Unpacking fruits of arts festivals

Festivals come and go. Recently, we have seen an increase in the number of art festivals taking place which even prompted the Ministry of Tourism and Culture to host a festival organisers conference so that a festivals calendar could be created. But how beneficial are the myriad of festivals to the arts industry?

As organisers of the Lake of Stars (LOS)introduce the country to a new festival, City of Stars this year, at the 10 anniversary of the beach festival, Malawian artists say they are also in celebration mood—but not just for the festival, but for the opportunities the festivals bring with them.

Recently, the LOS organisers held an artists forum and a Sunset Session as part of the run up to the main event to be held on 27 and 28 September at the Sanctuary Lodge in Lilongwe.

From the Artists Forum ideas generated included a suggestion for a multi-discipline event called ‘Made In Malawi,’ a drop-in artists’ collaboration service, and a record label with resident visual artist.

Then the Sunset Sessions on the rooftop of the Golden Peacock Hotel in Lilongwe followed the following day.

The exclusive event featured live poetry and acoustic music on the hotel rooftop from Jaco Jana, Yolanda Kaluma, Sirius, Patrick The Poet, Q Malewezi, and Menes. Celebrating the city and the arts, the Sunset Sessions provided stunning views of Lilongwe as guests enjoyed drinks and a preview of City of Star’s new talent while the sun set over the city. All these events are being held as a precursor to the main events to be held on 27 and 28 September this year.

Legendary musician, Lucius Banda who also organises the Sunbird Sand Music Festival said this on Thursday when commenting on how beneficial the festivals are to the country. Banda said the 10 years of Lake of Stars which he said is mother of arts festivals in Malawi have been successful and influenced the formation of other annual festivals such as Sunbird Sand Music Festival, Mwezi Wawala and Malawi Cultural Festival (Macfest) which are only a year old each.

But what do these festivals really breed for the arts sector?

Banda said organisation of several arts festivals in Malawi has helped in exposing new talent and allowing artists from different countries to share skills in organization of arts events.

“We started with Lake of Stars and today we are proud of several other arts festivals. During international festivals, various artists from across the world come together and through our performances we share talents and experiences. These are significant benefits which I have appreciated,” said the Zembani Band leader.

Banda added that the festivals have influenced size of patronages during arts shows.

“You cannot compare audiences we used to have in the past to those we are having nowadays during entertainment shows. There is a great improvement and all this is catapulted by the success exposed at festivals.

“Many people have access to festivals because the amount spent to watch a variety of artists at a festival is lower than attending a show where one or two groups are performing.

“This gives many opportunities to appreciate the talents and in the long run are influenced to patronise arts shows,” said Banda who coordinates Sunbird Sand Music Festival.

In addition to this, Banda revealed that arts festivals involve huge investments in terms of money and creates jobs.

According to LOS website, in 2011 the organisation spent about $1.6 million (about K544m) for the festival in various payments. Among the payments, went to over 200 people who the festival employed.

Musicians Association of Malawi (Mam) president Chimwemwe Mhango said returns artists get after performing at festivals have lifted the welfare of most artists and motivated some artists who could not have made it.

He added that most budding artists have evolved through inspiration drawn from performances at the festivals. Furthermore, he said festivals help people who cannot visit clubs and other places for entertainment to meet many artists at one event.

City of Stars project manager Tammy Mbendera said her office sees pride in its activities for pioneering the festival culture in Malawi.

“There are many festivals today after Lake of Stars and we are happy that we have planted a culture of festivals. We have not spearheaded these, but there is a direct link between the progression of the Lake of Stars project in the ten years of its existence and the birth of local festivals,” said Mbendera.

She said during the 10 year anniversary celebrations, they have organised a workshop and conference element to the festival in order to support this development and in general, arts and culture to promote tourism in Malawi.

Organisers of the three popular festivals, City of Stars, Sunbird Sand Music Festival and Mwezi Wawala have confirmed that the festivals are back in September and October.