International Library of African Music, Music library in Makhanda, South Africa
The International Library of African Music is a research library at Rhodes University in Makhanda, South Africa, holding recordings, manuscripts, and publications on music from across the African continent. Its holdings are among the largest of their kind in the world, covering both original field recordings and scholarly works.
The library was founded in 1954 by ethnomusicologist Hugh Tracey, with support from the Nuffield Foundation and the South African Department of Education. Over the following decades, it grew into one of the most important archives for African music on the continent.
The library holds field recordings of instruments like the mbira from Zimbabwe and Mozambique, and the Timbila marimba of the Chopi people, all still played today. A visit brings you close to sounds that remain part of daily life in their home regions.
The library is located on the Rhodes University campus in Makhanda and is primarily open to researchers and students. It is worth contacting the library in advance, as access to certain parts of the collection may require an appointment.
The institution publishes the African Music Society Journal and has partnered with Smithsonian Folkways Recordings to make parts of the collection available online. This means that listeners anywhere in the world can access recordings that would otherwise be very hard to find.
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