angola Archives – Conservation Music

CMP Month In Review : August 2016

Featured Photo by Thalefang Charles for Cross Okavango Delta Expedition.

Okavango, Okavango, Okavango… The Conservation Music Project glided into August aboard a mokoro, a week after launching from its birthplace of Seronga with the Cross Okavango Delta Expedition (CODE) on July 25th. It was a scramble to reset and repack in Johannesburg after arriving from Zambia July 21st! (The Zambia project, Tushange Isamu, was done alongside Greenpop, a Cape Town-based environmental education and tree planting group. More on that in another post!)

The Creative Crossing

CODE 2016 marked the first official “Creative Crossing” of the Okavango Delta, in hopes of supplementing research efforts to understand and conserve the place with poetic and musical messages to bring more Batswana (people of Botswana) on board, as well as to inspire a global audience. As many of you know, the Conservation Music movement was crystalized in Angola, en route to the Delta, aboard a mokoro in 2015 with Dr. Steve Boyes’ Okavango Wilderness Project (OWP). At the time of this writing, the OWP crew is pulling their boats through the deep, muddy wilderness as the water that carried our crossing continues to drop during theirs. You can follow along with live updates at www.intotheokavango.org.

The CODE 2016 crossing was quite special… a group of 15 Batswana was joined by just a single foreign member, Conservation Music founder Alex. In general, the Delta is visited and run by either foreigners or white Botswana nationals, and one intention of CODE is to inspire more Batswana to visit and invest in this incredible national heritage site. Needless to say, it was an honor to be made the exception and join the team of creative celebrities, media professionals, and polers from Botswana to produce a song and music video throughout the two-week crossing.

EricPoleVideo still shot by Alex Paullin.

The song is entitled, “Okavango Oa Moxa,” which means “Okavango You Are Beautiful” in seYei, the mother tongue of famous four-string guitarist Stiger Sola, who was born into the lineage of the baYei, also known as the “Watshara,” or “The River People.” This tribe is said to have been the first to break into the Delta long ago, bringing 6-meter long wooden mekoro (mokoros) to enter the deep, wild paradise that the land-based KhoiSan bushmen in the region left alone.

Indeed, Stiger Sola himself was born inside that very wilderness… his aunt assisting his young mother to deliver him on an island, as his uncle waited aboard the mokoro, long ngashe pole in hand. They were still far from the village of Sharobe, the place where he was meant to be delivered, which would soon become his home. Thus a legend of Botswana was born in the heart of the same inspiration that our expedition was seeking…. We brought him back into the wild with a guitar.

Stiga River

Photo by Thalefang Charles for Cross Okavango Delta Expedition.

The other musical celebrity on board was HT Tautona, a Maun-born rapper who grew up on the cattle post but made his claim to fame in Gaborone, Botswana’s capitol. For HT this trip was like returning home, but finally seeing the Delta he grew on the edge of the right way… by mokoro, in the depth of its wilderness. His lyrics describe the overflow of emotions upon returning to this place “like a pen without ink” and being filled with inspiration to write. HT was a major team player and was easy to find helping in the kitchen.

HTKitchen

Photo by Thalefang Charles for Cross Okavango Delta Expedition.

Last but not least, as a surprise addition to the music team, multi-talented poet Leshie Lovesong spoke up during a fireside brainstorming jam session with a poem she had written, which now serves as a deeply emotional opening to the song. Once she was brought aboard the music team, she also lent her voice to the chorus, responding to Stiger’s calls of “Okavango, Okavango, Okavango” with Stiger’s own declarations to his mother, the Delta, of her lovable, everlasting, beautiful nature, and her role in his existence as “a way of life.” Leshie’s own way of life took quite a shock in the wilderness… prior the expedition she had never even been camping.

LeshieSmileEle

Photo by Thalefang Charles for Cross Okavango Delta Expedition.

Conservation Music is extremely excited to be part of Botswana’s 50th anniversary celebrations. As we speak, the new song “Okavango O Moxa” is being registered with the Copyright Society of Botswana (COSBOTS) so that the artists involved can earn their royalties and protect their rights when this song hits the radio in September. The music video shot in the Delta is soon to follow, and will we broadcast on Botswana Television (BTV) and on Youtube and Vimeo. The song and video will also be made available on iTunes and Google Play soon!
Overall the Cross Okavango song project has been a resounding success. The tune is set to be a hit, the video will be made up of some incredible moments with people and wildlife out in the deep wilderness, and new opportunities are coming up rapidly as this project gains attention. We cannot wait to release this song and video, and hopefully do it all over again next year.

