Guillermo de Llera Blanes, researcher at INET-md, who recently obtain his PhD at NOVA FCSH, authors the article “Making-Do from Mozambique: Rethinking musical modernity through World Music 2.1“, published in open access by Cadernos de Estudos Africanos, within a special issue devoted to Sound Revolutions (Revoluções Sonoras), co-organized by Cristina Sá Valentim (ICS-ULisboa) and Marco Roque de Freitas (INET-md/NOVA FCSH).
Abstract:
This article examines contemporary music-making in Mozambique through three interconnected concepts: Making-Do, World Music 2.1 (WM 2.1), and Remix Circularity. It argues that Mozambican musicians engage in sonic worlding shaped by structural constraint, cultural memory, and improvisational use of technology. Drawing on longterm ethnographic fieldwork, audiovisual documentation, and practice-based research conducted between 2018 and 2025, the analysis examines how these dynamics unfold across regions and collaborations. Making-Do describes practices of reuse and hybridization rooted in scarcity and local knowledge. WM 2.1 captures the integration of traditional instruments and aesthetics into electronic and hybrid forms. Remix Circularity theorizes the glocal feedback loops through which sound circulates between tradition and innovation. Case studies including Dilon Djinji, Artista Mil-Quinhento & Conjunto Popombo de Nampula, May Mbira, and Maneto — illustrate how Mozambican music enacts resilience and multi-territorial creativity. The article concludes by calling for ethical reflection on commodification and support in the global sound economy.