Foggy Notion: Desire Marea

Desire Marea's voice is a culmination of many South African voices; a mouthpiece for a chorus of spirits and entities. His second album On the Romance of Being is steeped in the communal, ceremonial and healing qualities of music.

For the past two years, the Amandawe-based artist:in has been training to become a sangoma, a traditional Nguni spiritual healer. Becoming a sangoma is not a profession, you have to be called by the spirit. It is about one's own spirit dying and becoming a vessel for others. This connection to the spirits and ancestors is one that embraces the knowledge of the universe and balances spiritual imbalances on the living plane.
"In my work as a sangoma, I use ancient songs and drum sequences to invoke the spirits that live within me to enter a trance state. In my work as a musician:in, I heal people through music. It is a different kind of medicine, but one where I often have to channel different spirits, different truths and the essence of light.