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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22, 2011
The Midweek Magazine E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com
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Ezeigbo revisits the civil war
EMORIES of the NigeriaBiafra Civil War will reverberate at the Abuja Writers Forum on June 25, when Prof. Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo reads from her latest novel, Roses and Bullets. It will hold at the Pen and Pages Bookstore, White House Plaza, Plot 79, Adetokunbo Ademola Crescent, Wuse 2, Abuja. The event will include the usual side attractions of poetry performance, mini art exhibition, and a raffle draw will also feature live music. A professor at the University of Lagos, Adimora-Ezeigbo is a prolific writer with publications in poetry, fiction and children’s literature. These include five novels, The Last of the Strong Ones, House of Symbols and Children of the Eagle (a trilogy), Trafficked and Roses and Bullets; four collections of short stories, Rhythms of Life: Stories of Modern Nigeria, Rituals and Departures, Echoes in the Mind and Fractures and Fragments; three poetry collections, Heart Songs, Waiting for Dawn and Cloud and Other Poems for Children; and twenty children’s story books. While two of her children’s novels have been translated into Swahili and Xhosa, two of her unpublished plays, Hands that Crush Stone
and Barmaid and the Witches of Izunga, have been performed by the students of the Departments of Creative Arts and English at the University of Lagos. In a recent interview, she explained that the Civil war has been part of her life in various ways and writing a novel about it was inevitable. “I started writing it in 2003. I got all the materials I needed from writing my thesis; it was not difficult writing the novel but I did not have time. It was when I got a one-year fellowship at the Royal Holloway University (London) in 2006 that I had time to write. I completed the book in 2007. I have been reworking it and giving other people to read, and now it is ready for publishing. “It is basically about two important characters, a young man and a young woman in a period of war. The war affected their love; it actually destroyed it. It is about their lives and their families. The girl is the most important character. “The story widens to bring in the war experience and other characters that were affected by it. Roses and Bullets is a love story set before and after the war. I have read everything on the Nigerian civil war. Apart from witnessing it, I have been able to transmute ideas and facts into fiction.”
•Akachi
Sonia in Toronto world concert
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ATUKI Music Society and the Gladstone Hotel will on July 1, present Nigerian-born songwriter, singer and actress Sonia Aimy (Aimiuwu) at the Melody Bar, Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen St. West, Toronto, the next in the world concert series that takes place on first Friday of every month between 7 and 10 pm. Sonia will be backed by a lineup of Toronto’s top African players including guitarist Pa Joe, bassist Ebenezer Agyekum, keyboardist Suleiman Juma and Kwame on drums. The concert will feature a diverse lineup of performers with a strong focus on African music. Guest DJ Apollo will spin from his extensive collection of African popular and classic hits. With a velvety voice comparable to the greats, the singer is the quintessential virtuoso of world music. Her CD, Mother, evokes highlife, Afrobeat, jazz and the call-and-response of African griot tradition; her style is effortlessly ‘Afrojazz’. Fluent in English, Italian, French and other African languages, Sonia enjoys exploring Toronto’s diversity, which, already knee-deep in African music, will be much richer once she
takes the stage on Canada Day. Sonia is a singer, actress choreographer and writer. Her work experience in the arts led her to work with the National Theatre of Turin, Rome, Alma Theatre as well as RAI Radio Television Italia. She has performed at numerous concerts throughout Europe and often accompanied by artists from Africa. The multi-talented Sonia has also starred in several Italian films. Her work in the media includes writing, directing and presenting multicultural programmes for radio. Sonia’s music career started when she was in her teens, singing at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Benin City, Edo State. She developed interest in folk, traditional music and storytelling. She later enrolled in the Esigie Cultural Group to pursue further education in traditional music and dance. When she came to Italy, she studied jazz music and interpretation as well as theatre arts. This extra music education as well as practice through performances has allowed her to craft a sound solely her, which is a beautiful amalgam of folk, Afro-pop and jazz.
