Kalimbaviews: Fabio Matù
When, browsing on Instagram, I meet the photo of a 'mbira I can not wait to know who is the owner. When I found the profile of @Fabio_Matu and I couldn’t help but browse also its Youtube channel. I found a small but irresistible channel and listened to all the songs: it goes from the rhythmic songs played with 'mbira to group performances influenced by the overwhelming Brazilian rhythms.
Fabio is an energetic and engaging artist, you absolutely have to visit his channels. But he is not only a musician: he also builds 'mbira!
But now, let's know Fabio better!
Fabio Matù, the stage name of Fabio André, is a Brazilian musician with a strong love for lamellophones that dates back to his childhood. If you are curious to know where his pseudonym comes from, know that Matù is a bird with a melodic chirping reminiscent of a flute.
Fabio carries on an art with a centuries-long tradition, that of the construction of lamellophones with an ancient aspect, with an ancestral sound and that are not easily found on the market.
Música, Amor e Construção de Instrumentos!
Let's talk about you as a musician: you write songs, you play in group Brazilian popular music. How did you start to play and what instruments did you study?
I
started my professional musical trajectory in 1996, here in Brazil
due to the many popular rhythms we started very early, family
influence, personal study and desire to make music, I always
researched Afro-indigenous history and experience, here in Brazil we
have about 5 thousand rhythms, each one has its history and
particularity, they are worlds within a country. I play drums and
study Brazilian popular percussion, rhythms like Maracatu, Jongo,
Samba de Roda among others, in addition to practice, Timbila,
Timbira, N’goni and Adungo.
Most of the themes are their own
compositions. To find out more about my work, search for “Mondhoro
Timbiraçu” Youtube and Instagram and from the 15th of July
“Timbiraçu” on all digital platforms.
When did you meet kalimba for the first time?
Around 1998 in São Paulo I had the second contact with a Kalimba.
I met the Lamelophones as a Child with a family of Africans from Angola, around 8 years old they introduced me to the “Kisanji” traditional instrument of this incredible country.
You got in touch with lamellophones really early! So, what do lamellophones mean to you?
Playing M'bira, Kalimba and other Lamelophones is like rescuing part of an ancestry, a magical re-encounter, an old memory, when I play I transport myself spiritually to my roots and astral places.
This is a wonderful thought, I really appreciate it and the same will do our readers. But now, let's talk about how you build your 'mbiras.
I have been building instruments since 1999 for a personal need, so that I could have access, since many are not easily accessible, so in researching I learned to do it. I basically use wood, iron, skins and other types of metal, I work 15 hours a day in my workshop, from 2002 I start to build instruments for groups and other musicians.
And now, please enjoy his wonderful songs and visit his Channels!
