Millicent Chapanda

The mbira dzavadzimu – literally meaning ‘the voice of the ancestors’ – is a musical instrument of the Shona of Zimbabwe, made with metal tongues plucked with the thumbs and fingers. Its clear, bell-like tones and warm buzz create hypnotic, beautiful and sometimes intense circular melodies that are used to connect to ancestral spirits and encourage those ancestors to possess the living.

Millicent Chapanda is a British-based Zimbabwean artist and one of the UK’s most respected mbira players, as well as a singer, percussionist, dancer and storyteller. Her music reflects the vibrant traditions of Shona music, embracing both spiritual and secular as a way to bringing people together in reflection, meditation and celebration. Her mission is to bring the lived experience of women in Zimbabwe onto the international stage – while her music is rooted in traditional ceremonies, she also sings loud for change on gender issues, and for breaking the barriers affecting women her home country and in the diaspora.

Living in the UK for more than 20 years, Millicent has been an important part of the lively Zimbabwean diaspora, collaborating with the legendary Batanai Marimba, Anna Mudeka and Kuda Matimba’s Harare band, and late, great Chartwell Dutiro in his final years. She has performed on some of the UK’s biggest stages, from WOMAD and Shambala Festivals to the Barbican, Royal Festival Hall and the Birmingham Symphony Hall among countless others.

We can’t wait to welcome Millicent Chapanda and her entrancing mbira dzavadzimu to the World’s Music at Oxford!

Doors will open at 6:30pm and the performance will start at 7pm.

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The World’s Music at Oxford is a project run and supported by St John's College at the University of Oxford, which blends research into global musics with live performance. Our events take place at our location at St John's College and are free and open to all. Find out more on our website: theworldsmusicatoxford.com

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