SOCIAL SCENE
ALL THAT JAZZ The Safaricom International Jazz Festival has been working with The Art of Music Foundation and Ghetto Classics to transform lives through Jazz and has led to over Ksh 19 million being raised for the Ghetto Classics.
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n the compound of a Catholic Church in Korogocho, a group of young teens play musical instruments, alternately picking out melancholy soul tunes and upbeat jazz riffs. It’s not the kind of music you’d expect to hear in these environs as Korogocho is a large slum north east of Nairobi. But this no normal set up. In the depths of the slum, not far away from the infamous Dandora dump site, lies a facility that is the home of Ghetto Classics. The programme aims to provide young people with music education as an alternative to the pitfalls of life in the slum, employing classical teaching methods to introduce at-risk youngsters to the world of live music performance. Launched in 2008, Ghetto Classics has benefitted about 1,000 teenagers to date from Korogocho, Dandora and Mukuru kwa Reuben. Each week 650 members of the programme receive music training from volunteers courtesy of The Art of Music Foundation, which set up the initiative to keep the pre-teens and teens of Korogocho out of trouble and help them create a better future for themselves and their families. The Art of Music Foundation have succeeded with a little help from you and me. All proceeds from the wildly
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popular Safaricom International Jazz Festival have led to over Ksh 19 million being raised for the Ghetto Classics. It’s a first of its kind sponsorship, made possible by Safaricom and other partners since February 2014 when the festival was launched. “We’ve been able to buy instruments, pay school fees and rent for some of our members and even remove some of the girls from environments that exposed them to sexual abuse. It has become much more than music; we’re transforming the community,” Ghetto Classics Co-Founder Elizabeth Njoroge says. The Ghetto Classics are slowly earning recognition and respect both locally and abroad. They not only performed for President Uhuru Kenyatta upon invitation to State House, they also had the opportunity to play for the Pope when he visited Kenya in November last year. “When we held our first practice session at St. John’s Catholic Parish in Korogocho in 2008, I didn’t think we would get this far,” says Ms. Njoroge, who is widely regarded as a surrogate mom by the children in the Ghetto Classics program. Watching her with them, it’s easy to see why. She’s their champion, someone they look up to and someone who by sheer determination has opened up opportunities for them to
meet and play alongside some of the world’s biggest jazz musicians. For many of them, never in their wildest dreams had they imagined that they would one day be seated in a room with Hugh Masekela. “I told him about some of the kids’ backgrounds and he was amazed by how far they’ve come in the last seven years,” Elizabeth adds. It’s also easy to see why the Safaricom Jazz Lounge is so important to them. Who wouldn’t want to watch Hugh Masekela live? He’s shared the stage with some of the biggest names in music, earned a reputation for peppering his performances with hilarious anecdotes collected over a career spanning more than six decades, and on 12th August 2016 threw Nairobi’s jazz lovers into a frenzy when he took the stage at the Safaricom Jazz Lounge. With an energy and zeal that belied his 77 years, Masekela commanded the stage for almost two hours and played some of his greatest hits – including the highly anticipated Grazing in the Grass and Stimela – to an enthusiastic audience. In between songs, the outspoken trumpeter entertained the audience with stories that gave a glimpse into his colourful past, delivering a rib-cracking monologue on modern Africa’s preoccupation with Western
Culture (women with weaves beware), his 30 years in exile and inspiration behind some of his music. Preceding his performance were amazing sets by Nairobi Horns Project and Mwai and The Truth, two of Kenya’s hottest jazz bands right now. This was no ordinary jazz performance: this was undoubtedly one of the best shows put together by Safaricom. To the average music lover, the concert is a great chance to meet up with friends, enjoy some world-class entertainment by local and international jazz maestros, and indulge in a wide selection of food and drinks (Kenyan, Ethiopian and Asian cuisines were great attractions this time). The festival comprises of a series of events that bring together artists from all over the world for a celebration of live jazz music, including the Safaricom Jazz Lounge, the newly introduced monthly jazz nights and the climax – the annual Safaricom International Jazz Festival itself. For Ghetto Classics, this celebration of music goes beyond the singing, dancing and laughter, to a lifeline that is transforming their lives. This is not just another concert, this is music that moves… If you don’t believe it, you need to go and see it for yourself.