National festival celebrates prowess in song, verse and dance

Mombasa city was abuzz with tourists in the first half of August. Only that the more than 124,000 tourists were not your ordinary type from Europe and other far-flung countries who bring in the dollar.

They were school and college musicians and poets coming to showcase the depth and breadth that is the Kenyan art and culture scene at the 88th edition of the Kenya Music Festival (KMF).

From a four-year-old kindergarten child to masters students, they came in different colours to explore the theme, ‘Nurturing Creative Talent towards Prosperity.’

And after 13 days of stage performances, there was no doubt that Kenya has talent.

Take, for instance, the Pumwani High School ensemble of brass players accompanying the well-tamed male vocals as they sang ‘Musenge’ conducted by Joseph Muyale, in the Zilizopendwa category.

The dancers left President Uhuru Kenyatta tapping his hand and foot in time to the catchy beat.

“How I wished we could be allowed to join in the dance!” said the President as he delivered his speech after hosting 26 winners at State House Mombasa last Friday.

Wowed the president

Idd Juma from Ng’ombeni High School was message-persuasive in his Shairi Majanga depicting a nation marred by inept leadership, insecurity and rampant unemployment but whose solutions are basically common sense.

President Kenyatta was so wowed by his rendition that he called the young man to the podium for a firm handshake and some kind words. The last time he did this was early in the year when Grace Wanjiru from Gachororo ECD rendered her verse, ‘Mvua Hii.’ And the first time was when he was so impressed by Daniel Owira’s Otonglo story that he took him as a son. 

Ten-year-old Pascal Odhiambo from Ulawe Apate Primary School in Siaya County was a beacon of hope for the endangered eight-stringed nyatiti from the Luo community.

He played the instrument so well, taking from his father Samuel Otieno who died when Odhiambo was just one year old.

As he delicately plucked the lyre, he rendered Okoth Achachi, a song his dad sang many years ago.

In the song, the budding musician praises Okoth, a butcher at Awelo Market, for his attention to customers, always giving that prime cut, making him the preferred beef supplier for the village.

“I started playing the nyatiti at six years. My brother David Otieno, who is a herdsman, bought it for me and I have never looked back,” says Odhiambo, who lives with his grandmother in Alego since he lost his mother a few years ago.

Such is the cultural and traditional preservation role that this fete has showcased every year for decades now.

The best of this oral tradition is in the Zilizopendwa category introduced by the late David Zalo 30 years ago.

This arrangement and adaptation of popular music remains the most popular and it not only records the highest number of entries but also attracts the largest audience ever, filling the auditorium to the brim.

Legendary musicians such as Franco Luambo Makiadi, Pepe Kale, Sukuma bin Ongaro, Daudi Kabaka, George Ramogi, Kakai Kilonzo, Mbilia Bel and Lucky Dube, among others, are immortalised as their classics are refreshed on this stage yearly.

“In the category, the old and the new generation find a meeting point of interest in a big way where the former reminisces their youth while the latter finds joy in rejuvenating the old in their own styles and expressions,” observes David Iindu, who trains St George’s Girls in Nairobi.

The over 600 categories accommodate all and provide skills in every aspect of music, dance and elocution.

In fact, the music festival is the only one-stop shop for seeing cultural music, regalia and styles from all the 42 Kenyan communities.

“Ours is a cosmism of Kenya’s diverse society,” says Aga Khan Academy choral music head Phillip Mbinji who hosted the festival this year.

While schools such as Ulawe Apate spring surprises, there are perennial talent hubs such as Moi Girls’ Nairobi, Chavakali High School, Buru Buru Girls, Kisumu Boys’ High, St Mary’s Yala, Aladina Visram, Tudor Boys’ High, Kisii High, Otieno Oyoo, Kibabii TTC and Starehe Boys’ Centre, among others.

Vibrant industry

Today, the entertainment industry owes its well of talent to the festival where music and other creative products capture the imagination of many Kenyans.

Celebrated musicians such as Eric Wainaina, Ian Mbugua, Sarah K, Size 8, Suzanne Owiyo, Nazizi, Kayamba Afrika, Prezzo, Wyre, Wahu and Roughtone had their first exposure and training at the music fest.

But the most prominent products of the festival yet are the Moipei Quartet whose musical prowess has earned them admiration and a following from all Kenyans and many more fans abroad.

The four — triplets Mary, Magdalene, Marta and their sister Seraphine — have just landed full scholarships to study music in San Antonio, Texas.

The quartet had early this year made a successful American tour promoting their album, In the Land of the Lion.

“We are proud of the girls and this festival was significant in providing the right stage as part of their growth,” says their father Nicholas Moipei who is also their director.

In addition to creating careers out of talent, the music festival plays a vital role in the country’s economy.

Research figures from the International Property Organisation shows that Kenya’s creative industry contributes up to five per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

This is a significant contribution because the amount generated is enough to fund nearly two years of Kenya’s Constituency Development Fund budget that currently stands at three per cent of the GDP.

“We are committed to tapping talent at a tender age because it has been proved that art pays today,” says Kenya Music Festival Executive Secretary Benson Abwao.

During the State House winners’ gala, President Kenyatta made a significant announcement that was music to the ears of art lovers. He zero-rated customs duty on all imported music equipment.

He was responding to pleas from festival chairman Peter Wanjohi who had asked the President, who is also the patron of the festival, to consider lowering the inhibiting prices of music production equipment.

 “We are going to inject more funds for the completion of the talent academy and I ask all governors to set aside some funds from their budgets so that each county can have a talent academy,” said Uhuru.

Riding on the successful wave of Lupita Nyong’o on the world’s film stage after becoming the first ever Black African to win an Oscar, there is a rebirth of hope that Kenya’s art can rise to the pinnacle, producing conquerors of the world.

A promise by the President last year to build an ultra-modern film school unfortunately seems to have faded and the promise to construct an ultra-modern national theatre is yet to take root.