This year, the Lagos Black Heritage Festival takes a break from its current series –-
The Black in the Mediterranean Blue.
While the Festival policy of a thematic selection for each edition is
not abandoned, it moves from the geographic outlook to the disciplinary
-- the discipline for this year being: Music.
The LBHF 2014 events hold from April 14th through 21st at the Freedom Park (Old Colonial Prison), I Hospital Road, off Broad Street, Lagos.
Much is happening in the musical
field, but there is a domination of Eura-merican pop forms, which near
completely stifles the exploration of indigenous musical resources both
in direct performance for audiences, and in their application to other
disciplines –- most notably in theatre and cinema/video. Regarding the
latter, when one considers what passes for incidental or ‘mood’ music in
much of the output of the ever-expanding African film industry, it
becomes a classic case of a visual assault compounded by aural
aggravation! A reverse track may yet be brought about by exposing film
and video directors to possibilities from neglected musical modes within
their own cultural environment.
Traditional drama was founded on what was generally dubbed ‘folk opera’,
a form that is largely dying out. Additionally therefore, in an attempt
to resuscitate this unique performance genre, so highly developed in
other societies –- see, for instance, the heights to which it has been
taken in countries like China -- LBHF yields Front Stage this year to
Music, its fortunes under technological enhancements and the
proliferation of foreign music. Music, we know, plays a dominant role in
social life.
The Festival will use the event to also pay tribute also to pioneers
–- such as Steve Rhodes –- whose struggling orchestra and choral
ensemble won laurels in famous international competitions such as the
Welsh Eisteddfod. It will provide a homecoming platform for contemporary
composers whose works have been enjoyed for decades by foreign
audiences but remain totally unknown in their own homeland.
Summatively, LBHF plans to open the
eyes (and ears!) of aspiring musicians to the vastly unexplored
possibilities of the musical forms right in their own backyards, as an
option to the largely imitative trend currently pursued by a new
generation of musicians. Innovative African music, we propose, should
not end with Afro-beat!
DRAMA…. EXPOSITIONS…. FILM…. DO YOUR OWN THING etc. etc. etc.
As always, the supporting cast to the main theme will be out in full
form. There will be at least two dramatic premieres, the ever-popular
DO YOUR OWN THING, always a showcase of surprise talents and unpredictable presentations.
The WATER REGATTA constantly outdoes its previous outing, festooning the lagoon in a blaze of pennants and choreographed motions, while the
STREET CARNIVAL
continues to complement its Calabar sister Carnival, which rounds up
each year, even as the Lagos version ushers in the next every Easter
Monday. Not to be missed of course is the Grand Opening itself with its
Ancestral Parade through the streets of Lagos. And to inject continuing
relevance and ancestral readiness to be pressed into contemporary
service, the Ancestors have a surprise appearance for mortal beings in
this edition.
From ancestors to the living: the
NIGHT OF THE POETS celebrates the lyric voices of the living, then further down to the next generation which is represented in the
CHILDREN’S CARNIVAL, while their viewpoint of the world they inhabit finds expression in
VISION OF THE CHILD,
a competitive exposition through brush and paint, poetry and prose,
that seeks out, and gives pride of attention to the often unheard
questions and aspirations of creative minors.
Once again, the state and city of Lagos roll out their mat of
variegated colours and textures to locals and visitors alike, saying –
WELCOME!
