ACUNGONI Cultural Association. NIassa, Mozambique

 In Niassa I offered a smart phone, small tripod and selfie stick to four young people, two men and two women with a view to developing our own creative methodologies around collaborative music research and film production.  The general theme we were to address was gender roles and identity through the songs of the Yao communicites in Niassa, Northern Mozambique. The collaboration began at the time thousands of young boys and girls were about to enter the 'Unyago', a term broadly translated into Portuguese and English as 'initiation rites' although in Yao culture the word Unhago has a cultural resonance that goes beyond 'rites' and 'initiation'. The songs sung during the month or more the children are learning about their role in society as men and women are currently being gathered and analysed by the participants. The musical elements and the lessons taught through the songs will form the basis of a continued collaborative creative process in the production of news songs and a multi-media musical documentary. This short film shows the initiail research conducted with one of the participants, Pedro Escova. He worked with a community of Matama, on the outskirts of the provincial capital Lichinga and focussed on the songs sung during male initiation. A version with Englsih sub-titles will soon be available.  Also to follow, material from the research into female initiation conducted in Matama by Tannya de Fatima and myself and research into women's songs for work, weddings and childbrith conducted in Lipende by Babo, Vinatercia and myself.