BOSJE Moves for Jazzy Unity

Jazz. A four letter word that is as simple to understand as it is divisive. It is star trumpeter Louis Armstrong who reportedly said, “If you have to ask what jazz is, you’ll never know.” Luckily, however, for novices and aficionados in Botswana, the Botswana Society for Jazz Education (BOSJE) has taken up the mantle of leaving no one behind when it comes to developing an understanding and appreciation for a genre as fluid and elemental as the ocean or a meandering stream. As the sun set on the month of April 2023, melodies rose over the western side of the city of Gaborone in celebration of this year’s International Jazz Day. [ihc-hide-content ihc_mb_type="show" ihc_mb_who="1,3,2,4" ihc_mb_template="3" ] Officially designated in 2011 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), April 30 th is International Jazz Day. The appointment of this day was an effort “to highlight jazz and its diplomatic role of uniting people in all corners of the globe”, according to the UN agency. Founding co-chair, Herbie Hancock – legendary American jazz pianist and UNESCO Ambassador for Intercultural Dialogue – has said of the genre that “jazz is about being in the moment”, and the showcase at the Stanbic Bank Piazza at Molapo Crossing was a live exhibition of this principle as a diverse selection of artists took to the stage. While BOSJE continues to lead the charge as advocates for literacy in jazz – holding audience development as an important facet of their interventions – hosting their sixth annual edition of the celebrations adds to a history of the day being observed in Botswana. In 2015, Salif Keita graced the capital city with his renowned “Golden Voice of Africa” as a headliner for a similar event at BotswanaCraft, sharing the stage with local musicians and multi-award winning poet, TJ Dema. In keeping with the tradition of global connection and diplomacy through jazz, BOSJE invited Committed Artists for Cultural Advancement (CAFCA) from Mamelodi, South Africa and legendary Sotho saxophonist, Bhudaza, to share in this year’s soirée. If going by Hancock’s diverse journey through the genre since the early ’60s – covering modal jazz, jazz funk, jazz fusion, post-bop and electro – is any sign of its versatility, then the line-up for the show was in good taste. Featuring the likes of the Grow to Black Collective, DJ Jazzman, JembeSoul, Kingdom Arts Academy Marimba Band, The Fleek Band, WDP, and award-winning neo-soul songstress Mpho Sebina, the offering was a challenge to listeners to reframe what they consider to be ‘jazz.’ A sentiment shared among many of the artists was that the way jazz is understood in Botswana remains a limitation for the possibilities of the genre’s expansion and success locally. “We hope that the public gets a chance to experience ‘real jazz’ or at least something different from the norm,” said Akhutleleng Kekwaletswe, Chairperson of Botswana Society for Jazz Education. Founded in 2015 and formally established in 2017 on International Jazz Day, BOSJE is mandated to “build a genuine audience for jazz who understand and appreciate the artists and the art”. They achieve this through facilitating workshops for young people and aspirant musicians. The cornerstone event for them happens in the build-up to April 30 th in the form of five-day training workshops which this year saw the convergence of over 220 students from government schools and private entities. This year students came from Hukuntsi, Ramotswa, and several schools in Gaborone. On why they target government scholars, Kekwaletswe said they “recognise that there is an inequality gap when it comes to access to resources” and that “we want to make it possible for them to believe that this is viable for them as well”. This development-centric approach to music education is what led to the birth of The Fleek Band. The all-woman musical outfit came from an observation during one of the BOSJE recruitment drives where the underrepresentation of girls and women was noted. In an effort to balance the scales, they established “Camp Her” – which is set to have its third instalment since inception in 2021 in August this year – that aims “to grow the number and diversity of instruments played by women and girls”. The 2022 instalment saw over 60 girls from Botswana leading the festivities of the Global Jazz Women Festival, hosting Brooklyn native saxophonist Jessica Jones and Jazz Camp for Female Instrumentalists (JCFI) from Mamelodi, as well as and seeing the first recital by The Fleek Band. For Grow to Black Collective’s drummer, Dylan Lebekwe – who also happens to have laid the drum and percussion lines on Sereetsi and the Natives’ ‘Petere’ – the moment was filled with excitement as he experienced his first Jazz Day affair, while the band’s