By NEVA TRENIS

Date published: 2/5/2004

THE FREE LANCE-STAR

Music is a prayer for the Zulu men of Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

The South African a cappella group gained fame in the United States in 1986 for the rich harmonies and deep tones they brought to Paul Simon's "Graceland" album. Ladysmith Black Mambazo plays sold-out shows Monday and Tuesday at Wolf Trap.

Music is the powerful balm that has carried the 10 members of Black Mambazo through the despair of apartheid and the deaths of family and friends in the group's 30-year career.

"This is the music of peace," member Albert Mazibuko said by phone from a Chicago hotel. "It clears your mind and soul of all turmoil. You see everything clearly."

Mazibuko's cousin Joseph Shabalala started the group in the early '60s. They sang in a traditional style South African miners used to help them endure the hardships of their work.

In those days, Ladysmith Black Mambazo took a casual, secular approach to singing. But a dream inspired Shabalala to shift its focus to musical excellence and the Christian faith.

In 1969, Shabalala invited Mazibuko and his brother to join the group. They went on to sing with Paul Simon in 1986, win a Grammy in 1987 and accompany Nelson Mandela to accept his Nobel Peace Prize in 1993.

The group sang on the "The Lion King" soundtrack and on "Sesame Street." They sang for the queen of England in Royal Albert Hall and have shared the stage with Paul McCartney, Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton and Phil Collins.

In 1991, Headman Shabalala, Joseph Shabalala's brother and an original member of the group, was killed by an off-duty South African policeman. Mazibuko's brother, who joined Black Mambazo with him in 1969, also has died.

Though apartheid was lifted 10 years ago, times are still hard in South Africa, Mazibuko said.

In 2002, Shabalala's wife of 30 years was murdered by a masked gunman outside her church. Mazibuko, 58, said that the tragedy left him and other members in despair. But something changed while singing at Nellie Shabalala's memorial service.

"That day I can see it in another way that music has the power to heal," Mazibuko said. "As soon as we started the song and we sang, the energy came back to me, and the hope. After that I felt life must go on. And everything will be fine."

Joseph Shabalala transformed the grief and rage at the murder into songs that would become Black Mambazo's most recent album "Raise Your Spirits Higher," released in January by Heads Up International. The name of the CD describes what singing does for the group, Mazibuko said.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo's music has a soothing, meditative quality that transcends denominations and creeds.

Members say a special prayer just before they go onstage that was given--verbatim--in a dream to Shabalala, Mazibuko said. It aids the singers' goal of leaving ego behind in performance and making music a spiritual practice.

"It helps a lot after we do that prayer," Mazibuko said. "After that, all the challenges disappear and I enjoy singing."

Black Mambazo will be in the United States through early March. Their music keeps them on the road, but the track "Because I Love You"--a tribute to their hometown of Ladysmith in KwaZulu Natal--speaks of their devotion to the motherland.

"When we are away we miss our families, but it is also so wonderful to be away and meet the other friends," Mazibuko said. "We share ideas and talk with them. It gives us the opportunity to see how God is wonderful, and how the world is wonderful. It makes you miss home and at the same time, you don't wish to go home because you are seeing the beauty in this place."

Ladysmith Black Mambazo will play sold-out shows at The Barns at Wolf Trap Monday and Tuesday. For information on the shows, see wolftrap.org. To learn more about the group, see mambazo .com.

To reach NEVA TRENIS: 540/374-5412 ntrenis@freelancestar.com