MPHO AND UVIMBA BANDBACKGROUND HISTORY

ALBUM COVERCONTACT : DAVID SHUPING

I’LLE DE FRANCE EMAIL :

DVDSHUPING@YAHOO.COM

ROBBEN ISLANDCELL : 0822587518

In 1993, Mpho Motheane and David Shuping who is a pianist and Band Leader came together to form a project called Mpho and Friends which had only three members. And felt that the project needed more sounds and our vision was to have a sound that is unique and had a reach texture of our own traditional and as well as afro fusion elements in it, hence we called ourselves Mpho and Uvimba. David Shuping and Mpho Motheane-Shuping started inviting and working with more Musicians and we grew to an 8 piece Band.    

  HIGHLIGHTS  

Mpho and Uvimba performed in and around Cape Town, in Festivals like the, Concert in the Park ,Jazzathon which was organized by JCQ Productions, the North Sea Jazz Festival (Cape Town International Festival),Portnet Festival in Saldanha and George and also in Johannesburg at Vosloorus umcimbi we Viceroy. The Band did lots of Private and Government Functions. Locally you will find the Band performing at Marcos African Place and also used to perform at the now defunct Green Dolphin Restaurant and Manenberg jazz cafés respectively. 

In 1998 a Danish radio station came to South Africa to record some local Artist in Cape Town and Johannesburg .They made 25 copies of the recordings which were given to us because we were the best group out of all the groups they recorded, and the music was not for commercial purposes.

In 1999 we recorded a CD under the title Images of Africa volume 3 which was a compilation and targeted tourists.  

In 2002 the Band won the Old Mutual Jazz encounters competition in the African category in the Western Cape region.  Mpho and Uvimba were honored with an invitation to go and tour Japan (Tokyo, Hammmamatsu and Takamatsu) with World renowned saxophonist and sopranino Sadao Watanabe in 2004. We got standing ovation and the Ambassador Mr Ben Ngubane forwarded us with another invitation in 2005 to come and perform at the World Expo in Nagoya, Aichi Japan. Mpho and Uvimba performed at the 10th Anniversary of the South African democracy in Holland with the invitation of the then Foreign Affairs Minister Mrs Nkosazana-Dlamini Zuma in 2004.   

 At the beginning of 2006 Mpho was invited by the First lady Mrs Mbeki to perform for women’s organization in Boksburg at a private function in Birchwood Hotel and also at the opening of Parliament for the Minister’s spouses. In April we had a tour of the Carrebean (Santo Domingo and Cuba). We performed in Theatres, clubs and Community halls and everywhere we performed we received standing ovation.     

The highlights for 2007 are the performances that we did for 2010 World cup bid Base camp launch and also the CAF Awards which took place at the CAPE TOWN INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION CENTRE. S.S. MENDI gig which was organized by the Department of Arts and Culture which took place at the Grand Parade. Mpho and David Shuping worked on a CD entitled SABELA, which we released in December 2007.  2008 Highlights was the tour of Germany on the 25th of May 2008 with the invitation of Africa Festival in Wurzburg, Germany. 

In 2009 Mpho and Uvimba went to Munich Germany to perform for the MUSIC FOR GOALS concert for tolerance, integration, respect and racism Festival.  In 2010 we travelled to Germany for a private gig during the World cup season. We kicked off 2011 with the USA tour of Los Angeles, Carlifonia’s PAN AFRICAN FILM FESTIVAL show alongside Jonathan Butler and at UCLA (University of California) and we ran some workshops with Bongani Sotshonondo chromatic marimba player.  This year 2013 we were invited in France’s Ille de France Festival which took place from the 6th to the 9th of September 2013.

Mpho and Uvimba Band has shared stage with the likes of: 

Stimela Anjelique KidjoCheik LoHugh MasekelaYosou OndouSimphiwe DanaSiphokaziThe Ngcukana BrothersNcediwe Mdunyelwa Sadao WatanabeMahotella QueensHugh MasekelaJonathan Butler  

Mpho and uvimba recorded projects:  A single- IhobeCompilation- Mpho and Uvimba Band/Images of Africa volume 3Full album- SabelaRevival (The best of Mpho)  Documentaries/ Promotions/theme Songs FOOTPRINTS – Julia Landau documentary filmsa) Bessie Headb) Yoga SAB promotion of their product around Western CapeJive cool Drink and City Park’s Theme song and workshops