Set for sounds out of Africa

Jane Emerick
A Surf Coast musician will share the “ancient traditions” of Zimbabwe’s Shona people at a free workshop in Torquay this weekend.
Steven Wilkinson said he would show participants how to play the mbria, an instrument he had perfected playing over the past 15 years.
Mr Wilkinson said the sound from the mbria was a cross between a xylophone and a harp.
“The mbria has spatula keys made out of mild steel rod or wire bound to a solid timber sound board mounted inside a large gourd resonator. You strike it with your thumb and right forefinger,” he explained.
“It’s used in ancestry worship ceremonies and has a very dense and complex sound.
“There are a lot of subtly and different voices that come through with the music.”
The workshop is open to the public from 2pm to 3pm at Torquay’s Spring Creek Community House, in Price Street, tomorrow.