Africans define world class music
Jul 13, 2004
IT’S an incredibly hot summer afternoon here on the north lawn of the Ontario Legislature at Queen's Park where the Sixteenth Annual Afrofest is under way
IT’S an incredibly hot summer afternoon here on the north lawn of the Ontario Legislature at Queen's Park where the Sixteenth Annual Afrofest is under way.
Though the huge maple tree spreads its thick leaves over my head like an umbrella, I can feel the hot air blowing against my face.
But, I don't mind that one bit because the mood is an extremely happy one. Everywhere I care to look this very minute there are people in bright clothings, walking about with vibrant spring in their steps. The savory, mouth-watering aroma of nyama choma, fried fish, curry and roasted plantain floats through the hot air. Children are everywhere, running around, playing in the cool fountain at the back, chasing each other up the hill or occasionally dancing to the upbeat Congolese classic that’s pumping through the huge loudspeakers mounted on trucks.
DJs Simon Ayume (Uganda) and Brouhan (Ethiopia) are working their magic behind the scene, making sure the crowd is primed for the next live performance on stage.
That’s the way it has been since the festival kicked off yesterday afternoon at one o'clock with a prayer by a traditional South African sangoma healer who blessed the gathering and prayed for good spirit to protect the gathering. Afterwards, you would have thought you were at a festival somewhere on the continent of Africa rather than behind the staid old buildings of the Ontario Legislature. By nine o'clock Saturday night, when award-winning Guinea guitar maestro Alpha Yaya Diallo took to the stage, there was hardly room to move. Depending on where you stood in the thick crowd, the language being spoken was either Amharic, Wolof, Luganda, Luo, Zulu, Somali, Yoruba, Twii, Swahili, Lingala and many other smaller African languages. It’s like being at an AU festival.
Just a few minutes ago, black Chadian artists known as H'Sao treated the crowd to one of the most energetic music to hit Toronto. Performing for the first time at Afrofest, the young talented group dipped into 120 different African traditions for their repertoire. One moment you were listening to an upbeat Soukous and the next it was the most beautiful acapella vocals to rival South African Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
From the word "go", the group drove the crowd wild, moving everyone to their feet.
In about ten minutes, I will be introducing to the stage Ethiopian singer Kemer Yousef and young Oromo Dancers-he is very famous in Ethiopia. There are many Ethiopians in this crowd today and I expect them to move up front to dance to this versatile singer who is known as the Lion of Africa because of the deep guttural sounds he makes while singing in Swahili, Oromo, Somali, Amharic and Urdu.
Still to come later on stage is South African dynamo Lorraine Klassen, now based in Montreal. She will pull on stage her celebrated mom Thandie Klassen known worldwide as a top vocalist in the same league as Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. She is Nelson mandela's all-time favourite musicians to whom he turns when he needs to celebrate a special occasion. She should be a treat to everyone here just for appearing on stage-but she do more than that and work the crowd. You can bet on that.
The evening will end with the Sakala Brothers from Lusaka, Zambia performing for the first time in North America. The government of Zambia who considered it a wise investment to get the artists to showcase Zambian culture aided their passage to Canada.
They come with a huge reputation and will wow the crowd until eleven tonight.
There are unconfirmed rumours that Congolese singer Mbilia Bel is in town and might put an appearance. If so, she will be the jewel in the crown of an extremely successful Afrofest this year.
As I sit here catching my breath and typing this story, I cannot help but think how far African music has come in Toronto and the rest of North America. Where once it was associated simply with rituals such as voodoo, now it defines world music. Everyone who is anybody wants a piece of African music.
The appreciation of African music by mainstream North Americans is reflected by in the
evolution of Afrofest which began predominantly as a Ghanaian event and grew into an Africa wide festival featuring acts from all over the continent.
Right now as I watch the crowd dancing in front of the stage to Franco's music, I cannot help noticing that more than 70% are white, who ironically are precisely the reason that African music is thriving in North America today. The more whites drawn to African music the greater its success to survive for many centuries to come.
