Ladysmith performs in city Saturday

Their sound echoes a nighttime breeze sweeping across the desert, wind passing through a tunnel and blown breath bouncing off the inside of an empty glass bottle.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo was borne of persecution, but evokes hope. This a cappella ensemble's 10 members sketch an outline of past and present South Africa, yet might have remained unknown to millions had it not been for a short, balding, acoustic guitar player from Queens.

On Saturday, the band arrives in Poughkeepsie for a concert at the Bardavon 1869 Opera House on Market Street -- one stop on a 2004 tour that coincides with the 10-year anniversary marking the inauguration of Nelson Mandela as president of South Africa.

The singing style of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, touring behind its latest album, ''Raise Your Spirit Higher,'' is called Isicathamiya. This sound was developed by blacks taken from their homes and put to work in mines. After a six-day work week, they would entertain themselves by singing.

Part of Graceland tour

It's a sound that caught the attention of New York native Paul Simon, who catapulted Ladysmith Black Mambazo to international fame by including them on his 1986 album, ''Graceland.''

''A very humble person,'' Ladysmith member Albert Mazibuko said of Simon. ''A person who is dedicated to the music. He's a very nice person.''

But while South Africa is now ruled by a representation of its majority population, memories of the country's racist past have not dissolved.

''In this country, we were oppressed and then we were looked down on and everyone knows in South Africa, if you are a black person, you are nothing,'' said Mazibuko, whose brother is also in the singing ensemble. ''There is nothing you can achieve.''

Over a lifetime, singing has served many purposes for Mazibuko.

''I remember when we were little boys, me and my brother, we used to walk during the night from my grandfather's house to our house, about five miles away,'' Mazibuko recalled recently during a telephone interview. ''In the night it was very scary. We started to sing, and we sang until we got home and we never feared.''

Mazibuko found strength in song while working on a farm and he sang to heal himself.

''If I'm not feeling well, after singing, I get well,'' he said. ''Absolutely, a cold, stomachache, especially if I'm not feeling well spiritually. Maybe my spirit is down. Even if I'm tired, I can be dead tired, as soon as I start to sing, I could dance. I think music is strength.''

Music also helped Mazibuko and his fellow band members deal constructively with South African authorities. During apartheid and the years of violence it caused, the travel of blacks between cities was heavily restricted. But Ladysmith Black Mambazo needed to travel to gigs, and simply sang for police when stopped, interrogated and asked where they were going.

''We didn't have any explanation,'' he recalled. ''We would sing to the police. They would come into the car and say, 'Wow, this is beautiful.' They let us go. That's what the music does.''

Marcos Lugo, owner of The Family Barbershop on Main Street in Poughkeepsie, isn't very familiar with Ladysmith Black Mambazo. But he thinks their appearance on Saturday will be positive for the community.

''I think it's good, because there are a lot of African Americans living here,'' he said. ''It opens the door for people wanting to know more about different cultures, especially South Africa.''

If you go

What -- Ladysmith Black Mambazo in concert.

When -- Saturday, 8 p.m.

Where -- Bardavon 1869 Opera House, 35 Market St., Poughkeepsie.

Information -- This concert is sold out. To be placed on a waiting list, call the Bardavon box office at 845-473-2072.

Origin of name

"Ladysmith" is the hometown of the Shabalala family; Joseph Shabalala founded Ladysmith Black Mambazo in 1964, after dreaming of a harmony; "Black" makes reference to black oxen, considered to be the strongest on the farm. The Zulu word "Mambazo" refers to an ax -- symbolic of the group's ability to "chop down" the competition. So good were they that after a time they were forbidden to enter the competitions but welcomed, of course, to entertain at them.