ALLIANCE Francaise de Harare’s cultural excursions that occasionally feature local and continental artistes through its Friyay monthly music showcase have become a celebration of the diverse yet interconnected musical traditions across Africa.
This was witnessed on November 15 when the cultural centre hosted an unforgettable evening as three extraordinary artistes Marsi Essomba from Cameroon, jazz prodigy Josh Meck, vocalist and guitarist Tariro Negitare united to celebrate the diversity of African sound and the richness of Bantu culture.
In attendance was the new France ambassador to Zimbabwe, Paul-Bertrand Barets, European Union ambassador to Zimbabwe Jobst von Kirchmann, Alliance Francaise Harare director Fanny Gauthier and Zimbabwe Music Rights Association chairperson Albert Nyathi, among other guests.
What stands out with the cultural exchanges is Meck’s collaborative genius as witnessed when he shared the stage with Essomba, a versatile artiste — griot, guitarist, slammer and singer.
Before Essomba’s one-man act, Tariro Negitare added a touch of feminine pop elegance with her unique voice and guitar playing skills, warming up the crowd that had gathered under the cover of a huge tent erected to shelter music lovers who had attended despite the falling rains.
Following Tariro Negitare’s set, Essomba took to the stage, dressed in a striking black outfit adorned with intricate blue patterns that flowed down to the hem.
On his head, he wore a traditional Zulu head band known as umqhele.
With guitar in hand, the artiste performed solo, immersing the audience in the heartbeat of West Africa that he infused with his personal exploration of Bantu heritage as he tapped into his rap and storytelling skills.
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Essomba weaves together traditional and contemporary sounds, reflecting universal themes such as love, identity and cultural pride.
In a beautiful showcase of the power of collaboration Essomba, a poet himself, then invited local word smith Kuda Rice on stage to perform a piece titled ‘Conflict’.
Essomba strummed his guitar while Rice delivered a mesmerising and free-flowing recital of spoken word poetry much to the delight of the audience.
The last act saw Meck, the guitar virtuso, and his band closing off with a brilliant perfomance that was made extra special by the presence of Essomba, who brought in a Cameroonian flavour.
“Performing at this recently held collaborative show with Marsi was an experience for me because we were bringing two cultures together that are totally different,” Meck told NewsDay Weekender Life & Style.
“It was quite an experience to come up with what we did and it was unique, I loved every bit of it. Collaborations open your mind and push your boundaries, especially in rehearsals when you’re trying to get things together to make sense.
“It pushes your boundaries and I love my boundaries to be pushed, it makes me a better musician so I'm quite happy with the outcome of the show and how we performed.”
The audience had the pleasure of witnessing the Sofar Harare alumnus perform songs such as Hoyo Mwana, Akabatwa, I Have a Vision, Changu Chipo and a host of other tracks sampled from his albums, namely Wanetsa, Nhaka Yemusha, Fruit Salad and Another Level.
His perfomance of the reggae version of his single Anenyasha, originally an Afro RnB track, had the crowd on their feet and singing along to the groovy and soulful beat coupled with Meck’s soulful and composed vocals.
The night turned into a beautiful session of collaboration as the jazz prodigy invited several artistes on stage, including Derrick Mpofu, who went on to honour Nyathi who was celebrating his birthday on the same day.
Emotional, the dub poet brought yesteryear memories when Mpofu led the band on the classic hit song Senzeni Na?, with Nyathi setting the tone with his powerful voice and the audience singing along.
The jam session also featured Selmor Mtukudzi, Mono Mukundu, Joshua Godobo, Tendai and Freedom Manatsa who brought a celebratory atmosphere to the concert.
The next day on November 16 saw Meck travelling to Bulawayo for another set with Essombo that was hosted at Alliance Francaise de Bulawayo.
Besides presenting his new show Essombalogik, which is a transversal show that mixes hip-hop, slam, storytelling and Ekang (a group of closely related ethnic groups found in Central Africa), Essombo also participated in a slam and music writing workshop as well as poetry and slam performances with local artistes.
