By John Owoo

(In Rabat – Morocco)

The Moroccan capital Rabat, which is also known as the city of lights recently hosted diverse music groups, solo artists, promoters and festival directors from all continents during the 2019 edition of Visa for Music Festival.

Under the direction of Brahim El Mazned, concerts during the festival, which ended on Saturday November 23, encompassed venues such as King Mohammed V Theatre, Palais Tazi, Villa des Arts and Salle / Club Renaissance, which are all located in the centre of Rabat.

Year after year, the festival continues to spread its colourful wings, allowing its curators and experienced professionals to bring together an array of diverse talent while ensuring effective / fruitful networking and collaborations among all categories of participants.

“The sixth edition also featured conferences on various themes, panel discussions, presentations, speed meetings, round table deliberations, formal / informal training workshops, professional meetings and networking”, said director El Mazned.

“Aware of the wealth of this intangible capital, Morocco is resolutely committed to making arts and culture a lever of its development in accordance with the vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI”, continued Mohcine Jazouli, Minister delegate to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Resident Abroad. 

Topics considered during the discussions and presentations, which were held at the Institut Français, Instituto Cervantes, Place de la Grande Poste and Palais Tazi include “Role of Universities and Educational Institutions in the Cultural Field”, “Copyright – A Right, Not a Due” and “Markets and Festivals”.

Others are “Culture at the Heart of Social Peace”, “Positions Held by Women in the Music Industry”, “Music as a Driving Force for Sustainable Development in Morocco” and “The Role of Young People in the Territorial Development Process”.

Dozens of concerts in various venues, which started on schedule, revealed the explosion of creative power as well as sharp and witty improvisations, collaborations and top-notch compositions that left audiences, which comprised people from all walks of life asking for more.

“The development of the music sector in Morocco and Africa requires as a priority, the strengthening of capacities of the cultural actors and support must be provided to the various components of this sector, whether they work at the level of creation, production or distribution”, added Younes Boumehdi, president of the HIBA Foundation in Morocco.

Pictures - Visa For Music

By John Owoo

(In Rabat – Morocco)

Fra Band, a Ghanaian Afro fusion group mesmerized a capacity audience on the final day of Visa for Music Festival with a dramatic synthesis of Highlife, Rock, Soul, Jazz and Afro Beat.

In a magnetic performance at Club Renaissance, an arts hub in the center of the Moroccan capital Rabat, the group captured the imagination of the audience with a continuous stream of music that is unique and utterly compelling.

With intricately woven / intense acts that kept all corners of the stage constantly busy, members of the group managed to engage the attention of the audience, who virtually joined in the performance as they stood in awe of talented young men sharing their passion.

“Unquestionably Fra is one of the hottest bands that participated in the 2019 edition of Visa for Music Festival. More than half of the audience seemed to be dancing from the beginning to the end of the concert”, said Lucien Jacquemot, a teacher from Paris, France.

Performing at Salle Renaissance, Zimbabwean singer / bassist Edith Weutonga exhibited a vibrant rendition of Jiti, Chimurenga and Shona music spiked with elements of rumba, jazz, calypso and reggae.  

Showcasing dexterity on her bass guitar, Weutonga alongside rhythm guitars, congas, percussion, drums and keyboards swayed the crowd with sustained Zimbabwean resonances thereby bringing the Southern African country into sharp focus.

Earlier, Salle Renaissance witnessed yet another soulful voice during the performance of Soufiane Nhass, a Moroccan singer who literally set the hall ablaze with pop and Arabic music through his own musical style and improvisations.

Also an author, composer and performer, Nhass inundated the hall with gentle pulses together with slow paced songs that equally projected the power of his voice while serene, methodical grooves and melodies filled the air.

Held under the auspices of King Mohammed VI, Visa For Music aims at promoting the constitution of a music marketplace in Africa and the Middle East in order to offer greater visibility as well as an environment that favours creativity and professionalization in the cultural sector.

Directed by Brahim El Mazned, the festival is also a means to galvanize the cultural and creative industries of the concerned region in order to stimulate their economy while providing platforms for musicians to showcase the artistic creations and the stimulation of intellectual dialogues. 

By John Owoo

(In Rabat – Morocco)

The Tune, an all female band from the Republic of South Korea with a flashing charismatic singer charmed a capacity audience at the Visa for Music Festival, which ended last Saturday in the Moroccan capital Rabat.

In a performance at Palais Tazi, the five-piece band with members who are all multi instrumentalists and singers, exhibited a curious blend of Korean traditional music, jazz, contemporary, gypsy and shamanistic music, which recalled ancient Korean traditions.  

Clad in all white costumes, the group involved the audience in the performance who gracefully provided a chorus to one of their tunes as the Haegeum, a traditional instrument alongside various percussive instruments and piano traversed the cool night air. 

