Bakisimba dance inspired by the drunkard’s quick steps

The rhythmic sound of the drums is loud on stage but alluring to the ear. Backstage, four agile boys and seven girls in their early teens are readying themselves for their act before a mammoth crowd at Ekiggunda music fete, one of Uganda’s biggest music shows annually held in Kampala, at Nakivubo Stadium.

There is excitement as the teenagers skillfully shake their waists to the rhythm of the Ganda dance driven by drums. The crowd is clapping and cheering.
When the emcee finally invites them on stage, they make their grand entry; displaying good choreography as they dance vigorously and their movements visible through their attire, of made of cotton and sisal.

There is a sequence they follow which can be seen through the movement of both their feet as they uniformly move them to the front, stepping with their front toes, and back, on their ankles. They will occasionally move to the sides but this is mostly using their waists.

Godfrey Lubuulwa, band leader of Baxmba Waves which gets its inspiration and name from the royal Bakisimba dance explains that the Bakisimba dance emphasises waist movements and intricate footwork.

He says, “Dancers wear animal skins around their waists to exaggerate these movements, while ankle bells are attached to emphasise the foot work.”
Baxmba Waves rides on this royal dance and much more, billed as a post-modern multicultural fusion band based in Kampala.
“As a band, we get our rhythms and sounds from Bakisimba,” Lubuulwa adds.

On stage, the hands of the young performers follow the homogenous pattern, and surprisingly the coordination is nothing that seems challenging to them, it is a beautiful and memorable experience.
Minutes into the captivating performance threads of sweat begin running down their smiley faces as the crowd cheers them on with clapping that follows the beats of the drum. One girl catches my eye. She is the leader and the crowd cannot get enough of her. Sweaty faces clap and practically yell in excitement every time she steps forward to do her solo act, of very energetic dance

That is the power that comes with dancing Bakisimba-muwogola, one of Buganda’s oldest traditional dances, with a rich historical connotation. To explain this, one of the people I talk to is the multi-instrumentalist Albert Bisaso Ssempeke.
He notes that Bakisimba is not just a dance but more importantly a beat that was developed into drum beats during the reign of Sekabaka (former king) Ssuuna the second, of Buganda Kingdom.

“Kabaka Ssuuna II ruled during the 18th century and one time he went out to visit in one of his counties where his subjects were waiting to meet him. One of the surprises they had prepared was a drink, a mixture of sweet banana (embidde) and millet (omuwemba),” he recounts a history that was told to him by his father, a fallen royal musician to the Kabaka of Buganda, Mutesa II.

He was served the drink in calabash locally known as endeku as they were no fine glasses like is the case today. He liked the taste of the brew, so he drunk on and on and naturally, got drunk.

But as Herman Ssewanyana, leader of Percussion Discussion Africa explains, it was unheard of for one to say the Kabaka had got drunk. So when the Kabaka got drunk he said, abakisimba be baguwomya, translated to mean those who planted the sweet banana are the reason the brew tastes this good. So from his words came the rhythm accompanies to the Bakisimba dance and drums for as the Kabaka left, each of his steps was recounted by his words, abakisimba be baguwomya, and when you keenly listen to the drum arrangement, you will hear just that.

“As the subjects applauded the Kabaka, his entertainer, who he moved with wherever he went, took note and decided to play drums to this sequence. That is how Bakisimba came about,” Bisaso narrates.
These were the abadongo, abankondele, abalere, among others who were named according to the instruments they played.

The drum beats accompany the drums
Ssewanyana explains that the main drum beaten for Bakisimba is called embuutu, one of the big drums.

“The other drums are used to accompany the main drum. That is the namunjoloba and engalabi come in, for accompaniment,” the lead drummer with veteran band, Afrigo Band, explains.
Bakisimba is a six-by-eight multi -rhythm, featuring a dialogue and discussion of instruments both melodic and percussive.
“Melodies are sung and played on top of this strong rhythm and later a dance. It is one of the most popular and recognised rhythms and dances in Uganda. It is a mid-tempo groove played on almost every celebrated activity,” Lubuulwa explains.

When you keenly listen to the beat of these drums in isolation of one another you will realise the embuutu provides bass while the namunjoloba is a solo drum that provides a bit of alto and so for the engalabi, the single-skin cylindrical drum that is most pronounced.

The sequence of the dance of Bakisimba can be seen during the planting process of bananas where one will dig a hole, plant the banana or matooke stem then cover it with soil. They will then make sure the stem is held firmly in the soil so use the front toes and then the ankles to solidify the soil.
Back to the stage, the dance is rhythmically strong in beat and the effect is infectious to the crowd who are seen to be trying out dance, tying their jackets or shirts around their waists to dance to the drums.

You bet the next time you hear the Bakisimba drums beat you will find yourself dancing to this traditional dance.

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