The Singing Wells project (SWP) is a collaboration between Abubilla Music, a record label in London, and Ketebul Music in Kenya, a non-profit organisation committed to identifying, preserving and promoting the diverse music traditions of East Africa. Their goal is to record, archive and share the traditional music of East Africa for two important reasons: first, to sustain and celebrate the region’s extraordinary cultural music heritage; and second, to help make this legacy relevant and fresh to today’s audiences.
A group of sound and video engineers, producers and musicians, Singing Wells set out on a mission not to become ‘fossil collectors’ that store their recordings in inaccessible archives. Instead, the project works with musicians to make sure that the traditions of their respective crafts continue to be practiced and shared amongst the widest audiences—and that they become sources of inspiration for new generations of musicians.