The nature of MANA
I’ve been holding this in for too long. After encountering MANA late last year, and witnessing the magic that was the live screening and performance of Sonic Cinema at The Labia, I’ve been itching to talk about it.
To talk about the ambience, the art, the feeling, the experience that it was. Walking in not knowing what to expect, I left not knowing what I had witnessed.
Who was this sonic enigma?
The poster for the Sonic Cinema screening event
Doing some research I realised that MANA was a familiar face. I had seen her on stage as a vocalist for Operation Khataza, and heard of her performing as a DJ under the name ANIMA at Word of Mouth events. Listening to her Soundcloud, I found three completely different tracks, all of which only left me more intrigued.
We walked into the Labia with no expectations and were honestly blown away by the immersive experience. A brief introduction to the project explained the concept of cell regeneration, and how every 7 years all the cells in your body would have rebuilt themselves anew.
Opening with a short film screening documenting the lives of a diverse group of friends living in Riebeek Kasteel, the band then went into their performance accompanied by live visuals and lighting. The ambience was ethereal, haunting. A visual of a crescent moon lined with silver light, which waxed as the narrative of the first track, ‘Tincture’, a song written with the intention to heal feelings of being small and/or trapped in the identity of a servient woman. MANA artfully composed the band, while skillfully using her own voice as an instrument in and of itself.
I had to learn more. I had to understand the inspiration, the vision behind it. I needed to learn the story of MANA.
Luke Verrezen on bass, shot by @jojosphotos
Who is MANA?
“MANA is a transdisciplinary artist based in Cape Town. Vocalist, composer, director, filmmaker, theatre maker, DJ - all in one! The name MANA actually came from little Mariana. I wasn’t able to say my full name, so I shortened it to “mana”. Later on I found out in Maori culture it refers to a sort of magic or supernatural power that one could have. So an object or a person can have mana. The term is also used in video games and in Portuguese it’s used as a term of endearment meaning sister - short for hermana. My work’s focus is on community, magical realism, the spiritual aspects of creation - it made sense in many ways.”
And who is Mariana? Can you tell us her story?
“Mariana was born in Johannesburg, but grew up in the tiny town of Riebeek Kasteel, about an hour from Cape Town, inland, between a quilt of farms, under a mountain. This quiet life gave me so much room for my imagination and nurtured a genuine love for nature and people. I spent a lot of time singing in the garden, playing with my beautiful siblings and making up games for us to play.”
“The first time I remember hearing live music, it drew me like a magnet. I was 7 or 8 and I was completely obsessed with the metallic sounds of the local steelband. It might be the only live music I was exposed to and I was so mesmerised.”
“The band is a community project called The Steelband Project run by David Wickham and aims to empower children and teens with no promising prospects. He’s been tenaciously running this project since 1997! My enthusiasm to join led him to try to start a band at my primary school, but I was the only one to sign up, so I joined the community band instead. Rehearsals were held in Esterhof, affectionately known as the “scheme”.
“Without the band, I would never have been allowed across the train tracks and welcomed into that space. The segregated legacy of Apartheid lives on there. My first experiences playing music with others was inherently also a way to connect to people of different backgrounds and attempt to heal society.”
How did you discover your love for music and sounds?
“It’s the undeniable love of my life! Since I was very small I would hear music in everything. We have home videos of me singing in the cot. It’s just always been in me.”
“We constantly had music playing in the house and it’s been my companion throughout my life. My parents would play Ali Farka Toure, Pink Floyd, Khaled, movie soundtracks, Sergio Mendes, Cesaria Evora - we had a huge variety of good music!”
“I have such a clear memory of pressing my ear right next to the speakers and feeling so much emotion listening to Tubular Bells by Mike Oldfield at around 7 years old. I listened to it so much my family begged me to stop. I’ve just been driven to share the joy music makes me feel.”
Matt Keswell on drums, shot by @jojosphotos
Being exposed to music at such an early age, why did you end up studying Theatre and Performance, instead of Music?
“I’ve long held the vision of creating immersive performances centered around music that gave the synesthetic, multi-sensual, transcendental experience I had when listening to it. I wanted to share that feeling.”
“I had done very well with drama at school and found a deep love for the art of performance and the curation of a time based art work. I believed theatre to be the space for the ultimate expression, since it’s visual, sonic, physical and story based. There’s so much space to express yourself in even the costumes, objects and lights. I love the idea of world building, and I’ve nurtured that love.”
“The classical approach to music that I studied at school never resonated strongly with me and felt quite removed from my experiences of writing and enjoying music. I could do it, but we just didn’t click. Later on I discovered jazz theory, which made way more sense to me, but the music alone didn’t feel like it could fully encapsulate all I have to express. What I chose to study has now allowed me to make more than just the music, but the world it lives in. Whether it’s through stage design, stories or directing a film.”
Can you tell us about the two art residencies that you did? What was the focus, and what did you learn through them?
“The first residency I did was in Basel, Switzerland with support from Pro Helvetia. My intention was to keep working on compositions and also perform with the Cape jazz legend Hilton Schilder at the Birds Eye Jazz Club. We did 4 shows in a row to audiences that absolutely love South African jazz! It was such an amazing experience to work with the musicians there, they are all mind blowing masters of their instruments and just lovely people.”
“It was such an honour to play with Hilton. I remember playing one of his compositions “Tone Nails” with the steelband when I was 9 years old and it was (and still is) one of my favorites to play! He is such a hero and I couldn’t believe the synchronicity of being able to join him on stage in one of the best jazz clubs in Europe. “
Vuyo Nkasawe on keys, shot by @jojosphotos
“I adventured and absorbed as much music as I could while in Basel, and through that got to meet amazing musicians and hear things I’d never heard before. Somehow in the span of a week I put together a band, rehearsed and got ready to record a full length album! I had mostly written the tracks for the project, which is called “Significance of Rainbows”, but some I had written the week before in the residency. The band is fire! We had Thiago Duarte on bass, Alessio Cazzetta on guitar, Jan Zeimetz on drums and Sam Barnett as recording engineer, producer and he even hopped on keys!”
