Registration now open for National Marimba Festival

"We are incredibly excited to be staging our popular National Festival at the Morris Isaacson venue," says Hilde Gordon, executive director of the MEF. "For the first seven years the National Festival was hosted at St Dominic's, Boksburg, Gauteng, but now, as part of our long-term vision to explore other centres and provinces, we have made the move to Soweto, renamed the festival and we have partnered with the Arts Alive International Festival 2013."

An inclusive competition

Registration for the not-to-be-missed, inaugural Soweto National Marimba Festival is now open. The one-day festival, while having a strong emphasis on participation, takes the form of a competition. This competitive aspect, together with the opportunity for cross-pollination of ideas, styles and repertoires, is what raises the standards of playing and the levels of creativity, says Gordon.

Festival participants come from all walks of life, with learners from the most exclusive schools playing alongside youngsters from the most impoverished areas. It accommodates all schools and ages within 14 carefully structured sections: from primary to high schools, from amateur to professional bands, from pure instrumentals to marimba performances that incorporate vocal performances and dancing, this Marimba Festival provides a platform for all exponents of this increasingly popular instrument.

"We are confident that we will once again raise the bar and present an inspiring showcase of the extraordinary marimba playing talent that we have in South Africa," asserts Gordon, "and learners, teachers and parents will undoubtedly enjoy a day filled with vibrant, exciting performances."

Supporting education, recreation, self-expression

The festival will take place at the Morris Isaacson School Hall, 1349 Mputhi Street, Central Western Jabavu, Soweto on Saturday, 7 September from 8.30am to 6pm. Participation is open to all Marimba bands: Primary School, Secondary School, Open. The festival entry is R80 per participant/spectator and R200 registration fee per school for competition entry.

The MEF, a section 21 company, aims to promote the playing of the marimba in schools and communities across the board, as a form of education, recreation and self-expression. In the past the foundation has supported participation by blind players from the Eastern Cape and a school for special needs from KwaZulu-Natal and currently is sponsoring instruments for people with disabilities in Soshanguve. Initially the festival was predominantly self-funded, though later it enjoyed support from SAMRO, The Arts & Culture Trust, Upana Projects, Department of Arts and Culture and several local music shops.

The 2013 festival has been made possible with the support of the following sponsors: SAMRO; National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF); The Arts & Culture Trust (ACT); UNISA Music Foundation; DRD Gold; BASA; and partnerships with the Morris Isaacson High School; MIAGI; Gauteng Department of Sports, Arts, Culture and Recreation; Gauteng Department of Education and City of Johannesburg's Arts Alive Festival.

For more information, or to register online, go to www.mef.org.za.