitalising cultural practices of the two tribes and prevent their devise due to modernisation which has led people to adopting foreign cultures in the name of education and development.

Fundraising coordinator, Eric Trinta, said respecting useful cultural values is a way to go if the country is to move forward in a wide-range of aspects, including community development.

The Sena people are found in the Lower Shire Valley where they arrived and found the Chewa people who, by virtue of their geographic locality, are called Mang’anja.

The Sena and the Mang’anja intermarried and although the Sena are more pronounced in the region, they do not have a senior chief of their own, falling under Mang’anja traditional leadership.

Trinta said by bringing together Nthenga—a Sena culture advocate—and Ching’oma—from the Mang’anja—they are advocating for the culture which is more pronounced in the Lower Shire.