| Pieces of Africa | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 1992 | |||
| Genre | Contemporary classical | |||
| Label | Nonesuch (#79275) | |||
| Kronos Quartet chronology | ||||
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Pieces of Africa is a 1992 studio album by the Kronos Quartet, containing works commissioned by the quartet, written by seven African composers.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mai Nozipo" ("Mother Nozipo") | Dumisani Maraire (Shona, Zimbabwe) | 6:58 |
| 2. | "Saade" ("I'm Happy") | Hassan Hakmoun (Moroccan) | 3:23 |
| 3. | "Tilliboyo" ("Sunset") | Foday Musa Suso (Mandinka, Gambia) | 4:23 |
| 4. | "Ekitundu ekisooka" ("First Movement") | Justinian Tamusuza (Uganda) | 5:41 |
| 5. | "Escalay" ("Waterwheel") | Hamza El Din (Nubia, Egypt) | 12:20 |
| 6. | "Wawshishijay" ("Our Beginning") | Obo Addy (Ghana) | 4:56 |
| 7. | "White Man Sleeps, Mvt. I" (original, unrevised) | Kevin Volans (South Africa) | 4:02 |
| 8. | "White Man Sleeps, Mvt. II" | 5:05 | |
| 9. | "White Man Sleeps, Mvt. III" | 3:24 | |
| 10. | "White Man Sleeps, Mvt. IV" | 6:17 | |
| 11. | "White Man Sleeps, Mvt. V" | 3:22 | |
| 12. | "Kutambarara" ("Spreading") | Dumisani Maraire | 7:09 |
According to AllMusic the Quartet avoids cultural imperialism or appropriation and, "Pieces of Africa teems with beguiling melodies, making it one of this quartet's more accessible projects and also one of its best."[1] A review in Gramophone argues that only Escalay and White Man Sleeps are successful compositions for string quartet.[2]