What’s Next On the Horizon?

In the meantime, lots of other things are happening too! For example:

Conservation Music Presents Sotho Sounds @ Rocking the Daisies

For instance, Conservation Music is preparing to bring our old friends the Sotho Sounds from Lesotho down to Cape Town for the massive Rocking the Daisies* music festival! The festival runs from the 7th-9th of October, and we’ll be rocking the Hemp Stage in the Green Village area on Saturday from 2-2:45pm. The Sotho Sounds are a group of rural musicians with enormous heart and talent, and we are extremely excited to give them the chance to perform for such an audience, and hopefully to sell some of their handcrafted merchandise!

FYI, preceding the festival opportunity, we are discussing a collaboration in Lesotho with an American celebrity musician. More on that soon!

SSCrawfurdPhoto by Jacob Crawfurd of Crawfurd Media.

Zambian Tree Song “Tushange Isamu” Release with Greenpop

Quite close to the release date for “Okavango O Moxa” in Botswana, we look forward to releasing the tree planting song and music video recorded in Livingstone, Zambia alongside Greenpop. In July, the song was composed and performed by the Mosi Oa Tunya band, alongside members of the Golden Leaf band as well as Conservation Music’s own Alex Paullin. September is Arbor Month, so this release is very relevant!

ZamStagePhoto by Lee-Ann Olwege.

Return to Angola with The Okavango Wilderness Project

Conservation Music looks forward to returning to Angola in October, following Rocking the Daisies festival in Cape Town. The Okavango Wilderness Project (OWP) is bringing several research teams to survey the Angolan catchments of the Okavango watershed. We are grateful for their continued enthusiasm regarding the power of music to foster conservation ethics in the minds of the people living in the region, where decades of aggression have scarred both the people and the landscape. The beauty and importance of the landscape there are something to be proud of, and we look forward to encouraging that pride alongside OWP and National Geographic.

AngoVidVideo still shot by Alex Paullin.

Primeira Composição com a banda “Progresso”

Today went well. It started with myself and Abias, lead composer and keys player for the local band Progresso. After a quick jam to break the ice and a couple of phone calls, we had a couple of other composition-minded individuals with us, each with different strengths. I enjoyed getting to know the different roles these guys could fill as composers… different languages, lyrics, and melodies were brought to the table for myself and Abias to sort through and organize. Firstly, here’s a preview of the chorus, which has a more modern feel and is sung in the link language Portuguese as opposed to the various regional languages:

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/258524836″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true&show_user=false” width=”100%” height=”135″ iframe=”true” /]

 

Next is a bridge in Umbundu, whipped up by a kindly schoolteacher sporting micro-dreads by the name of Tchingualele. Umbundu is spoken further north within the river system, and this part will be the flow between the chorus and and language spoken further down the river system, Nganguela.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/258524827″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true&show_user=false” width=”100%” height=”135″ iframe=”true” /]

 

And finally, for now at least, here’s one of my favorite parts of the song. This part will be both accompanied and a cappella at different points. The language is Nganguela, the most widely spoken in Menongue, and perhaps in Kuando Kubango province as well. It’s closely related to Chokwe, which is spoken in many of the villages interviewed by The Okavango Wilderness Project this year, which is good, because we want this song to be understood by as many of the people of the region as possible!

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/258524842″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true&show_user=false” width=”100%” height=”135″ iframe=”true” /]

 

That’s all for now, folks. I took some video as well, but I’m completely out of steam for the night. I’ll get on an edit ASAP to show you a bit of the songwriting process that led to these clips! ~Alex

#crossokavango Archives – Conservation Music

CMP Month In Review : August 2016

Featured Photo by Thalefang Charles for Cross Okavango Delta Expedition.

Okavango, Okavango, Okavango… The Conservation Music Project glided into August aboard a mokoro, a week after launching from its birthplace of Seronga with the Cross Okavango Delta Expedition (CODE) on July 25th. It was a scramble to reset and repack in Johannesburg after arriving from Zambia July 21st! (The Zambia project, Tushange Isamu, was done alongside Greenpop, a Cape Town-based environmental education and tree planting group. More on that in another post!)

