Khati

The lyrics of Khati are by Lesotho poet Bennett Khaketla (1913-2000) and describe a skipping rope made from the Cape tulip, a ubiquitous plant that goes by the Sesotho name, ‘teele’. The reed-like part is used to weave many things, in this case a skipping rope, and both the rope and the game associated with it are called ‘khathi’. The song has a lively and infectious melodic line, and is full of syncopations and contrapuntal movement. One can imagine it making a perfect action song for children, or a wonderful entertainment song at any concert. The ending is like a final ‘chorus’, with some voices humming and others singing. In order to help choirs learn this song, a free mp3 of the lyrics spoken by Mpho Ndebele is downloadable when the song is purchased along with a rehearsal mp3 of the song at a slow tempo.
Duration: 2’04”

The audio sample below was generated from the Sibelius file of the score and the sample on the right shows the first page of the score.