worship in the gateway to west africa

the setting

HSI received an invitation to do a recording in the West African nation of Senegal, specifically in the capital Dakar.
Senegal is the western most tip of Africa, with a population of 9.8 million -- over 90% are Muslim. Wolof is the major language group out of 37 languages and is that which is mostly associated with the Muslim population. It is also the commercial language of Senegal, although French has become the major common language due to the country being a French province for so long. Senegal is now independent, having a democratic government, and is considered the most stable of the African countries. Its form of Islam is moderate and peaceful. The church is free to meet publicly and to own its own buildings.

dakar

The capital city of Dakar contains the major port into West Africa, and is considered the "Gateway to West Africa". Students come here from many countries and thus it has become a very strategic mission post with many Christian mission agencies based here. Just off the coast of Dakar is the Isle of Goree, well known for its historic slave houses linked to the slave trade. We visited this island and re-lived the horrors that it represents. Over 20 million Africans were traded through here and an estimated 50% did not survive the 3-month voyage to the Americas. We looked out the doorway to the ocean through which these people walked, never again to return. It is appropriately named the "door of no return". As I was standing near the platform from where these people were sold into slavery, I looked out over the Atlantic Ocean westward towards Brazil where last July I stood at the receiving end of this same trade. There, too, people were sold, this time to new owners in Brazil. It is the slave trade in Brazil that has caused its endemic poverty, which so plagues the country today.

the church

The church in Senegal is small but growing. In 1990, there were 2,000 evangelical believers. Today there are over 8,000. Among the Wolof peoples, however, there are only 80 believers.

recording projects

a man and his kora

The kora is an indigenous instrument unique to Senegal and the Gambia. It is an African harp-lute, a 21-stringed instrument. Alain (not his real name) is a 36-year-old believer raised and residing in Dakar. He is a professional musician and is very skilled on this instrument. He has composed original Christian songs and uses the kora to accompany his singing. He predominantly writes lyrics in French since he wants to reach as broad an audience as possible, but four of the ten songs were also recorded with Wolof lyrics with hopes of specifically reaching the Wolof people. The songs are in contemporary, popular styles of Senegal. It was a joy to experience the humble, yet powerful spirit of this young man as he offered his wonderful gift to the Lord and to us.

congolese songs

A large church in Dakar offered their facility for our use. They have literally built a recording studio into their building and attract students from all over West Africa. Guilluame (not his real name), a student from the Congo, has formed four groups made up of students from his country. We had the great delight of recording about an hour of this music. The recording includes the following:
§ Congolese traditional music: About 15 students sang and danced with their indigenous drums and instruments for about 20 minutes. We simply turned on the recorder and captured their incredible praise to the Lord.
§ Congolese mixed ensemble: Two wonderful songs by this 5-person group. Tremendous harmonies accompanied by electric piano.
§ Congolese men’s quartet: The three songs were accompanied by acoustic guitar and accordion. I cannot even begin to tell you the music, harmonies, and heart that poured out of these voices.

wolof songs

Tahira (not her real name), one of the 80 believers of the Wolof peoples, delighted us each day with a traditional meal for lunch. She has been cast out of her Muslim family for the sake of her faith in Jesus. During our conversations, it was mentioned that she has composed a number of Christian Wolof songs. The Lord has consistently awakened her in the middle of the night with lyrics and tunes. She has responded by faithfully getting out of bed and writing them down. One day, after our lunch together, we invited her into the studio to sing some of these songs. Accompanied only by her hands giving rhythm on her legs, she offered up seven of these songs in worship to the Lord. What a delight!

Listen to Wolof song.

serer-sine songs

The last weekend in Senegal the team traveled to a rural village, three hours southeast of Dakar. We recorded 18 original Christian songs composed recently in a song-writing workshop. The recording will be disseminated through the churches of this region and aired by radio. With great joy we captured their voices accompanied by indigenous drums and guitar.

Listen to Sere-Sine song.

not without difficulties

This project did not disappoint us with a lack of difficulties. We have learned that with each project, regardless of country or situation, there is always the unexpected that occurs. It seems that no matter how much care is given to initial planning and preparation, surprises always surface. These surprises can be related to a variety of problems, facility usage, logistics of peoples and places, scheduling conflicts, etc. In Senegal, it was the unexpected breakdown of equipment.

After the first two days of very successful recording, we began to experience the loss of data and files on the computer. We would open up a previously recorded song file and find missing audio, or the inability to even re-open the file. Literally, for three straight days and all-night sessions we battled to be able to continue, let alone finish, the project. File transfers, re-construction of audio, experimenting with borrowed computers, phone calls back to tech support in the USA, etc. occupied our time for seventy-two non-stop hours as we tried to piece together equipment and files. What a blessing to have a team who can share the load of these grueling hours. Trusting on previous experiences, we continued to commit the project to the Lord, trusting Him to be the God who knows no surprises while we awaited His redeeming work to prevail. The Congolese student mentioned above was our silent partner for hours (we did not speak a common language) as he fervently prayed during these times while intently watching the screen as data was being manipulated.

On the fifth night it was only fitting that, during the recording of his Congolese groups, heaven invaded the studio, riding in on their wonderful and powerful worship. God honored his faithful intercession by using his worship to break through the darkness that had crippled the project. From that point on the recording was glitch-free. The result was that we not only completed the primary recording but also were blessed with the incredible Congolese worship recording as well as the Wolof songs. God is never surprised and, if trusted, has a way of bringing out far more than our human plans can ever conceive. It is only to our human minds that surprises occur and expectations fail. We once again experienced God doing much more than we could have ever dreamed simply by trusting His awesome power to resurrect and redeem right out of the midst of these difficulties and surprises.

Future Projects

We are tentatively planning on a return trip in 2006 for a second project. The musicians in the host church would love to be the foundation of another compilation worship recording. We would once again use their church's facility, this time to record various groups and choirs from their church, as well as invite musicians and groups from surrounding churches to record a few tracks each. This would allow for a broad range of Senegalese worship expressions to be represented.

long-range visioning

Since the church already has a built-in studio there was great interest expressed in future partnerships toward its development and equipping. The studio is mostly inactive now due to the lack of quality equipment. A local brother has some entry-level recording software, computers, and microphones -- a number of recordings have already been completed with its use. However, as we talked and dreamed together, it was sensed by all of us that this studio could be a strategic launching point for many worship projects to reach all of Senegal. It seems best for now, however, to concentrate on several individual and yearly projects until the relational and structural elements can be built to sufficiently support the ongoing stability and endurance of such a studio. Nonetheless, we are stirred to pray toward the eventual installation of state-of-the-art studio equipment, and ongoing training in its use.