The Tree of Music Video

If you are interested in obtaining a copy of the "Tree of Music" video, which was originally broadcast in 1992 on the US PBS Nature series and was instrumental in the founding of the ABCP, you may print an order form to order the video from ABCP. The Television Trust for the Environment (TVE) in the UK, to which the BBC has granted distribution rights for the film, has made copies available to the ABCP at a discounted price for fundraising purposes. You may read a synopsis of the film below. This video was previously unavailable for non-broadcast sale in industrialized countries and we are appreciative that the TVE and BBC-TV changed this policy so that it is now made available to all citizens of the world. The video is available from ABCP only in NTSC format, as used in the United States. We are offering the video for $40, approximately the same price as is it is offered on the TVE website, plus shipping and handling, with a portion of the proceeds going as a contribution to the ABCP. Contributors donating $200 or more to the ABCP may receive a copy of the video as a free premium if they so desire.

For those in countries other than the United States, the film is still available to individuals from TVE at this link. Price varies from £15-25, depending on country and intended use of the video. You should make sure that you request the video in the proper format for your video equipment, either the US standard called NTSC or the European standard called PAL.

ABCP acknowledges with gratitude this opportunity offered by TVE to share this film with our supporters because this project would not exist were it not for the informative and inspiring nature of this filmed narrative. Indeed, the ABCP exists in order to address some of the issues so movingly addressed by the "Tree of Music". We would likely never have known of Sebastian Chuwa's pioneering efforts to replant mpingo were it not for this video and so we are delighted to be able to share this experience with others and hope you will join our crusade to see that the "song of the Tree of Music does not go silent".

Mpingo–
The Tree That Makes Music

A GREEN UMBRELLA FILM FOR BBC/WNET 1992

52-minutes

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Now available in NTSC format for North American audiences for $40 + shipping and handling with a portion of the cost going to support the ABCP. ORDER HERE

At a musical instrument factory in France, skilled craftsmen work fragments of African blackwood into clarinets and flutes for the international market. But in the early 1980s, with more and more wood cracking under pressure on the lathes, investigations turn to the plains of Tanzania, and to the Mpingo tree - the source of the remarkable black heartwood. The Mpingo takes over 70 years to reach commercial maturity. Prized by musicians around the world, it is also much sought after by Tanzania’s Makonde woodcarvers whose sculptures play an important role in cultural life. Michael Gunton’s exquisite film links the instruments of today with the forests where people first made music, and shows how sustainable management of Mpingo plantations benefits local communities and international markets alike. (Source: TVE website)