The Creative Crossing

CODE 2016 marked the first official “Creative Crossing” of the Okavango Delta, in hopes of supplementing research efforts to understand and conserve the place with poetic and musical messages to bring more Batswana (people of Botswana) on board, as well as to inspire a global audience. As many of you know, the Conservation Music movement was crystalized in Angola, en route to the Delta, aboard a mokoro in 2015 with Dr. Steve Boyes’ Okavango Wilderness Project (OWP). At the time of this writing, the OWP crew is pulling their boats through the deep, muddy wilderness as the water that carried our crossing continues to drop during theirs. You can follow along with live updates at www.intotheokavango.org.

The CODE 2016 crossing was quite special… a group of 15 Batswana was joined by just a single foreign member, Conservation Music founder Alex. In general, the Delta is visited and run by either foreigners or white Botswana nationals, and one intention of CODE is to inspire more Batswana to visit and invest in this incredible national heritage site. Needless to say, it was an honor to be made the exception and join the team of creative celebrities, media professionals, and polers from Botswana to produce a song and music video throughout the two-week crossing.

EricPoleVideo still shot by Alex Paullin.

The song is entitled, “Okavango Oa Moxa,” which means “Okavango You Are Beautiful” in seYei, the mother tongue of famous four-string guitarist Stiger Sola, who was born into the lineage of the baYei, also known as the “Watshara,” or “The River People.” This tribe is said to have been the first to break into the Delta long ago, bringing 6-meter long wooden mekoro (mokoros) to enter the deep, wild paradise that the land-based KhoiSan bushmen in the region left alone.

Indeed, Stiger Sola himself was born inside that very wilderness… his aunt assisting his young mother to deliver him on an island, as his uncle waited aboard the mokoro, long ngashe pole in hand. They were still far from the village of Sharobe, the place where he was meant to be delivered, which would soon become his home. Thus a legend of Botswana was born in the heart of the same inspiration that our expedition was seeking…. We brought him back into the wild with a guitar.

Stiga River

Photo by Thalefang Charles for Cross Okavango Delta Expedition.

The other musical celebrity on board was HT Tautona, a Maun-born rapper who grew up on the cattle post but made his claim to fame in Gaborone, Botswana’s capitol. For HT this trip was like returning home, but finally seeing the Delta he grew on the edge of the right way… by mokoro, in the depth of its wilderness. His lyrics describe the overflow of emotions upon returning to this place “like a pen without ink” and being filled with inspiration to write. HT was a major team player and was easy to find helping in the kitchen.

HTKitchen

Photo by Thalefang Charles for Cross Okavango Delta Expedition.

Last but not least, as a surprise addition to the music team, multi-talented poet Leshie Lovesong spoke up during a fireside brainstorming jam session with a poem she had written, which now serves as a deeply emotional opening to the song. Once she was brought aboard the music team, she also lent her voice to the chorus, responding to Stiger’s calls of “Okavango, Okavango, Okavango” with Stiger’s own declarations to his mother, the Delta, of her lovable, everlasting, beautiful nature, and her role in his existence as “a way of life.” Leshie’s own way of life took quite a shock in the wilderness… prior the expedition she had never even been camping.

LeshieSmileEle

Photo by Thalefang Charles for Cross Okavango Delta Expedition.

Conservation Music is extremely excited to be part of Botswana’s 50th anniversary celebrations. As we speak, the new song “Okavango O Moxa” is being registered with the Copyright Society of Botswana (COSBOTS) so that the artists involved can earn their royalties and protect their rights when this song hits the radio in September. The music video shot in the Delta is soon to follow, and will we broadcast on Botswana Television (BTV) and on Youtube and Vimeo. The song and video will also be made available on iTunes and Google Play soon!
Overall the Cross Okavango song project has been a resounding success. The tune is set to be a hit, the video will be made up of some incredible moments with people and wildlife out in the deep wilderness, and new opportunities are coming up rapidly as this project gains attention. We cannot wait to release this song and video, and hopefully do it all over again next year.

What’s Next On the Horizon?