Gorgeously focused voices and instruments that emanated from the stage dazzled the audience, who simply cheered as the lead singer picked up cymbals while proving her dexterity with diverse instruments.

The performance really provided an insight into Korean traditional and folk music and its contemporary extensions - it was a magical show”, said Steve Jones, a musician from the United Kingdom.

Inspired by traditional melodies from Northern Mali and Southern Algeria, Touareg guitarist / singer Kader Tarhanine together with his group enchanted the audience with diverse rhythms gracefully crafted into modern Touareg music.

With lyrics on love, peace, exile and the desert, Tarhanine, who was obviously immersed in his guitar, charmed the audience with a cool technique that resulted in vocal quality and melodic power, which created a sense of admiration.

French Oud player Léo Fabre-Cartier together with Araw N Fazaz group treated the audience to Amazigh music, which comprises traditional and popular genres of Berber ethnic groups in various North African countries.

Together with a female vocalist, the group sent nostalgic feelings to members of the crowd who are familiar with this rather astonishing form of music that is largely unknown around the world.

Held under the auspices of King Mohammed VI, Visa For Music aims at promoting the constitution of a music marketplace in Africa and the Middle East in order to offer greater visibility as well as an environment that favours creativity and professionalization in the cultural sector.

Directed by Brahim El Mazned, the festival is also a means to galvanize the cultural and creative industries of the concerned region in order to stimulate their economy while providing platforms for musicians to showcase the artistic creations and the stimulation of intellectual dialogues. 

By John Owoo

(In Accra – Ghana)

Atenteben dynamo Dela Botri last week showcased his versatility and flexibility through various compositions that revealed the results of explorations into traditional Ghanaian music and their contemporary extensions.

Performing alongside Hewale Sounds at the Goethe-Institut in Accra, Botri enchanted the capacity audience with arrangements based on the rhythmic patterns of diverse Ghanaian instruments including wia, korogo, xylophone, gome and seperewa.

With raw energy and passion, the group exhibited a rather sleek, compelling and clever show that constantly drew cheers and applause from the crowd, who appeared to be sharing the joy of experienced performers showcasing their talent.

With a dramatic blend of traditional and western instruments, the group exhibited amazing strength and control coupled with wit and humour from Botri, which virtually energized the audience who trooped to the dance floor to showcase various body movements.

“Anyone can do raw passion but few would execute it with considerable care as Botri”, said James Gordon, a British jazz musician who has followed compositions and performances by the flutist over the past few years.

Accompanied by a solo dancer, the group later lounged into a medley of songs comprising highlife, adowa, agbadza and kpanlogo tunes that brought back memories of old Ghanaian musicians and their evergreen compositions.

A devotee of contemporary music, Botri has held workshops in a number of universities in several countries and performed to varied audiences in the Middle East, Europe, United States and several countries in Africa.

In recent years, he has participated in the Cubadisco Festival (Cuba), World Music Village (Finland), Copenhagen Jazz Festival (Denmark), Pan African Music Festival (Algeria). He also joined Liberian star Miatah Fanbulleh to perform at the 2011 Novel Peace Prize Awards in the Norwegian capital, Oslo.

The performance was organized and supported by the Goethe-Institut in Accra.

By John Owoo

(In Accra – Ghana)

Theatre lovers in Accra including the US ambassador to Ghana Stephanie S. Sullivan recently defied torrential rains to see the performance of “Chains and Shackles”, a play written by Nii Ayi Solomon as part the maiden edition of Agrobi Theatre Festival.

The festival, which was hosted by the Alliance Française in Accra, celebrated recent Ghanaian theatre productions and displayed student talent in diverse areas while providing a boost for theatre, which has witnessed a dramatic resurgence in recent years.

It was refreshing to see this genre of play coming from a young writer, who clearly did his homework with “Chains and Shackles” as regards to dialogues and general chats among a huge family that had a rather hilarious living before the arrival of slave traders.

Directed by Woelinam Dziewornu-Norvor, the play tapped deep into history revealing in the process a Ghanaian village that was full of life, vitality with close knit families enjoying a harmonious existence, which was brutally shattered by Portuguese slave dealers.

Accompanied by traditional drummers, flutists, seperewa players and recorded music, the National Dance Ensemble restructured diverse Ghanaian traditions and culture, which was transformed into a brilliant choreography that was presented by skillful dancers and musicians.

With a cool mixture of subtle and swift movements, the dancers conveyed a secret language of gesture where trained bodies offered varied constructions of femininity, masculinity and neutrality thereby revealing the complexity and diversity of our lives as Ghanaians.

Indeed, all the dancers capably performed with full energy throughout the show, which was choreographed by Nene Narh Hargoe. Language did run through their bodies amidst gesture-like utterances and speech-like rhythms that captured the attention of the audience.

