Kwela is a
pennywhistle-based street music from southern Africa with jazzy underpinnings and a distinctive,
skiffle-like beat. It evolved from the
marabi sound and brought
South African music to international prominence in the 1950s. The music has its roots in southern Africa but later adaptations of this and many other African folk idioms have permeated Western music (listen to the albums
A Swingin' Safari by the
Bert Kaempfert Orchestra (1962) and
Graceland by
Paul Simon (1986)), giving modern South African music, particularly
jazz, much of its distinctive sound and lilting swagger.