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!
source:www.lagosblackheritagefestival.com
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