There’s an unlikely community of musicians in the Northwest, a group intent on studying, performing and preserving the music of a culture thousands of miles away. Mbira, marimba, hosho — music that originates from Zimbabwe — has migrated to Eugene, Oregon. Because of a few motivated individuals, a center called the Kutsinhira Cultural Arts Center was opened to provide musical instruction and sponsor a musician-in-residence program that brings Zimbabwean master musicians to Eugene to spread their musical culture.

“Making Music, Building Bridges” tells the story of how this center and this community came to be, while exploring the potential for music to build alliances across distance and inspire social change.

ELAINE VRADENBURGH holds a B.A. in Cultural and Community Studies from The Evergreen State College and an M.S. in Folklore from the University of Oregon.  She currently lives in Olympia, Washington where she works at the Olympia Film Society and as an independent folklorist.

Click here for more information about the full-length 50-minute version of this documentary.