Set in a remote village, “Karoo Moose”, which was directed by Dr. Ekua Ekumah together with Dr. Sarah Dorgbadzi depicted trials and tribulations of a young girl as it forcefully revealed attacks on the innocence of many young girls. Interspersed with refreshing drumming and dancing, the story of a girl violently ushered into womanhood unfolded with despair.

Written by the award winning South African playwright Lara Foot Newton and performed by the Department of Theatre Arts Ensemble, University of Ghana, the play, employed the use of techniques that ensured a smooth flowing drama that drew attention to a canker that is constantly on the rise.

Agrobi Theatre Festival 2019 was sponsored by the French Embassy in Accra, Institut Français Ghana, Alliance Francaise Accra, Accra City Hotel, Ibis Styles Hotel, Bollore, Societe Generale Ghana, Wigal and Decathlon.

By John Owoo

(In Accra – Ghana)

Spanning three days of presentations by literary legends, readings, panel discussions, book launches /signings, PaGya Literary Festival 2019 ended on Sunday October 20 at the Goethe-Institut in Accra.

Indeed, it was a memorable celebration of reading, writing, performance and publishing, which embraced literature lovers from fifteen countries in Europe, the United States and others parts of Africa.

With big names such as Prof. Ato Quayson, Prof. Esi Sutherland and Prof. Kofi Anyidoho  (Ghana), PaGya equally paraded several female writers including  Phillippa Yaa De Villiers (South Africa), Kathleho Kano Shoro / Mmakgoshi Anita Tau (Botswana) and Oyinkansola Ifeoluwa Braithwaite (Nigeria).

Easily one of the largest gathering of literature lovers in Ghana, the festival equally provided a platform to writers who don’t always get heard while keeping the spirit of creativity intact and alive in the city of Accra and beyond.

One of the memorable moments was a spoken word / poetry session that centered on similar themes - gender, love, culture and politics - but each was delivered with its own breath, flair, jargons and passion thereby swaying the audience from one act to the other.

With enthusiasm and energy that was quite infectious, Tanya Evanson (Canada), Feleicia Cade (USA), Poetess Phopho (Botswana), Hasmullah, Kwame Brenya, Nana Asaase, Mariska Taylor (Ghana) delighted the crowd with clearly rehearsed recitals as introductions and poems flowed effortlessly.

Interspersed with music and images beamed on a giant screen, their delivery was magical, perfectly timed, clear and poignant. Indeed, they tended to allow the poems to speak for themselves while subtly stressing the significant lines that may not fully come alive when read from a book.

Goethe-Institut Ghana sponsored the festival, which was organized in collaboration with the Writers Project of Ghana under the direction of Dr. Martin Egblewogbe and Mamle Kabu.

By John Owoo

(In Accra – Ghana)

Prof. Ato Quayson last week dilated on several issues relating to his award winning books “Oxford Street” and “Fathers & Daughters” in a chat with Prof. Esi Sutherland during the opening ceremony of PaGya Literary Festival at the Goethe-Institut in Accra.

Prof. Sutherland (Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana) engaged Prof. Quayson (Department of English, Stanford University - USA) on the roots of cosmopolitanism, urbanism and distribution of space among others following his descriptive account of the city of Accra in “Oxford Street”.

Indeed, Prof. Quayson unearthed the various planning systems that have shaped Accra alongside diverse effects that were compounded by the International Monetary Fund’s certified structural adjustment programs, which largely prepared the way for the early transformation of Osu from a largely residential neighborhood into a dynamic shopping, business and recreational area.

He revealed through “Oxford Street”, the penetrating commercialism, which clearly coexists with blatant economic inequalities thereby making this famous road a microcosm of historical and urban processes that have turned Accra into the variegated and contradictory metropolis it has become.

PaGya equally hosted workshops on Spoken Word / Poetry” (Tanya Evanson - Canada), “Young Adult Fiction” (Yaba Badoe – UK / Ghana), “Non Fiction & Memoirs” (Sabata Mpho Mokae & Pelu Awofeso - South Africa / Nigeria), “Writing Conscience into Fiction” (Chuma Nwokolo) and “Poetry” (Phillippa Yaa De Villiers – South Africa) were held concurrently in various spaces of the Institut.  

Reading / discussions involved Oliver Van Beemen (A Multinational Unleashed), Maria Kwami (Secrets of the Bending Grove), Ositadima Amakaze (The Last Carver), The Waiting (Dr. Martin Egblewogbe), Ayesha Harunna Atta (Les Cent Puis de Salaga), Empi Baryeh (Expecting Ty’s Baby) and Yaba Badoe (Wolf Light and A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars).