chief audio technician and seasoned Jazz Day feature, Maleho ‘Bandulu’ Makgothi, simply offered that he was glad to have “the swing” back in town. Their fellow band member, Laone Thekiso, reflected that he was “proud to be part of something that feels like a progressive movement”, sentiments echoed by WDP’s Leroy Nyoni. Speaking to the founder and programme director of CAFCA, Jesse Mogale, he chimes that this day honours a genre “worth celebrating internationally, because irrespective of how people may try to place it geographically, I believe that jazz knows no boundaries”, continuing to say that through the internationality of jazz, it “allows people to express themselves no matter where they come from”. Having established CAFCA himself in 1999 in response to the dearth of music education in the curricula of the newly democratic Republic of South Africa, Mogale says that it served as an intercession for the younger generations to not have to endure the struggles their predecessors in creativity went through. “Many of the famous musicians of my time were self-taught,” he says. “I saw it fit to make it possible for the younger generation to learn music in an easier way than when we learned.” Between Mogale, WDP, Kekwaletswe and Jazzman – who is now based in the Democratic Republic of Congo but continues to nurture young talent in Botswana through the ‘Mo Jazz Live’ initiative that he established in 2020 which offers them a chance to stage live performance in Main Mall every Wednesday – the affair was thick with advocacy for a better tomorrow for all through jazz. Before Bhudaza brought the night to a close and guests ushered in the new day, there were numerous remarkable moments. Mpho Sebina soared graciously over reinterpretations of her music by the BOSJE Big Band, Mo Ntseme’s sensuous gravel tone harked back to Armstrong, BOSJE Big Band delighted Michael Jackson fans with a spectacular medley of his hits, WDP played Samantha Mogwe’s ‘Transition’ with a guest appearance by Scar, CAFCA played from Mogale’s Mzansi Jazz Awards Best Traditional Jazz Album nominated offering, Heritage From an African Continent , and Lee-Ann Dintwa laid it all on the stage belting Frank Sinatra’s ‘New York, New York’ much to the audience’s delight. It was then time for the man who calls Botswana his first home to take to the stage. Bhudaza – for whom International Jazz Day is dear as he says “when I grew up I wanted to be a musician and to play jazz. So this is a cherished invitation” – then took the audience down memory lane playing favourites like ‘Tjontjobina’ , ‘Bo-Mapefane’ , alongside ‘Manyene’ and ‘Likhomo’ – on which Akhutleleng delivered a lively solo. For his part, Bhudaza is also training young artists he hopes will be the future of jazz when he is no longer practising, even though it is a fate still distant on the horizon. The success of the event lay in not only bringing together different generations but also programming artists across genres in the palatial expanse of jazz. Kekwaletswe and BOSJE are far from done with their advocacy and aspirational pursuits. This year’s event is the largest they’ve hosted to date, yet they see this as a chance to prepare themselves to submit a winning bid to host the global celebration of International Jazz Day – the success of which would make Botswana the first African country to move the event from the United States of America. It is a feat almost accomplished by South Africa in 2020 prior to being derailed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the passing of its champion, Sibongile Khumalo. The tourism, cultural, and economic benefits of jazz are an avenue BOSJE wishes to awaken the country’s public and private sectors to with the hopes that they will be met with substantial support to relieve them of self-funding such events. Needless to say, the investment to date is bound to pay off as the musical landscape in Botswana sees the visions cast by powerful women and young musicians alike. Jazz might be the nation’s unifying grace [/ihc-hide-content].

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BOSJE Moves for Jazzy Unity

The success of the event lay in not only bringing together different generations but also programming artists across genres in the palatial expanse of jazz. A sense of modality in the ambience that jazz may just be this nation’s saving grace was often spellbinding

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BOSJE Moves for Jazzy Unity

The success of the event lay in not only bringing together different generations but also programming artists across genres in the palatial expanse of jazz. A sense of modality in the ambience that jazz may just be this nation’s saving grace was often spellbinding

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