“I kept being dumbfounded as I found out how this band I’ve miraculously found and put together have played with some of my heroes: David Binney of Knower, Flora Purim, Airto Moreira, Slum Village, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Lionel Loueke to name a few! On top of the recording we even managed to do some performances in Basel and Zurich. It was an amazing experience packed into a short time of just a few weeks. The scene in Europe is so connected and exciting. It’s so easy to move around and there’s always something happening. While I was there I even did a solo overnight hike in the Swiss Alps!”
“I actually collected a lot of voice memo recordings while I was there and put them together in a radio show on Lilies Radio which kind of gives you a sonic iPhone gallery experience of the place. Church organs, goat bells and chimes, crazy electronic live sets, piano and conversations.”
“The second residency was Uncool, connected to the Sun Ra Arkestra. It was in a tiny town in the middle of the Swiss Alps called Poschiavo. It was gorgeous! A fresh, clear blue river gushes through the middle of the town and you’re surrounded by immensely tall green mountains, eating Italian gelato cycling through tiny cobbled streets. A dream!”
“For this residency I was completely alone and I focused on writing and a praxis of recording that was centred around emotion, non-linear time and raw immersion rather than efficiency and cleanliness. It was profound to feel the spirits left behind in the studio space and see how it opened up and affected my music. I did a solo performance there using voice, piano, chimes, guitar and double bass for the first time! Very intimidating but ended up so beautiful. “
One thing that astounded me at the performance was how you conducted the band while performing at the same time. How did you develop the skill of using your voice as an instrument in that manner?
“Interesting! How perceptive of you. Partly I would say this has to do with the genre and musicians I play with. Matt, Luke, Vuyo and Khaya are all jazz trained musicians and this makes the sound quite instrument focused since they’re all so good!”
“There are moments when I use my voice as percussion or trumpet. I always said I was an instrumentalist trapped in a vocalist's body. I can play quite a few instruments, but not at the level that I would want to perform with them unless I really have to. I love instrumental music and this might contribute to weaving the voice into the music as I don’t believe this music is about the voice alone.”
“The conducting is because I lead the band, so they look to me for cues and direction in how the songs flow into each other. They are all so excellent and in tune, we can easily be in sync at the slightest signal.”
Mariana performing at the screening, shot by @jojosphotos
I love the concept of “sonic cinema”. From the short film, to the visuals, to the performance and even the lighting, each part contributed something to the beautiful experience. What goes into crafting something so immersive?
“Thank you! A lot. So much time and effort refining skills, planning, organising, rehearsing, editing, shooting, creating. It was the team each contributing their art form at the highest level.”
“I worked with the incredible transdisciplinary artist Kamil Adam Hassim who shot the film and co-directed the concert with me and I think our combined belief in the project is what allowed us to pull such an ambitious idea off. Without him it would not have been possible! The amazing Inka Kendzia was on visuals and lighting, the band was on point - it was a perfect night.”
Tell us more about the MANA project. You mentioned at the performance that you have an upcoming EP?
“Yes! Our debut EP ‘orb’ is coming out in late April 2025. The full EP is being released on Bandcamp and the two singles, “Dots Passing” and “Every Seven” on all platforms. I see “orb” as a bit of a collectors item. It’s a selection of songs from a live performance that was a more intimate version of what we created at the Labia Theatre.”
“The concept centered around the Moon as a character, embodying animism of the living natural world. It was such a memorable, magic night and the record captures that transportive feeling of the lunar story. I would listen to it in a carpeted lounge with golden lamp light at dusk on a Sunday evening.”
”MANA has been mainly a live performance project for a while, we’ve been going since about 2022, so I’m very excited to finally be releasing! And this is just the beginning. There’s still the full debut album that we’re working on releasing this year or next and many collaborations in the works.”
You are quite skilled in many art forms. Writing, directing, singing, composing, among others. How would you define your creativity? And in a more general sense, how would you define a Creative?
“I think my approach to creativity is quite boundless. I imagine my life being pulled by strings of light, and when I’m feeling the tingle of excitement and passion while I’m doing or imagine doing something, I’m holding on to the string and I allow it to lead me. I’m inspired by so much around me and I have a dangerous enthusiasm when it comes to trying something new.”
“I would say a Creative is someone who cannot help but colour their outer world with their inner world. To me, it’s not the recreation of a moodboard or a reference, but rather the urge to get what’s in you out.”
Lastly, what is your opinion of the current cultural landscape of the city, and how do you see it progressing?
“Amongst my artist friends, we’ve been speaking about it as a Renaissance. I’m always repping the local scene, even in my DJ sets. Exciting work is coming forward and artists are feeling more inspired to push themselves. There’s an exciting energy in the air. There’s something to see every week, talent is being sharpened, events are pushing boundaries. Our worlds are now virtual and this allows us to raise the standard on a global scale. Cape Town is small, but we are cooking.”
Shot by @jojosphotos
A renaissance is the exact right word for it. The level of talent that we are encountering, the creatives that have been changing the landscape of the city, it leaves us dumbfounded every time.
Ntsika and I left The Labia blown away that day. And that was just one of many encounters we have had, and are yet to have, with the creativity of the city, with it’s spirit, with it’s VERVE.
Pay attention. We are part of a moment, part of a movement. And we are blessed to be here to bear witness.