In the meantime, lots of other things are happening too! For example:

Conservation Music Presents Sotho Sounds @ Rocking the Daisies

For instance, Conservation Music is preparing to bring our old friends the Sotho Sounds from Lesotho down to Cape Town for the massive Rocking the Daisies* music festival! The festival runs from the 7th-9th of October, and we’ll be rocking the Hemp Stage in the Green Village area on Saturday from 2-2:45pm. The Sotho Sounds are a group of rural musicians with enormous heart and talent, and we are extremely excited to give them the chance to perform for such an audience, and hopefully to sell some of their handcrafted merchandise!

FYI, preceding the festival opportunity, we are discussing a collaboration in Lesotho with an American celebrity musician. More on that soon!

SSCrawfurdPhoto by Jacob Crawfurd of Crawfurd Media.

Zambian Tree Song “Tushange Isamu” Release with Greenpop

Quite close to the release date for “Okavango O Moxa” in Botswana, we look forward to releasing the tree planting song and music video recorded in Livingstone, Zambia alongside Greenpop. In July, the song was composed and performed by the Mosi Oa Tunya band, alongside members of the Golden Leaf band as well as Conservation Music’s own Alex Paullin. September is Arbor Month, so this release is very relevant!

ZamStagePhoto by Lee-Ann Olwege.

Return to Angola with The Okavango Wilderness Project

Conservation Music looks forward to returning to Angola in October, following Rocking the Daisies festival in Cape Town. The Okavango Wilderness Project (OWP) is bringing several research teams to survey the Angolan catchments of the Okavango watershed. We are grateful for their continued enthusiasm regarding the power of music to foster conservation ethics in the minds of the people living in the region, where decades of aggression have scarred both the people and the landscape. The beauty and importance of the landscape there are something to be proud of, and we look forward to encouraging that pride alongside OWP and National Geographic.

AngoVidVideo still shot by Alex Paullin.

The Elephants’ Playground – Conservation Music

As soon as we beached on this island I named it the elephants’ playground… Dozens of tall, regal, royal fan palms dot the place, evermore dotting the ground with their fruit. I tasted this palm fruit today, which lived its life high off the ground, tucked away between its crunchy outer shell and the large ball of vegetable ivory within. As I write this, the trees that surround me are shaking the as elephants ram them to bring down these bittersweet morsels.

Two nights in a row now we’ve slept with the elephants near. Today I ate their fruit. Tonight I ponder if they will come visit me here. Last night they had already past when my head hit the pillow… but before my tent was up I had been with them like never before.

The images are clear in my mind… I will never forget, thus yet again I can relate to my elephant friends. The herd of fifteen-odd adults and adolescents with their two wobbly-trunked younglings in tow had just passed by our camp as the light became golden. I found a perch atop a standalone turret, a sandcastle built up by termites for years. I was hoping to watch the herd crossing the river en route to the flats near Jao Village, Djedibe, the place that made me think this afternoon that we would not see any wildlife this evening. From upon my tower I watched them turn towards me.

An elephant’s moment is longer than others, but to them it must have felt like an instant as I slowly felt my heartbeat picking up as they grew closer, tree by tree. Through the zoom lens of my camera I had watched from afar as they brought down a tree for the babies to eat from. At this point the naked eye was plenty to capture this larger-than-life moment… they were standing right in front of me.

The matriarch had given me her blessing. We had been making frequent eye contact as I focused my intention on peace, love, and respect for the herd. These emotions undeniably mingled with fear… what if the villagers nearby had been in conflict with these animals? Or if a young male in the herd had been spited that day? Or a mother grew defensive, or her mate had a toothache? But consciously I focused on peace, love, and respect. Any negative visualizations must pass by as glimpses, not to be focused on.

But even when a youngling stood less than two meters below me, it’s trunk reaching up for a leaf near my dangling foot, and was startled to find me there, spreading its ears out and stumbling back, the mothers that surrounded me stayed calm. A significant look here and there, a bit of a head shake, perhaps a raised trunk. We were sharing the space. I was granted a point on the plane. For a moment, even less than an elephant’s instant, I could feel like a part of the herd. As the sky became dim, they moved on. Their wind tunnel breathing and near-silent footsteps that were filling up my ears had grown distant the moment the matriarch pointed her trunk in the direction they had come from. Only two of the herd were nearby when she pointed, but as one they all departed. An ultrasonic rumble of the stomach was the real cue. The herd had moved on through the trees, but our mother remained there with me, locking eyes for an eternity. I raised my hand. She raised her trunk and went.

