- country:Germany
- artist posted by:Mr Bongo
Philani is a community-based child health and
nutrition organisation operating in the township
and squatter communities of Cape Town, South
Africa where poverty, unemployment and violence
are dominant. Established in 1980 on the initiative
of the women health-workers in Crossroads, it is an
independent non-profit making organisation. The
Philani Nutrition Project is committed to the
protection of the rights of every child to proper
nutrition and healthcare in communities where
malnourished children and destitute mothers are
the most vulnerable.
The Philani Mothers formed a choir in 1986 and
have recorded a collection of songs with health and
nutrition messages written and sung in Xhosa that
was originally released in 1998 on cassette entitled
‘The Philani Mothers Lyrical Health Messages’. The
purpose was to spread the Philani message within
the community and it’s just one of the many
projects initiated by the group to assist the women
and children of the townships.
The originals of each of these 10 songs have been
reworked for this album. The aim is to generate
awareness for the organisation and the problems
townships in South Africa face, as well as to raise
funds to enable Philani to continue its work and
improve health awareness within the community.
The Mothers is an album of exciting musical
collaborations extolling the values of care and
welfare developed by Peter Raeburn, a London-
based producer. He called on the talents of a
particular selection of musicians who created their
own productions.
The essence of Philani is communication;
communication between their centres and their
communities and now communication between ‘The
Mothers’ and its audience. These mixes assimilate
natural voices and urban production creating a
cross-cultural fusion of music, education and
awareness and a fresh take on the oral tradition.