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Praise Poetry
The Ohio State University
Media from the Project
Access video clips and digital stills from the African Praise Poetry research
project and the WOSU-TV34 special.
To gather this material a team of Ohio State University faculty and staff traveled to South Africa and Lesotho, hired local film crews, and went to a variety of locations to record several important historical, praise poetry performances.
Because so much of the meaning in these performances is communicated by what surrounds the poet, each performance was filmed from three different camera angles: one focusing on the entire scene, one focusing on the performer, and one following performer/audience interaction. "Roaming" still and video cameras were also on hand to capture "behind-the-scenes" footage and images of the countryside.
Browse the page below to view some of the rich media gathered in the field by Ohio State University researchers and see some excerpts from the WOSU-TV34 Praise Poetry special.
One of the premiere Zulu Praise Poets, known as an Imbongi in Zulu, recites the Praises of Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi at the King Shaka Day celebrations in Kwa-Zulu Natal, held in honor of the famous African King and founder of the Zulu Nation.
The Mampoi High School choir sings traditional Basotho songs to open a celebration of their culture and heritage centered around Basotho Praise Poetry. The celebration was held at the Basotho Cultural Village, high up in the Drakensberg Mountain range in the Republic of South Africa.
World Media and Culture Center | African American & African Studies
Ohio State University, all rights reserved 2002