Now, pause for a moment, and consider all those African youth on the continent who are enamored by music by Shania Twain, Madonna, Celine Dion and so forth. Interesting isn't it?
oloyao@ycdsb.edu.on.ca
Though the huge maple tree spreads its thick leaves over my head like an umbrella, I can feel the hot air blowing against my face.
But, I don't mind that one bit because the mood is an extremely happy one. Everywhere I care to look this very minute there are people in bright clothings, walking about with vibrant spring in their steps. The savory, mouth-watering aroma of nyama choma, fried fish, curry and roasted plantain floats through the hot air. Children are everywhere, running around, playing in the cool fountain at the back, chasing each other up the hill or occasionally dancing to the upbeat Congolese classic that’s pumping through the huge loudspeakers mounted on trucks.
DJs Simon Ayume (Uganda) and Brouhan (Ethiopia) are working their magic behind the scene, making sure the crowd is primed for the next live performance on stage.
That’s the way it has been since the festival kicked off yesterday afternoon at one o'clock with a prayer by a traditional South African sangoma healer who blessed the gathering and prayed for good spirit to protect the gathering. Afterwards, you would have thought you were at a festival somewhere on the continent of Africa rather than behind the staid old buildings of the Ontario Legislature. By nine o'clock Saturday night, when award-winning Guinea guitar maestro Alpha Yaya Diallo took to the stage, there was hardly room to move. Depending on where you stood in the thick crowd, the language being spoken was either Amharic, Wolof, Luganda, Luo, Zulu, Somali, Yoruba, Twii, Swahili, Lingala and many other smaller African languages. It’s like being at an AU festival.
Just a few minutes ago, black Chadian artists known as H'Sao treated the crowd to one of the most energetic music to hit Toronto. Performing for the first time at Afrofest, the young talented group dipped into 120 different African traditions for their repertoire. One moment you were listening to an upbeat Soukous and the next it was the most beautiful acapella vocals to rival South African Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
From the word "go", the group drove the crowd wild, moving everyone to their feet.
In about ten minutes, I will be introducing to the stage Ethiopian singer Kemer Yousef and young Oromo Dancers-he is very famous in Ethiopia. There are many Ethiopians in this crowd today and I expect them to move up front to dance to this versatile singer who is known as the Lion of Africa because of the deep guttural sounds he makes while singing in Swahili, Oromo, Somali, Amharic and Urdu.
Still to come later on stage is South African dynamo Lorraine Klassen, now based in Montreal. She will pull on stage her celebrated mom Thandie Klassen known worldwide as a top vocalist in the same league as Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. She is Nelson mandela's all-time favourite musicians to whom he turns when he needs to celebrate a special occasion. She should be a treat to everyone here just for appearing on stage-but she do more than that and work the crowd. You can bet on that.
The evening will end with the Sakala Brothers from Lusaka, Zambia performing for the first time in North America. The government of Zambia who considered it a wise investment to get the artists to showcase Zambian culture aided their passage to Canada.
They come with a huge reputation and will wow the crowd until eleven tonight.
There are unconfirmed rumours that Congolese singer Mbilia Bel is in town and might put an appearance. If so, she will be the jewel in the crown of an extremely successful Afrofest this year.
As I sit here catching my breath and typing this story, I cannot help but think how far African music has come in Toronto and the rest of North America. Where once it was associated simply with rituals such as voodoo, now it defines world music. Everyone who is anybody wants a piece of African music.
The appreciation of African music by mainstream North Americans is reflected by in the
evolution of Afrofest which began predominantly as a Ghanaian event and grew into an Africa wide festival featuring acts from all over the continent.
Right now as I watch the crowd dancing in front of the stage to Franco's music, I cannot help noticing that more than 70% are white, who ironically are precisely the reason that African music is thriving in North America today. The more whites drawn to African music the greater its success to survive for many centuries to come.
Now, pause for a moment, and consider all those African youth on the continent who are enamored by music by Shania Twain, Madonna, Celine Dion and so forth. Interesting isn't it?
oloyao@ycdsb.edu.on.ca