Burundi

Eastern Africa

A small, mountainous country in the African Great Lakes region, on the northeast shore of Lake Tanganyika. Its signature is the Royal Drummers, the sacred Abatimbo tradition kept at the Gishora drum sanctuary near the central capital Gitega and inscribed by UNESCO. Political violence and health risks keep much of the country under heavy travel warnings, so visits run through local operators.

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What you can do in Burundi

Music at the Source

GishoraJun Jul Aug SepThe drummers of Burundi are one of Africa's great living performances, and Gishora is where you see them at the source. On a hill outside Gitega, the royal drum sanctuary keeps two sacred drums, Ruciteme and Murimirwa, and it is here that troupes perform the Abatimbo, the ritual of the royal drum that UNESCO inscribed on its intangible-heritage list in 2014. A dozen or more men carry heavy wooden drums on their heads in procession, set them in a circle around a lead drum, then play, dance and leap, rotating in and out so the beat never breaks, dressed in red, white and green. The sound is huge and the athleticism is startling. Historically the drums were sounded for the king and tied to fertility and power rather than entertainment, and at Gishora the performance still carries that weight. You arrange a visit through a local operator, who sets up the troupe and guides the short trip out from Gitega.

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Music at the Source