Queen Nefertiti’s branding of folklores •Continued from page 32 suspense. That is the joker for me." The troupe has performed before a-list guests and at prominent cultural and artistic events across the country. Its ability to thrill the audience with folksongs from the locality of its hosts has become its major selling point. In her view, it would be hard for people to mime their songs, therefore, her copyright is somewhat protected. For this reason, she sees her group as a pioneer of a sort. She said: "We are different, unique and classic. Singing in other languages, our voices, the costumes, appearance, name it. We are the pathfinder of an all-women folklore singing group in Nigeria. I have not seen any around here, there may be in other parts of the world, I don't know, but I know of Nigeria we are ruling. We are still the best because you can easily get others anywhere but it is difficult to do what we do because we learn other people's languages and we communicate to them through singing. At The Nation's Editorial Board Chairman Sam Omatseye's 50th birthday cum books launch, the group entertained guests with Itsekiri songs that drew the the celebrant
and other guests, such as the wife of the former governor of Lagos State Senator Oluremi Tinubu and Hon. Temi Harriman, to the dance floor. It was the same experience at an Arthouse Forum organised by Committee For Relevant Arts (CORA) to mark the 50th birthday of Yeni, the first daughter of the late Afrobeat's legend, Fela Anikulapo Kuti. Adunni & Nefertiti treated guests to traditional Abeokuta songs. They included the popular Egba anthem, Lori oke o'un petele composed by Yeni's great-grandfather. The group is usually arranged into the parts of music - alto, tenor and soprano. This, she said is to create melody. Aside Adunni, other members of the group are Yetunde Mausi Whesu-Balogun, Oyedokun Bukola Hephzibah, Stella Abednigo, Deborah Ohiri and Folashade Orobiyi, among others. "The arrangement is meant to create melody. As the lead singer, I usually have two, three or four melody singers to one side and alto and tenor singers on the other end to allow for melody." The group is also into live musical performances. This unique feature has also become its selling point. But has the venture
into music been financially gratifying, she was asked. "It has, to some extent. But, sometimes, it feels like cutting off somebody's head with what some people are willing to pay. It’s as if they do not want me to feed my family. But I make them understand we are giving them a professional job. I tell them ‘if Dbanj is invited to play on stage, you know how much you would pay him and it is not like he will come with his equipment. He would mime his CD while performing.’ Yet, people find it difficult to pay someone that will come with girls to do a live performance. And a capella is the most challenging, you have to project well. However, the price depends on what we are called for, distance and venue, and how big the programme is. Because we do band stand; we do a capella and with traditional drumming also, among others." The group's first album entitled Ayeraye, which is a deviation from what it preaches, is currently in the market. "What we sing for stage performances is quite different from what we have in our album; but it is in praise to our maker. Our next album is going to be different and unique. It would like when we are on stage."
POETRY
Law By Bolaji St.Ramos I call law not just an ass, It is the world’s only compass Pointing its many fingers To all the fields of man’s life. I call law the Devil’s advocate Yet, God’s only syndicate— A bow in the hands of Devil; An arrow in grinding grip of God. Advocatus dei Advocatus diaboli The Alpha of the flame The Omega of the Paradise. Law is Themis With the blindfold hovering over Just one eye, And freeing the other for the initiates. Yet, sword and scales in hands To pass a judgment fair. I call law the master and slave, A phenomenon with double standard With all kinds of chameleonic brands . Green is thy colour in Spring Yellowish brown is it in Autumn. Father of stability Father of instability The certain that is uncertain The uncertain that is certain. Law is the inseparable Siamese twins A wound that digs deep Into the innocent heart of Peter To revive Paul from his guilty sleep. Its fact could sum up to its fiction Its fiction could add up to its fact. I call law the pendulum Of all times of existence— A determiner that will not determine, A verb that hangs its action, An adjective that postpones its qualification, A hypocrite pronoun that shields identity; Until it has conspicuously seen Whom its object to act upon be. Law a confusion Law a commotion Law a dispute conciliator Law an arbitrator… A sentence without a full stop. A question with double question marks?? Law a hangman Law an executioner Law a technician Law a politician A creator with exclusive right to kill A bow in the hands of the Devil An arrow in the grip of God.