Nduduzo Makhathini: Channelling Ancestral Memory at the Barbican

In Spring 2026, the Barbican plays host to a powerful convergence of sound, spirit and history, and at its heart is one of South Africa’s most vital musical voices: pianist, composer and healer Nduduzo Makhathini. As part of Abel Selaocoe’s Mohopolo/Ancestral Memory Weekend, Makhathini joins a stellar line-up of artists from South Africa in a profound act of remembrance and celebration, using music as a portal to ancestral memory and collective healing.

Running from Thursday 23 April to Sunday 26 April 2026, the Mohopolo/Ancestral Memory Weekend is curated by South African cellist, vocalist, and composer Abel Selaocoe as a living archive of sound.

For Makhathini—whose work has long explored spirituality, ritual, and the metaphysical power of improvisation, the weekend offers a rare opportunity to situate his music within a broader tapestry of South African voices. The weekend showcases the full breadth and complexity of South Africa’s musical landscape—precisely the ecosystem from which Makhathini draws so much of his inspiration. Audiences can expect a journey that moves fluidly between traditional Zulu music, Afro‑psychedelic future pop, Afrorave, amapiano, and contemporary jazz. Within this spectrum, Makhathini’s sound becomes both anchor and bridge: rooted in indigenous traditions and church music, yet unafraid to stretch into exploratory, avant‑garde territory.

Across the four days, the Barbican will host exclusive performances, premieres, and new collaborations that honour both heritage and innovation in South African music. For Makhathini, whose performances often feel like invocations, this environment amplifies his ongoing mission—to use the piano as a vessel for storytelling, remembrance and spiritual inquiry. Set alongside artists such as BCUC’s explosive Afro‑psychedelic energy, Toya Delazy’s boundary‑pushing Afrorave, and the deep rhythmic language of Gontse Makhene, his work becomes part of a larger conversation about identity, resistance, and the future of African sound.

In addition to the concerts and cross‑disciplinary performances, rhythm workshops linked to the music heard throughout the weekend will be announced at a later date. These sessions promise to open up the creative process, allowing audiences to engage more directly with the pulse and patterns that underpin the music—an especially fitting complement to Makhathini’s own emphasis on rhythm as a spiritual and communal force.

Mohopolo/Ancestral Memory Weekend is more than a festival; it is a gathering of lineages, a space where history is not simply recounted but re‑sounded. For Nduduzo Makhathini, it offers a stage perfectly aligned with his vision: to summon the past, honour the present and imagine new futures through sound. For audiences, it’s an invitation to witness South African music in all its depth, urgency, and transcendence—guided by one of its most compelling contemporary storytellers.