World Music Day 2022 Recap

Hello, and thank you to everyone who came out to our world music celebration this year!
We had a fantastic turnout, and met many new faces and community members. We were so happy to share the rich musical heritages of those in our community and we had some lovely African and Middle-Eastern snacks!
We had four great performers sharing their art and heritage with us.

Jose and Chilean Music

We started the evening with Jose Rojas, Dandelion’s musician in residence, who told us about Chilean music and how Spanish, Latin American indigenous peoples, and African cultures mixed together to create new vibrant Latin American musical traditions. He touched on the importance of African percussion to the identity of Africans who had been kidnapped and enslaved, and that drumming was a way of preserving cultural ties to home. We learned about the cajon drum and the Pandero Cuequero ( a rattle drum similar to a tambourine). Jose shared a few traditional songs and rhythms, and even led an interactive Lando called “Samba Malato”, which got the whole group involved. His other performance was of “Madame a Quitar la Vida” It was a great performance, and an amazing lesson on how cultures can interact and share their heritages to create beauty together.

I’ll just quickly add that Jose will be leading the percussion part of our Summer of Growth Programme for the young people. Please click below for additional information about that project!

https://ama-zingharmonies.org.uk/2022/06/27/summer-of-growth-project/

Joshua and Scottish Rap

Joshua is a local musician who helps youth find their voice through rap and music. He sang for us a song whose lyrics had been written by a 14 year old student about “breaking that TV” so that they can be seen for who they are. He also shared a beautiful and though provoking poem he had written himself, and rapped about the busyness of life and finding time to focus on yourself. Rap is such a potent art of communication, and Joshua’s work to help people find their voice and share their ideas through music and poetry is a great asset to our community.

Jerusalem and Ethiopian Dance

Jerusalem is a local artist who writes poetry and music about Ethiopia and the Tigray crisis. She shared the tragic conflict that is happening in Tigray, and how it is often under-reported and forgotten in favour of Western media. Ethiopia has such as rich culture and history for Islam and Christianity, as well is an inspiration for Pan-African culture through fashion, colours, music and dance. Jerusalem shared with us a community dance that we all joined together in. It was great fun to experience the dance and music together, as well as seeing the vibrant fashions of Ethiopia. We hope that Tigray and Ethiopia soon find peace and that the people affected find support.

Jean and Mbira

Jean is an amazing member of our community choir who shared with us the beautiful sounds of the Mbira, an instrument similar to the kalimba with mesmerising and calming sounds. Together we sang two African rounds with the choir, and Jean played a solo piece for us. We are grateful to Jean’s continued impact on the choir. Jean also plays West African harp, also known as the Kora. It is a harp made from calabash gourd and animal skin with over 21 strings.