The global
financial crisis has affected many international arts events, but some are
soldiering on despite funding cuts and other difficulties. The Harare
International Festival of the Arts (HIFA) is one of those that's determined to
continue celebrating “the healing and constructive capacity of the arts”, as
the organizers put it.
Hailed widely as one of the best-run festivals in Africa, HIFA takes place in the Zimbabwean capital
from April 30 to May 5 and has its usual eclectic line-up this year. Performers
from Africa and other regions are showcasing jazz, classical music and pop,
among the different genres.
The artists
include Senegalese singer and guitarist Baaba Maal, quirky London-based rock
band The Noisettes, multi-lingual Zimbabwean singer Busi Ncube and the Irish
traditional music group Téada, to name a few.
The meeting
of cultures is perhaps personified in Japanese musician Sakaki Mango, who has taken the African "thumb piano", or mbira, and added elements of traditional
and modern Japanese culture to "create an exciting musical fusion”, according to HIFA’s directors.
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| Japanese musician Sakaki Mango |
Mango sings
in Japanese, and he mixes rock, his country's traditional music, Colombian Cumbia
music, and electronic effects to create a unique sound. He’ll perform
on the same stage (though not at the same time) as the exuberant Portuguese
band Anaquim and the Austrialian trumpeter and didgeridoo player Chris
Williams.
HIFA
spokesperson Tafadzwa Simba told SWAN that the programme extends to theatre,
spoken word, craft and design, and contemporary dance. Simba added that between 50,000 and 70,000
spectators are expected over the six days of the event.
Reviewers
have said that HIFA serves to unify disparate groups, especially at a time of
“ideological conflict and political uncertainty”. Since its establishment in
1999, the annual festival has certainly spotlighted the talents of many performers who
deserve a wider audience and brought people together to enjoy the gifts these
artists have to offer.