Panel discussion topics include “Non Fiction, Memoirs and Biographies”, “Personal Perspectives on Popular Fiction”, “Writing for Children”, “Literary Reviews”, “New Initiatives by Libraries in Ghana”, “Literary Reviews”, “Trends in Ghanaian Contemporary Theatre” and  “Sci Fi and Fantasy in Contemporary African Writing / Afrofuturism” among others.

Spoken word performers and poets, who captivated literature lovers include Kathleho Kano Shoro / Mmakgoshi Anita Tau (Botswana), Nana Asaase / Kwame Nwom (Ghana), Tanya Evanson (Canada), Phillippa Yaa De Villiers / Nametso (South Africa) and Mariska Araba Taylor / Eliplim Akorli (Ghana).

Goethe-Institut Ghana sponsored PaGya Literary Festival 2019, which organized in collaboration with the Writers Project of Ghana under the direction of Dr. Martin Egblewogbe and Mamle Kabu.

By John Owoo

(In Accra – Ghana)

“Chronicles of Klinu”, a digital game developed by a group of young graduates and tertiary students with support from Goethe-Institut Ghana, was last week launched with a vibrant ceremony in Accra.

Launching the game, which forms part of a project dubbed “Enter Africa” - the director of the Goethe-Institut Heike Friesel - revealed that the Goethe-Institut has been supporting the creation of similar games in fifteen countries throughout Sub Saharan Africa.

She added that Enter Africa is a project initiated by the Goethe-Institut, which involves many partners including game design / gamification experts, architects and urban planners from Germany and Ethiopia as well as other stakeholder organizations from different African countries.

Countries involved are Senegal, Kenya, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Namibia, Togo, La Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Tanzania, Cameroon and Ghana, which has Prince Andrew Ardayfio, Matthew Hansen and Louis Makafui at the helm of affairs.

The game is set in Agbogbloshie, a suburb of Accra noted for dumping and burning of e-waste. A player embodies Klinu, a space commander who works for a cooperation that is responsible for sanitation in N’evulandi, a distant utopia far advanced in technologies and the spheres of science.

However, the company made mistakes in the disposal of hardware and electronic waste. Klinu loses his wife to Lera, a creature who emerged out of the old electronics as a result of improper disposal of waste. In an attempt to seek refuge, Lera flees N’evulandi to Earth, forcing Klinu’s hand.

The games being created in all the fifteen countries anticipate a transformation process of cities and envision future scenarios, which include challenges for infrastructure, culture, environment and how they awareness would be created and solved in a playful way.

Consequently, all participating countries will identify joint topics and create one analogue African game with a focus on borderless frontiers and the promotion of African cultures, which would be made accessible to the general public throughout the continent and beyond.

Indeed, this project has generated a network of creative, innovative and young professionals across the African continent – the Enter Africa Community. Together, hey will employ the use games and game thinking to realize colossal visions for Africa’s future.

“Chronicles of Klinu”, which was tested at Agbogbloshie by a participants of a film workshop organized by the Goethe-Institut, will be presented at Gamescom, a games festival, which would be held in the German city of Cologne in August 2019.

By John Owoo

(In Accra – Ghana)

Gallery 1957 in Accra brought nostalgic feelings as I walk calmly into its well lit space - I am immediately confronted by a façade of a Ghanaian house that serves as an objective and symbolic window into the life of Ghanaian artist Gideon Appah.

As I get closer, the reminiscence appears to intensify as I set my eyes on a black and white television set, Gold Star VHS video recorder, broken ladder, wooden bench, banana or plantain tree, trap doors with inscriptions by kids, broken flower pots and rusted aluminum roofing sheets.

Severally and jointly, the artist brings his childhood memories and upbringing in focus through his family life while re-contextualizing the family space with multi layered stories that resonate the lives and activities of many African families.   

Indeed, memorable love letters, personal / family photos covered in transparent plastic sheets and films produced in Ghana on VHS tapes, which highlight themes relating to preservation of local traditions against embracing global desires and foreign cultures effectively add to the unfolding narrative of Appah.   

His large-scale paintings employ a chromatic language that uncovers hidden historical tales and communal predictions that engulfed his family while reflecting those of his neighborhood, its immediate environs and the country at large.

Spirituality is visible with churchgoers clad in while apparel set against blue backgrounds while melancholy waters from surreal works come together to reveal the spirituality and physicality of Appah’s story with others depicting the space between domesticity and folklore.

Appah, who is the winner of the 1^st Merit Prize Award at the Barclays l’Atelier Art Competition in Johannesburg (South Africa), has featured in group shows at FRACCIONAR – Casa Luis Barragán (Mexico), a booth with Gallery 1957 at 1-54 Contemporary Africa Art Fair (New York - USA) and the Goethe-Institut (Accra - Ghana).   

Katherine Finerty (USA) and Michael Babanawo (Ghana) are curating the exhibition, which is titled “Love Letters”. It ends on Thursday August 15.