Balisa
September 2, 2018‘Balisa’ was published in Morija, Lesotho in 1955 as song No. 2 of 29 songs by various composers in Hosanna: Lipina tsa Kereke (Hosanna: Church Songs), a collection of songs...Kiri ‘a Tšoana
September 2, 2018...that follow them. ‘Kiri ‘a Tšoana’ reminds us of the thirstiness of a country where subsistence farmers depend for their livelihood on good annual summer rains. ‘Let it rain! Bring...Koli ea Malla
September 2, 2018...bereavement, however, but about sorrow in a more generalised sense. They refer to the folk tale of Tselane and to ‘Limo’, meaning ‘Cannibal’ – with a capital C – which...Le Lekaakang
September 2, 2018‘Le Lekaakang’ follows naturally from the previous two songs Mohapeloa wrote in his 3rd songbook, ‘’Mōpi oa Lefatše’ and ‘Lefatše le Letle’. All three serve to remind us of the...Leeba
September 2, 2018...wonderful country, I can write a lot about it’” (Nts’iuoa Mohapeloa, Author’s Interview, 28 Sep. 2006). Dove calls are the most common natural sounds in Africa, and in Lesotho there...Lefatše le Letle
September 2, 2018‘Lefatše le Letle’ praises the land made by God; and ‘the land’ here is not the earthly world but heaven, a place one enters after death. Together with ‘’Mōpi oa...Lesotho ’M’a Basotho
September 2, 2018...1966. The narrator speaks from the perspective of youth, whose country is depicted as their mother, and Mohapeloa’s dedication (‘khethelo’) at the beginning of the book is, “To the young...Lesotho
September 2, 2018...troops had fought alongside the Allies in World War II the ‘Lesotho’ longed for in the song is an independent homeland of the future. As the composer’s brother, historian J.M....daniel’s dream
September 1, 2022...the sequence of chords that forms the ‘basic tune’ of daniel’s dream was used – in a recording of more than 13 minutes it doesn’t appear until 3’40”. The friend...Lesotho, Tsiketsi sa Tlotla ea Afrika
September 2, 2018...the new national anthem of Lesotho, but for some strange reason it did not replace the colonial anthem, ‘Lesotho Fatše La Rōna’ (Our Country Lesotho), which remains Lesotho’s national anthem....
martino on the rocks
November 17, 2022...This is by no means unfinished; in fact, it is a perfect little 10-bar piece for piano, synth, guitar and drums, and a delightful spoof on piano rag style, with...
three pieces for flute and piano on b-a-c-h
December 22, 2022...autograph score it is THREE PIECES FOR FLUTE AND PIANO ON B-A-C-H. Knowing Reddy’s later dislike of capitals letters, ACE’s title is three pieces for flute and piano on b-a-c-h....Liba-seholo (N.T.T.C.)
September 2, 2018Mohapeloa completed ‘Liba-seholo (N.T.T.C.)’ in 1975, publishing it in Cape Town in 1976 as song No. 13 of 25 in Meluluetsa ea Ntšetso-pele le Bosechaba Lesotho (Anthems for the Development...Likano Tsa Bacha
September 2, 2018...the Development of the Lesotho Nation). It continues the theme of song No. 1 ijn the 1976 collection, ‘Lesotho ‘M’a Basotho’ (Lesotho, Mother of the Basotho), in which the country’s...
african dance for hike
September 1, 2022...2001 he wrote a sequel encompassing more friends, friends suite: a touch of clazz II. ‘Hike’ was Reddy’s name for his long-time partner, Heike Asmuss. He did not notate most...Lithallera
September 2, 2018...distinction between ‘lithallere’ and ‘meloli’ (pronounced ‘melodi’) is one between harmonized music for choir – ‘choral song’ or as it is translated here, ‘fine song’ – and folksong or sounds...
we miss you
August 26, 2022...surviving handwritten facsimile sources for his Channel 18 pieces are sketchy, like this one, which consists only of a lead sheet (shown on the right) and a chord sketch. ...Mafeteng
September 2, 2018‘Mafeteng’, a straightforward school song celebrating a place in Lesotho, was first published in 1939. Mohapeloa wrote several songs about place: other ones being ‘Morija’, ‘Maseru’, ‘TY (Teyateyaneng)’, ‘Leribe’, and...Mahlo a Lefatše
September 2, 2018...to 1985.) ‘Mahlo a lefatše’ literally means ‘the eyes of the world’: ‘selemo sa basali’ literally means ‘women’s year’. Mohapeloa himself gave the English translation ‘Women’s Year’ as his subtitle,...
forbidden wedding (for daniel)
September 1, 2022...piano piece later in Reddy’s output called forbidden wedding II, which has nothing to do with this forbidden wedding.) The image is one of Reddy’s computer graphic designs. ...
Methaka, Emang (1936 recording)
September 15, 2019...but written for SAATB as Methaka, Emang, it tells of a commonplace event in Lesotho: farewells between young people who are going off to seek work and friends who are...Mokhotlong
September 2, 2018...the Maloti (also called Maluti or Drakensberg) mountains. The word ‘mokhotlong’ itself has nothing to do with mountains, deriving from the Sesotho name for the southern bald ibis (Geronticus calvus)....’Mutlanyana (1936 recording)
September 15, 2019’Mutlanyana was the first song Mohapeloa composed, some time in late 1929, and the score was published for SATB in his first songbook, in 1935. The Morija Training College Male...Morija
September 2, 2018Morija was one of the first Christian (Evangelical Lutheran) missions in Lesotho, established by the Paris Evangelical Missionary Society (PEMS) in 1833, becoming a major regional centre for schools, teacher...Moshanyana, Se Llele ho Lisa
September 2, 2018Mohapeloa first published ‘Moshanyana, Se Llele ho Lisa’ in Meloli le Lithallere tsa Afrika ka J.P. Mohapeloa: Buka ea Bobeli (African Songs and Extemporary Harmonizations by J.P. Mohapeloa: Book II)...
