I was flummoxed when the usual Latino/hipster scene in the Mission was replaced by a line of silver-haired white people waiting to watch Bela Fleck’s documentary “Throw Down Your Heart” last night at the Roxie.

It’s a little unnerving being the only brown spot in line, but Basil loves bluegrass and wanted to see the film. Since he’d recently driven me to a desi wedding he had little desire to attend, I figured this was an opportunity to show him that I’m supportive of his interests too.

I’m so glad I went along because it was a fantastic documentary which I highly recommend. Bela Fleck, a virtuoso banjoist, wanted to uncover the roots of the banjo – an instrument that is now regarded as quintessentially American but which originated in Africa.

Since most of the film companies he approached with the idea insisted that it to be filmed from a “white man discovers Africa” perspective, he decided to foot the bill himself in order to showcase the extraordinary musicians there.

The result is a rich and enthralling film with local musicians in the Gambia, Mali, Tanzania, and Uganda. Faced with virtuoso performances you can see the multiple Grammy-winner for jazz, bluegrass and classical recordings, Fleck suddenly finding himself a novice eager to learn.

In Mali, diva Oumou Sangare blows the audience away while crooning a song about love, the greatest of which is toward Allah. It reminded me yet again that though PR campaigns are important, the bridges between human hearts often lie beyond words in shared passions such as music, food, poetry, art, and culture.

The title of the film comes from the heartbreaking story behind the name of the Tanzanian coastal town of Bagamoyo. It was from here that slaves were transported to the Middle East. When they arrived in chains from the interior, they stared with horror at the ocean, an immensity they had never seen before, and which they knew signaled that they would never see their homes or families ever again. Thus they ‘threw down their hearts’ – in the local language, Bagamoyo.

So many of the media images we see of Africa are of death or war. While that exists in some places, so do incredibly varied and vibrant cultures where music is a communal celebration to relieve the drudgery of daily work, to dance, to claim joy.

In a country where instruments and singing are too often the realm of experts or the wealthy, it’s fascinating to glimpse cultures in which you can make an instrument if you have access to a gourd, cheaply enough that children too can take part in preserving traditions.

Do see it if it comes to a theater near you – otherwise the DVD will be out over the December hols. The wonderful CD is also available. [Trailer]

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