On assignment for The Conservation Music Project and Cross Okavango Delta Expedition. Follow @crossokavango and @intotheokavango for more stories like these.

IMG_0207

Elephant Archives – Conservation Music

The Elephants’ Playground

As soon as we beached on this island I named it the elephants’ playground… Dozens of tall, regal, royal fan palms dot the place, evermore dotting the ground with their fruit. I tasted this palm fruit today, which lived its life high off the ground, tucked away between its crunchy outer shell and the large ball of vegetable ivory within. As I write this, the trees that surround me are shaking the as elephants ram them to bring down these bittersweet morsels.

Two nights in a row now we’ve slept with the elephants near. Today I ate their fruit. Tonight I ponder if they will come visit me here. Last night they had already past when my head hit the pillow… but before my tent was up I had been with them like never before.

The images are clear in my mind… I will never forget, thus yet again I can relate to my elephant friends. The herd of fifteen-odd adults and adolescents with their two wobbly-trunked younglings in tow had just passed by our camp as the light became golden. I found a perch atop a standalone turret, a sandcastle built up by termites for years. I was hoping to watch the herd crossing the river en route to the flats near Jao Village, Djedibe, the place that made me think this afternoon that we would not see any wildlife this evening. From upon my tower I watched them turn towards me.

An elephant’s moment is longer than others, but to them it must have felt like an instant as I slowly felt my heartbeat picking up as they grew closer, tree by tree. Through the zoom lens of my camera I had watched from afar as they brought down a tree for the babies to eat from. At this point the naked eye was plenty to capture this larger-than-life moment… they were standing right in front of me.

The matriarch had given me her blessing. We had been making frequent eye contact as I focused my intention on peace, love, and respect for the herd. These emotions undeniably mingled with fear… what if the villagers nearby had been in conflict with these animals? Or if a young male in the herd had been spited that day? Or a mother grew defensive, or her mate had a toothache? But consciously I focused on peace, love, and respect. Any negative visualizations must pass by as glimpses, not to be focused on.

But even when a youngling stood less than two meters below me, it’s trunk reaching up for a leaf near my dangling foot, and was startled to find me there, spreading its ears out and stumbling back, the mothers that surrounded me stayed calm. A significant look here and there, a bit of a head shake, perhaps a raised trunk. We were sharing the space. I was granted a point on the plane. For a moment, even less than an elephant’s instant, I could feel like a part of the herd. As the sky became dim, they moved on. Their wind tunnel breathing and near-silent footsteps that were filling up my ears had grown distant the moment the matriarch pointed her trunk in the direction they had come from. Only two of the herd were nearby when she pointed, but as one they all departed. An ultrasonic rumble of the stomach was the real cue. The herd had moved on through the trees, but our mother remained there with me, locking eyes for an eternity. I raised my hand. She raised her trunk and went.

On assignment for The Conservation Music Project and Cross Okavango Delta Expedition. Follow @crossokavango and @intotheokavango for more stories like these.

IMG_0207

Cross Okavango Archives – Conservation Music

The Elephants’ Playground

As soon as we beached on this island I named it the elephants’ playground… Dozens of tall, regal, royal fan palms dot the place, evermore dotting the ground with their fruit. I tasted this palm fruit today, which lived its life high off the ground, tucked away between its crunchy outer shell and the large ball of vegetable ivory within. As I write this, the trees that surround me are shaking the as elephants ram them to bring down these bittersweet morsels.

Two nights in a row now we’ve slept with the elephants near. Today I ate their fruit. Tonight I ponder if they will come visit me here. Last night they had already past when my head hit the pillow… but before my tent was up I had been with them like never before.

The images are clear in my mind… I will never forget, thus yet again I can relate to my elephant friends. The herd of fifteen-odd adults and adolescents with their two wobbly-trunked younglings in tow had just passed by our camp as the light became golden. I found a perch atop a standalone turret, a sandcastle built up by termites for years. I was hoping to watch the herd crossing the river en route to the flats near Jao Village, Djedibe, the place that made me think this afternoon that we would not see any wildlife this evening. From upon my tower I watched them turn towards me.

