Ndandihleli (Xhosa folk song adapted for the struggle against HIV​/​AIDS)

from Raising the Bar: Traditional South African Choral Music I by Created by Mollie Stone & Patty Cuyler

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about

As is the case with many folk songs, South Africans don’t know who wrote this particular song or even when it first was sung. The earliest versions of Ndandihleli may have been sung by those whose husbands, fathers and brothers were forced to work as migrant laborers in the mines. Or it might have been sung by the miners themselves about those left behind in the rural areas. We do know that during apartheid South Africans sang Ndandihleli about their loved ones who were in prison or in exile, or who had died at the hands of the government.

Over the past decade South Africans have further adapted Ndandihleli for the struggle against HIV. They sing it to mourn those who have died of AIDS, and to provide comfort and support to those who have lost loved ones in the epidemic. People also sing it to remind the community that HIV is a problem that affects everyone. A friend once said, “we sing these songs to those we love to urge them to be safe so that we won’t have to sing this song about them.” We also see young choirs perform Ndandihleli in school choirs and at choral competitions where it is often mandated that each choir sing at least one HIV/AIDS-related song.

It is incredibly moving to watch an all-HIV-positive choir sing this song, with individual voices blended in beautiful harmony to raise awareness about prevention, and to try to break lingering social stigmas against those with the virus. To see these singers, who are normally perceived as ill and dying, dancing with strength and dignity, is truly powerful. Likewise, watching AIDS orphan choirs sing this song gives us hope for the future, as those made most vulnerable by the epidemic use their voices to provide comfort and support to each other and to their community.

lyrics

I am sitting in the dark
I am thinking
of my love
I miss my love
I miss my sweetie
I miss my darling
My love

I am dying of HIV

credits

from Raising the Bar: Traditional South African Choral Music I, released April 15, 2015

license

all rights reserved

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