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Clive Monomukundu Own Correspondent

The Zimbabwe Jazz Festival held at Alliance Francaise last Saturday lived up to expectations. All the acts were on fire and Jazz fans got their money’s worth. 

The opening performance was by the group Intotal and the young men represented themselves admirably. 

Even after they had left the stage, everyone was still buzzing about their performance. 

Intotal includes my son Takakunda on guitar, the newly-wed Joseph Chinouriri on saxophone, Naphtali Chivandikwa on bass, and Madhiwali on drums. 

The headliner, Louis Mhlanga, performed flawlessly as well. One would be forgiven to believe that he was playing a CD. 

The eagerly anticipating audience members received value for their money. Kelly Rusike and his Jazz Invitation band backed Mhlanga. 

My favourite moment of the night was when Dudu Manhenga performed with her children on backing vocals and percussion for the first time, with her husband on drums. 

The climax of the moment came when their son took over from the father on drums on the song “Mvura Ngainaye”, and delivered a very polished performance, together with a brilliant drum solo. 

This shows that the Muparutsas have succeeded in passing on the torch whilst they are still alive. 

Most children of artistes try it when the parents have passed on, and in most cases it is an uphill struggle. Or as they say these days, it’s like sucking peanut butter with a straw. 

Jeys Marabini was a strong representative for Bulawayo. 

The crowd’s enthusiastic applause and dancing in support of him provided the artiste a lot of energy. It was obvious that he was getting his energy from the audience’s response. 

Tanga Wekwa Sando performed alongside the consistently upbeat Chibhodhoro, who energised the audience with his congas as usual. 

He kicked the congas with his feet and head, then suddenly leaped into the crowd and danced with some fans. 

Jazz Invitation, who have a new line up every now and then, was the closing act. They gave a good account of themselves too. 

The show was well attended. It seems the majority of people were the affluent, judging by the types of cars that filled the street in front of Alliance Francaise. 

Cars were reaching close to enterprise road, yet the tickets were going for US$20, which is considered expensive by Zimbabwean standards. 

It will be unfair to avoid mentioning the sound engineer, Vusumusi Moyo, who did a great job. 

Vusumusi served as Oliver Mtukudzi’s sound engineer for years. 

Even greats like Hugh Masekela and Mirriam Makeba used to hire him. He is well known for bringing out CD quality from a live show. 

I don’t know why many show organisers do not make use of him. As a result he is always going to do jobs in Zambia, where they discovered his value. 

The gig was well organised, thanks to the collaborative effort of The Zimbabwe Jazz Community Trust and Alliance Francaise 

As a regular at Harare gigs every weekend, and judging by what I am noticing, I see a progressive mindset shift concerning Harare gig culture. 

It’s no longer taboo for women and Christians to go watch bands. Long ago any woman seen in a gig venue was considered to be a sex worker. 

But these days women come freely, sometimes as groups of women buying their own drinks, dressed decently and having clean fun. 

Most Sundays I visit Sunday gigs, especially at Gava. You will notice church goers, fresh from church services with their bibles enjoying music, mingling with drinkers, whilst children are peacefully running around. 

What I also noticed is that these peaceful places are places where either the tickets are expensive, or the food is expensive. 

This keeps the hooligans away, as opposed to dancehall gigs where phones and purses are reported to go missing.