Museum of Namibian Music

The Museum of Namibian Music was officially opened by Honourable Faustina Caley, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture on the 18th March 2021. The launch featured speeches from Her Excellency Ambassador Sinikka Antila the Ambassador of the Delegation of the European Union to Namibia and different stakeholders in the project, as well as performances from KP Illest, Rose BLVC and the Waapandula Cultural Group. The Museum of Namibian Music is located next to the regional library in the heart of Omuthiya in Oshikoto Region. 

The working group that made the development of the museum possible, consisted of stakeholders in the form of musicians across all cultures, genres and demographics, archivists, culture officers from the Directorate of Heritage and Culture Programs, music lecturers from COTA, UNAM and APC, tourism and intellectual property experts from the Ministry of Environment and Tourism and NASCAM, museum experts, composers and musicologists.

Music is all about creating harmony.   When we sing together and dance together, our voices and bodies connect and communicate. Music can help us express our feelings – love, anger, happiness, sadness.  Whether we are performers or listeners music matters to us all. 

The Museum of Namibian Music (MUNAMU) creates a space where we can celebrate our musical heritage and the musical diversity that we have in our country. Our definition of Namibian music includes all music made by Namibians, but the museum gives special recognition to the cultural traditions that provide our musical roots. 

There are many stories to be told and we believe that MUNAMU should be a “living” museum where performances can take place and displays are regularly changed and updated. MUNAMU also provides a space where we can collect and preserve our musical history. 

The Museum Development as a Tool for Strengthening Cultural Rights in Namibia project was implemented by the Museums Association of Namibia in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture in the Republic of Namibia. This project is funded by the European Union.

Read more about the project and download the free museum and mobile exhibition guidebook here Museum Development as a Tool for Strengthening Cultural Rights (Museum and Mobile Exhibition Guidebook)

You can watch the official launch of the Museum of Namibian Music here

Galleries

• GALLERY 1A & GALLERY 1B: Musical Roots:  Traditional Namibian Musical Instruments
  !Gao !gao sib di /òn: Namibiab di !hao !nasib /òn di //kai #ui !khaib  (Khoekhoegowab)
• GALLERY 2: Songs from the Liberation Struggle
  Marusumo Gekondjero Manguruko (Rukwangali)
• GALLERY 3: My Nation, My Pride (National Anthems)
  Naha yaka, Buikumuso bwaka (Pina ya naha) (Silozi)
• GALLERY 4: Namibian Stars of the Decade
  Namibie Se Sterre van die Dekade (Afrikaans)
  GALLERY 5: The Namibian Musical Hall of Fame
  Ondjugo goongalelo ya tseyika nawa koyendji yiihikomwa yaNamibia  (Oshindonga)
• GALLERY 6: When We Dance
  Djxani (Ju Hoansi)
• GALLERY 7: Our Temporary Exhibition Gallery
  We would also like to use this gallery as a space for temporary exhibitions. MUNAMU can give birth to these displays that can then travel, in a mobile version, around Namibia.  If people can’t reach the Museum of Namibian Music then these mobile exhibitions will be able to reach people!

Contact

Please contact the museum if you have suggestions, images, objects, or stories that can help us to document the past, the present, and the future of Namibian Music. 

Museum Administrator: Ester Leonard

Phone: +264 65 247 678

Cell: +264 81 370 1076

Email:

Facebook: Museum of Namibian Music

Instagram: @museumofnamibianmusic

Website: https://www.museums.com.na/museums/north/museum-of-namibian-music

Opening Hours

Monday - Friday: 10h00 - 18h00

Weekends and Public Holidays: Closed

Location

Address: Omuthiya Cultural Centre, Omuthiya, Oshikoto Region, Namibia

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Gallery

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