Alfred Geist Zantzinger was an American documentary filmmaker specializing in documentaries about traditional musics of the world. He directed and produced films about the musics of Mozambique

Music of Mozambique

The native folk music of Mozambique has been highly influenced by Portuguese forms. The most popular style of modern dance music is marrabenta. Mozambican music also influenced another Lusophone music in Brazil, like maxixe , and Cuban music like Mozambique.Culture was an integral part of the...

, Zimbabwe

Music of Zimbabwe

Zimbabwean music includes folk and pop styles, much of it based on the well-known instrument the mbira which is also popular in many other African countries. An annual Zimbabwe Music Festival is held each year in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. People from all over the world attend...

, Cape Verde

Music of Cape Verde

Cape Verde is known internationally for morna, a form of folk music usually sung in the Cape Verdean Creole, accompanied by clarinet, violin, guitar and cavaquinho. The islands also boast funaná, coladeira, batuque and zouk music.-History:...

, Lesotho

Music of Lesotho

Lesotho is a Southern African nation surrounded entirely by South Africa. The largest ethnic group is the Basotho. The Basotho culture is immersed in musical traditions.-National Anthem:The national anthem of Lesotho is "Lesotho Fatse La Bontata Rona"...

, South Africa

Music of South Africa

The South African music scene includes both popular and folk forms. Pop styles are based on four major sources, Zulu isicathamiya singing and harmonic mbaqanga...

, and Brittany

Music of Brittany

Since the early 1970s, Brittany has experienced a tremendous revival of its folk music. Along with flourishing traditional forms such as the bombard-binou pair and fest-noz ensembles incorporating other additional instruments, it has also branched out into numerous sub-genres...

.

He graduated from Westminster School in Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

 and earned bachelor's and master's degrees in folklore and anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania

University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...

.

Zantzinger began making films in southern Africa in 1966, while a Ph.D. candidate in the folklore/folklife program at the University of Pennsylvania. He studied film with Sol Worth

Sol Worth

Sol Worth was a painter, photographer, film maker, researcher, and pioneer in the use of film in anthropological field research as well as a founding father in the field of visual communication....

 at the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg School of Communications

Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania

The Annenberg School for Communication is the communications school at the University of Pennsylvania. The school was established in 1958 by Wharton School's alum Walter Annenberg as "The Annenberg School of Communications." The name was changed to its current title in the late 1980's.Walter...

.

Zantzinger also worked as a record producer. He lived in Devault, Chester County, Pennsylvania

Chester County, Pennsylvania

-State parks:*French Creek State Park*Marsh Creek State Park*White Clay Creek Preserve-Demographics:As of the 2010 census, the county was 85.5% White, 6.1% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American or Alaskan Native, 3.9% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian, 1.8% were two or more races, and 2.4% were...

, where his production company, Constant Spring Productions, was based.

He died of leukemia

Leukemia

Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...

 on February 16, 2007 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

Filmography (includes country filmed in)

• 1971 - KUR
• 1973 - MADA (Mozambique)
• 1973 - DEIVIS QDE LAINA (Mozambique)
• 1973 - ONE PIECE 4EVA
• 1974 - Ola Belle Reed
  Ola Belle Reed
  Ola Belle Campbell Reed was an American folk singer, songwriter and banjo player. Born in Lansing, North Carolina, Reed's songs often speak of Appalachian life and traditions. Her best known songs have been recorded by mainstream bluegrass and country artists...
  
  : Memories
• 1978 - Urban and Rural Ceremonies (Zimbabwe)
• 1978 - Matepe dza Mhondoro: A Musical Healing Party (Zimbabwe)
• 1978 - Dambatsoko: An Old Cult Center (Zimbabwe)
• 1978 - Karanga Songs in Christian Ceremonies (Zimbabwe)
• 1978 - The Technique of the Mbira dza Vadzimu (Zimbabwe)
• 1978 - Religion at the Family Level (Zimbabwe)
• 1980 - The Chopi Timbila Dance (Mozambique)
• 1980 - Ndando Yawusiwana
• 1981 - Audrey Bronson
• 1984 - Songs of the Badius (Cape Verde)
• 1985 - Songs of the Adventurers (Lesotho)
• 1990 - SUSUMU - A Tone Poem in Three Movements
• 1994 - A Spirit Here Today: A Scrapbook of Chopi Village Music (Mozambique; filmed in 1973 but not edited until 1994)
• 1999 - Of Pipers & Wrens/De Souffle et de Roseau (Brittany)

External links

• Gei Zantzinger obituary