An elephant’s moment is longer than others, but to them it must have felt like an instant as I slowly felt my heartbeat picking up as they grew closer, tree by tree. Through the zoom lens of my camera I had watched from afar as they brought down a tree for the babies to eat from. At this point the naked eye was plenty to capture this larger-than-life moment… they were standing right in front of me.

The matriarch had given me her blessing. We had been making frequent eye contact as I focused my intention on peace, love, and respect for the herd. These emotions undeniably mingled with fear… what if the villagers nearby had been in conflict with these animals? Or if a young male in the herd had been spited that day? Or a mother grew defensive, or her mate had a toothache? But consciously I focused on peace, love, and respect. Any negative visualizations must pass by as glimpses, not to be focused on.

But even when a youngling stood less than two meters below me, it’s trunk reaching up for a leaf near my dangling foot, and was startled to find me there, spreading its ears out and stumbling back, the mothers that surrounded me stayed calm. A significant look here and there, a bit of a head shake, perhaps a raised trunk. We were sharing the space. I was granted a point on the plane. For a moment, even less than an elephant’s instant, I could feel like a part of the herd. As the sky became dim, they moved on. Their wind tunnel breathing and near-silent footsteps that were filling up my ears had grown distant the moment the matriarch pointed her trunk in the direction they had come from. Only two of the herd were nearby when she pointed, but as one they all departed. An ultrasonic rumble of the stomach was the real cue. The herd had moved on through the trees, but our mother remained there with me, locking eyes for an eternity. I raised my hand. She raised her trunk and went.

On assignment for The Conservation Music Project and Cross Okavango Delta Expedition. Follow @crossokavango and @intotheokavango for more stories like these.

IMG_0207

Reekelitsoe Molapo – Conservation Music

Africa Director

Reekelitsoe “Rex” Molapo is an accomplished and accoladed young entrepreneur. She’s versatile and multi-skilled; with training in research, entrepreneurship and African studies. She has worked and volunteered with organizations like Better SA, Global Business Roundtable, World Vision, US Embassy and EU Maseru; which equipped her with organizational, management, interpersonal and problem-solving skills. Rex is a Queen’s Young Leader, a YALI Alumnus, A One Young World Ambassador, Tony Elumelu Entrepreneaur, a Pitch at Palace Alumnus, and a UN Solutions Summit Innovator.

On Leaving Angola – Conservation Music

[fbvideo link=”https://www.facebook.com/alex.paullin/videos/10207950653056548/” width=”500″ height=”400″ onlyvideo=”1″]

 

Finally, some time for reflection. Beginning with where to begin…

The last few weeks in Angola were a little bit hectic. To begin with, it’s a difficult country to work in for myriad reasons that need not be listed here. Suffice it to say that aligning and maintaining a group schedule with the band was very challenging. Still, albeit down to the wire, we came out with an epic multilingual composition, the footage to pull together a nice video, and anticipation of another project somewhere down the road. I look forward to finalizing our work soon.

The flight came unexpectedly, by means of a debacle. The sudden, unexpected goodbye stirred up emotions of nostalgia, loss, and longing at the same time as excitement and alacrity. These emotions tend to lead us to a deeper place within ourselves… despite the setback for the Project, I am grateful for the chance to sit down and reflect in this way.

Angola is a place with many problems. Widespread poverty, collapsing infrastructure, stark corruption, a broken economy, a big-brother government, and crippled cultures are a few. Though signs of all of these revealed themselves to make this project difficult, I am proud of what my friends and I accomplished in Menongue. As I’ve mentioned in the past, there is another Angola emerging, although slowly and out of the view of the public, with an eye toward the future. It’s the toughest place I’ve been to for an innovator, tourist, conservationist, or outsider in general, but that doesn’t stop us all, and it couldn’t stop us from creating an ode to the wilderness here. Hats off to the guys in Progresso (the band) for becoming Angola’s first Conservation Musicians.

The morning I flew from Luanda, my friend Kerllen showed me a spot on the “Ilha” where we could jump into the ocean while our breakfast was prepared. It was the first time I had ever been in this side of the Atlantic, and the first time I had been in an ocean for over a year. As our plane traversed the skies above Johannesburg en route to the airport, the morning’s mental snapshots of faded-but-colorful hillside favelas gave way to expanses of fire flecked darkness away from the streetlights, and an ever-building skyline on the coast became an assemblage of shining silhouettes, surrounded by a sea of black and white, yellow and red sparkling civilization.

