Her eyes tell life stories while melodies that lull the soul flow from her mouth and invite a journey through time. Past and present communicate through the voice of a woman who sang Mozambique wherever she went. Chude Mondlane is a blend of arts and “worlds”. Dance and music come together in a woman who has left her mark on great stages around the planet.
She welcomed us into her “art corner”, the place where part of her musical journey lies documented. In her home, the artist has sought to set aside a space to let art speak… Albums, photos, videos and memories accompanied our conversation with this Mozambican woman artist.
The daughter of Eduardo Mondlane, the first President of the Mozambique Liberation Front (FRELIMO), and of the American Janet Mondlane, Chude had a great deal of contact with music in childhood. Her mother “worked magic” with some instruments, such as the violin and piano. “I grew up in Dar es Salaam, and at the time we had no television or internet. Music was the centre of our family’s entertainment. On journeys we sang as a family and it was great fun,” Chude told us. The “bug for the stage”, as she herself calls the love she feels for public performance, arose at the age of 9. At school in Dar es Salaam, she gave her first public dance performance with her school group: “I remember it as if it were yesterday. My parents went to see the show. That applause, being in front of the audience, performing… all of it awakened in me a passion for the stage.”
An artist without borders
After her father’s assassination, Chude went to study in Philadelphia, in the USA, at a modern dance academy, between the ages of 12 and 13. She was taught by professionals who shared the stage with great names of modern dance, such as Isadora Duncan and Martha Graham. “We studied music, arts, art history and singing. They were part of our curriculum. We travelled around the USA to perform,” she added. She also spent time in the former Soviet Union, and at 13 she won a scholarship to study classical ballet in that country. After the experience in the Soviet Union, where she stayed until she was 16, she went to Kazakhstan. Meanwhile the winds of independence were blowing in Mozambique, and Chude Mondlane, on the other side of the world, could not contain herself at the news of liberation, thinking only of returning to her country. “When I heard about independence, I abandoned my studies. I passed through Tanzania on my way to Mozambique to experience it first-hand. It was the first time I had lived in the country,” said the artist. Shortly after independence, with the country weakened by the destruction of infrastructure and a shortage of skilled staff, Chude taught dance at a school for children with disabilities.
The artist wanted to explore her art further and study it better, so she went to Switzerland, where her maternal grandfather lived. At the time, the music that lived inside her was asking to be sung. Her rendition of Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” at a hotel in Switzerland won her a place as vocalist in a band that played there, and that is how, at 19, Chude began to sing professionally.
A Mozambican among the great names of world music
The 1980s are unforgettable for Chude Mondlane, who keeps memories from them that time cannot erase. Such is the case with the festival she took part in in Japan, where the legendary Stevie Wonder was present. She won silver at the Korea International Music Festival in 1980, and won the Tokyo International Music Festival in 1981. Albums and singles were also part of this period. She worked with Marcus Miller, a leading name in world jazz, Roberta Flack, the pianist Abdullah Ibrahim and Hugh Masekela. She also collaborated with national artists from the traditional and urban music scenes. Chude Mondlane was named Artist of the Year by Rádio Moçambique in 1999.
A woman for the cause of women
A graduate in cultural anthropology and African studies, the 63-year-old singer, songwriter, performer and music producer has in recent times devoted herself to her production company, Nkateko Productions, a music production company whose work has already borne fruit, such as the “Xingomane Festival”, held in Gaza to celebrate traditional dance groups and create experiences for local artists in the region. The project called “The Acoustic Sessions” is another initiative in the music field linked to the artistic promotion of women. Created in 2019, it is based on the audiovisual production and recording of musical numbers with the mission of creating content by women artists for distribution on digital platforms and social media. Each artist presents four (4) original songs and performs live. “The intention is to give space to women artists. We make recordings and put them on digital platforms such as YouTube, Amazon and Spotify, for distribution,” said Mondlane. Chude has the cause of women in her veins and therefore feels called to fight, through what she knows best how to do, for the well-being of Mozambican women. The covid situation in 2020 forced “The Acoustic Sessions” initiative to stop, but Chude Mondlane believes that, with a closer look at national culture and at initiatives for its development, all obstacles can be overcome. “We have an enormous cultural wealth. There is still a lot to do so that it is not lost. There is a need to invest more in culture, to create ways for culture-related projects not to die.”
