Otto And The Mutapa Calling
Otto & The Mutapa Calling is a colourful celebration of southern African culture through rhythm and song. The London-based marimba band plays a blend of music from Zimbabwe, South Africa and Botswana, including original music, traditional songs, and popular covers. The band’s performances are full of joy, energy and pulsating rhythms, and the stories blended with the songs they play celebrate the people, cultures and history of southern Africa. Audiences are rarely able to resist getting up and dancing once the music starts to play.
Formed in 2017, the marimba band is led by Otto Gumaelius who started playing African music on the marimba in the 1990s in Botswana. The band is currently comprised of musicians from Botswana, Zimbabwe, and the UK, and it is the only active professional southern African marimba band of its kind in the country. The band performs using southern African marimbas, with drumming, singing and mbira.
The band's popularity sees them performing regularly at festivals, live music venues, weddings, community events, and much more. Recent performances in 2025 include Jersey Arts Centre, Erin Arts Centre, Theatre Royal Plymouth, Tropical Pressure Festival (winners of Battle of the Bands 2025), Celebraaition Festival, Festival of Colours, Elementary Festival, Yebo Festival, The Brunswick, The Jago, The Rising, Mabiko: Celebrate Africa, Pride of Reading Awards, Colchester Zoo, Africa Business Forum Oxford, and many more.
Band leader, Otto Gumaelius, and band drummer, Tomson Chauke, also lead regular southern African music workshops covering drumming, marimba, mbira, singing and dance.
For more information on the band including upcoming gigs, visit www.ottoandthemutapacalling.com.
Follow the band online on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Spotify.
“A huge thank you for your wonderful performance at the garden parties. We’ve already received such great feedback from attendees who really enjoyed your music and the tone it brough to the event”
Our Sound
Tropical Pressure Festival 2025
Erin Arts Centre, Isle of Man
“We just wanted to say a massive thank you for performing at our wedding on Saturday. You were amazing, our guests loved every second of it. Our day wouldn’t have been the same without you guys”
Wedding Entertainment at Lily Brooke Manor
Wedding Entertainment at Riverlands
“A huge thank you to you and your amazing band - you literally brought the wedding to life and exactly what we wanted... Having you and the band playing on our special day literally made it for us!”
Black History Month Show At Octopus Headquarters
Art Night London at Battersea Power Station
“Very many congratulations on a superb performance at the Llangollen music festival. I watched the performance twice and you really are all an exceptionally talented group of people. I’ve been a music fan for over 50 years and I really do rate you up there with the likes of Salif Keita and Oumou Sangare.”
One Love Festival
Wandsworth Arts Fringe Festival
“You guys were fantastic. You made John’s birthday special. All the guests were asking about you. It was amazing. Thank you so much”
Debut Album - Mvura Ichanaya
The marimba band’s debut album, Mvura Ichanaya, was initially released in the summer of 2018 under band leader Otto Gumaelius’ name. It is a collection of original arrangements of folk songs from southern Africa, alongside some of Otto’s own songs. The album is available for download or streaming on all major digital outlets, including Spotify, iTunes and Amazon.
“I wanted to say a HUGE HUGE thank you to you and your fellow band members for playing at our wedding. Our guests and us absolutely enjoyed it and it made our day just that extra special. ”
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“Otto and his team played a wonderful show for us at the architectural association for the annual summer party! He’s great with communication and always willing to help in any way he can. It’s great working with someone who takes his profession seriously and I would highly recommend him”
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“We were entertained by Miriam Makeba’s Pata Pata and the backing marimba and drums were absolutely brilliant”