In the Land of Cameroon

Put aside any preconceptions you might have about field recordings.

This collection of tracks by amateur musicians and singers is highly recommended, and in terms of both recording quality and the calibre of the performances captured it compares favourably with the German label Wergo’s 2005 release Mvet ai Mendzang: Music of the Beti in Cameroon. It’s also accompanied by a DVD. This perhaps compensates somewhat for the inadequacy of the liner notes, which are difficult to follow and could tell us much more. The instruments showcased include various types of sanza or thumb piano, and even newly invented ones like the yedem (harp-sanza) of Jasmin Songonam, and the mambala of Bruno Djomegni. Some of these guys could give Thomas Mapfumo and his mbira boys a run for their money.

Another novel sound is the jangling mvet (zither), as heard on the track ‘Evengenem’ by Adgeng Etaba. There are also types of balafon, such as the mendzan played by Joseph Kede on ‘Bariba’, which has such a frayed, buzzy sound that you’re left in no doubt that Cameroon lies in West Africa, just like Mali. And there are percussion groups such as the multi-ethnic Groupe Kalangou and the very tight Groupe Ma-Nkoussou, whose doum doum drums are accompanied by hocketing antelope-horn players.