Mwesa Isaiah Mapoma is one of

Zambia Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...

's best-known

ethnomusicologist Ethnomusicology is the multidisciplinary study of music in its cultural context. The discipline investigates social, cognitive, biological, comparative, and other dimensions. Ethnomusicologists study music as a reflection of culture and investiga ...

s and is considered by many as a pioneer in the field of African ethnomusicology. He was born in Kombaniya village in Mansa on November 2, 1936, and died on November 16, 2020. A graduate of Zambia's famed Munali Boy's Secondary School, and

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

in London, Dr. Mapoma received his Doctorate in Music from the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

(UCLA). His dissertation research focused on the royal musicians of the

Bemba people The Bemba belong to a large group of Bantu peoples, primarily in the Northern Province, Zambia, Northern, Luapula Province, Luapula, Muchinga Province, Muchinga and the northern Central Province, Zambia, Central Province of Zambia. The Bemba e ...

in Zambia's

Luapula The Luapula River is a north-flowing river of central Africa, within the Congo River watershed. It rises in the wetlands of Lake Bangweulu (Zambia), which are fed by the Chambeshi River. The Luapula flows west then north, marking the border betw ...

Province. His field recordings are preserved in the

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

ethnomusicology archive. Dr. Mapoma is remembered as tireless champion of African arts, culture, music and tradition.

External links

Ethnomusicologists UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Zambian academics {{ethnomusicologist-stub

Further reading

External links