And so I arrived in the City of Gold with the salt of the Atlantic in my hair and in the creases of my eyes. ~Alex

[fbvideo link=”https://www.facebook.com/alex.paullin/videos/10207950749818967/” width=”500″ height=”400″ onlyvideo=”1″]

CMP Fundraiser 2016 – Conservation Music

[fbvideo link=”https://www.facebook.com/conservationmusicproject/videos/1730779300531670/” width=”500″ height=”400″ onlyvideo=”1″]

Dear Friend,

We’ve been very busy here in Africa, from Lesotho to Botswana and Angola. Along the way, I’ve been fortunate to realize my current life’s calling – using music to encourage conservation in developing countries!

Together, myself and many talented players from Lesotho, Botswana, and Angola are collaborating to write inspiring and educational conservation music. Through the radio airwaves, we are able teach these lessons to everyone, regardless of their reading ability, or how distant they may live from urban centers. Our videos will be given to local TV stations and promoted online for those with a little more access!

As I write this, an official non-profit organization is being registered in Virginia. I’m taking what began as a dream and creating a reality, with hopes of empowering musicians, improving our relationship with Earth, and inspiring anyone who comes across our story.

I’m proud to say I’ve managed to self-fund the evolution of this effort for a year now, since leaving last April. Now, for my second consecutive birthday on the African continent, I’m reaching out for help with my first fundraiser ever! It’s an online “crowdfunding” campaign at Generosity.com.

So, if you believe in what we are doing, there are a few ways to help out!

1. Donate – The fundraiser is open! Everything helps. Even small donations have a big impact out here! https://igg.me/at/TzZiOMoqSFk

2. Share on Facebook – The more people who hear about us, the more likely we are to meet our target.

2a. You can also share to Twitter!

3. Share with your community – Call your friends, talk to your family, tell your co-workers, make an announcement at your organization’s event… help spread the word!

Thanks so much for reading, and if you choose to get involved, thank you SO MUCH for your help! Let me know if you have any feedback or questions, I would love to hear back from you!

One love,
Alex

Happy Earth Day! – Conservation Music

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From all of us here in Angola, HAPPY EARTH DAY! A day to reflect on our nature as humans, and what we can do to help nurture it. We hope you enjoy this quick 1-minute clip of the work we’ve been doing here!

The Conservation Music Project is founded on the belief that every person on the planet has a gift that can be used to do something much greater than ourselves. We’re using music to speak to the heart and the mind about caring for the planet, in many different languages! This section is in Umbundu, which is spoken further North and West within the Okavango basin, and speaks of the wealth of fish, frogs, and crocodiles to be found in Angola’s rivers.

Also, speaking of days for reflection and celebration, tomorrow, the 23rd of April, marks the one year anniversary of my touchdown in Lesotho! Since then, I’ve been blessed to experience 4 other countries in Southern Africa, especially the privilege of meeting such a wealth of wonderful people everywhere I go. I am so grateful to everyone I’ve met along the way.

On top of this, on an even more personal note, just 11 days away is my birthday, May 3rd. This year, I have decided to launch a my first ever Crowdfunding campaign, for the Conservation Music Project, the night beforehand. Even the smallest donation will help to empower musicians from all over Southern Africa to impact the earth in their own unique, positive way! Just something to think about, I will be keeping you posted on this!

If you enjoyed this video, please LIKE and SHARE to support these awesome musicians and pass on the positive vibes! Thank you!

Gravação de Amanhã – Recording’s Eve – Conservation Music

Hey! The past few days have been a bit slower production-wise, mainly on account of the various band members’ day jobs. Not to worry, though, I’ve spent that time improving my audiovisual knowledge and practices, as well as beginning to map out our first upcoming video!

On that note, we’re recording our first track tomorrow! You may have heard the preview clips in my previous post. If not, you can find those right here! Very excited to get the ball rolling on some nice audio production.

I’ve also reached out to Angolan celebrity Matias Damásio, who according to my contact has expressed interest in the project. If all goes according to plan, we’ll be able to work with Damásio to prepare a conservation production in time for World Environment Day, which will be hosted in Luanda this year. That would be great! Here’s a clip of Matias Damásio at work:

Now I’m off to see the band at their weekly Friday night gig at Ponto Verde bar. Tchau!