PHOTOS: Kamba folk songs dominate Rift Valley Regional Music Festivals

Rich culture, celebrations, and a dose of celebratory Kamba folk songs ruled the third day of Rift Valley Regional Secondary Schools Music Festivals at Nakuru Boys High School on Friday.

Some of the songs concentrated on weddings, initiations, bumper harvests, and marriages, among others, as the institutions started the chase for top honours.

Dressing codes of these choirs were equally different, depicting what they stood for.

PCEA Booth Secondary School in Ongata Rongai, Kajiado County, performed a Kamba folk song titled ‘Kilung’e’, which is widely performed on wedding days.

“This is a song that should be performed during happy times and more especially during wedding occasions,” said the school’s music teacher, Georgina Muthoni.

Muthoni said the happy times can be celebrated even during the marriages.

Ongata Booth performs during the Rift Valley Regional Kenya Music Festival at Nakuru High School in Nakuru County on July 11, 2025. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

Amani Secondary School was also another one that celebrated a bumper harvest but also sang in Kamba dialect, similar to Inooro Girls School of Laikipia Central Sub County in Nanyuki.

Inooro’s song was titled ‘Kelume’, which celebrated a bumper Kamba harvesting season.

Kelume composer Agape Nzomo is a vigorous dance that is always done after an achievement of any kind.

“But ours was done to celebrate the heavy harvest, which was achieved at a particular season that brought joy to the community,” she said.

According to Isabella Karani, a music teacher at the school, the bumper harvest comes with lots of hard work, leading to heavy financial gains that allow great happiness.

“The great happiness comes with financial gains that could allow parents to improve the standards of their families, for example, payment of their children’s school fees with ease to keep their kids in school,” said Karani.

Pupils of Lions nursery School showcase their performance during the Rift Valley Regional Kenya Music Festival held at Afraha Secondary School in Nakuru on July 9, 2025. The festival, which kicked off today and runs until July 14, is themed “Enhancing the Creative Economy through Artistic Expression for Sustainable Development.” [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

Eddie Chege, who composed the Kikuyu folk song titled Mumburu and sung by Nkaimurunga School of Ongata Rongai, said theirs was equally a celebratory song after the initiation ceremony of young boys.

The song was placed under Class 1016k.

“It’s meant to celebrate the initiates who have completed the process of the ceremony,” he said.

Chege described their performance as strong and hoped to get to the National Music Festivals set for Meru next month.

“It can as well be sung by the younger generation during their leisure as they celebrate those who have completed the process of initiation,” he added.

Lead soloist Nickson Muhia said the song also embraces the Kikuyu culture among all generations as “We preserve our culture from one generation to the other “.

All participants hoped to get to the National Music Festivals.

The event enters its fourth day on Saturday.