The Nyanga Arts Festival will roar into like over the weekend of 27-29 October, in the beautiful setting of Zimbabwe’s eastern highlands.
The inaugural event is expected to to lay the foundation for increased awareness, appreciation and tourism to this unique part of the country.
Nyanga is steeped in history, rich in its unique cultural traditions and situated in the pristine beauty of its rolling hills and majestic mountains.
In a statement, organisers of the event said the public can expect a festival deep traditional to popular contemporary African music, environment-conscious theatre, the work of sculptors and craftspeople of Nyanga, a music business masterclass and NGO directors summer retreat, sampling of fine Nyanga ciders and other produce, nature and sightseeing tours – something for everyone and a great family weekend outing.
Leading artists who will grace the event include Feli Nandi, Jah Prayzah, ‘Mangoma’ Moyo and ‘Music According to Percussion’, Memory Kumbota and Zenzo Nyathi, MC Abisha Palmer, the artist ‘Mystery’ and ‘Sarungano & The Storytellers Band’.
On the business side of music is a masterclass on Thursday 27 October with Music Crossroads’ Melody Zambuko, legendary drummer/band/tour manager Sam Mataure, and Lisa Sidambe of Nhimbe Trust speaking on the global initiative ‘Music Decent Work’.
Mayors of Harare, Bulawayo and Mutare have accepted invitations to attend the event, lending their endorsement to the concerted Nyanga Arts Festival
Festival Programme
Thursday 27 October, 9am-1pm – MUSIC BUSINESS MASTERCLASS -– Country Club Hall
Friday 28 October, 9am-1pm – THEATRE: ‘AN ACT OF MAN’ – Maereka Primary School
Friday 28 October, 2-5pm – BIRA – Chief Saunyama Homestead: ‘Music According to
Percussion’; ‘Mystery’; ‘Sarungano & The Storytellers Band’
Sat 29 October, 7pm-late – CONCERT – Montclair Hotel: Jah Prayzah, Feli Nandi, MC Abisha
Palmer
Venues and Accommodation
The main festival partner, the Montclair Hotel set in spacious grounds with luxurious accommodation, outdoor facilities and all the fun of the Casino, provides the main stage of the festival, with others being Chief Saunyama’s homestead, the local Country Club and Maereka Primary School.
Other accommodation can be found at the Pinetree Inn and Village Inn who are also partners of the festival, and other establishments in the surrounding area.
Cultural Heritage Tourism Contributing strongly to the Cultural Heritage Tourism element of the festival, the ensemble ‘Music According to Percussion’ (aka MAP) will be venturing deeper than lively entertainment, reaching into the past and bringing knowledge and experience of the Nyonganyonga/Malimba and the Nyanga Panpipes back to their place of origin.
Both instruments had become endangered, seen only in museums, but are now being brought to both festival visitors and local communities in the exciting Bira at the homestead of Chief Saunyama.
Moving into the modern world, MAP have augmented the Jekunje style of drumming, Nyonganyonga/malimba, mbira music and Nyanga panpipes with western electrical instruments while still keeping its core rhythmic and harmonic structures.
Addressing Climate Change
Culture is a powerful resource for addressing climate change impacts. Natural heritage sites serve as vital ‘sinks’ for greenhouse gas emissions, and are key for the protection of biodiversity.
Intangible cultural heritage practices have proven to be highly effective tools for helping communities prepare for, respond to and recover from climate change-related impact and emergencies.
And yet despite the fundamental relationship between culture and climate change mitigation and adaptation, culture is largely absent from our discussions on climate change today.
Nyanga Arts Festival is the only local festival with a mandate that encompasses heritage tourism and climate change, and an unparalleled resource for mitigation and resilience
The hospitality industry depends on a healthy global ecosystem and is uniquely vulnerable to environmental damage. The festival is a key platform for raising awareness to reduce the carbon footprint of tourism establishments in Nyanga.
Integrating a concern for the environment into cultural policies in Zimbabwe can also reduce the carbon footprint of the
creative economy of which arts festivals are a core constituency.
The Festival offers a guide for Nyanga hospitality ecosystem. A delegation of lecturers from the Chinhoyi University of Technology will attend, to explore and appreciate how festivals can enrich academic discourse for innovation and the provision of goods and services for community empowerment.
Festival organisers said they were pleasantly surprised by the high level of organization and sense of community responsibility, and grateful to Nyanga volunteers who will embark on a clean-up exercise at Juliasdale.
National Arts Council of Zimbabwe Director Nicholas Moyo said the hosting of the inaugural Nyanga Arts Festival is a much-welcome development for the Cultural and Creative Sector in Zimbabwe and provides proof that the sector has managed to pick itself up and recover from the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The Festival is a unique opportunity to uplift Zimbabwe’s diverse arts and cultural products while promoting and showcasing Nyanga as a tourist destination of choice. I would like to congratulate the organisers for putting up this event which provides a platform for artists to showcase their craft, share experiences in the workshop accompanying the festival and
above all increase the platform for the consumption of local Cultural and Creative Sector products and services.”
