Mohalenyane Phakela
ALLIANCE Française de Maseru, in conjunction with the Ministry of Tourism, Standard Lesotho Bank, Lesotho National Broadcasting Corporation and Letofe, is set to host the Ouh la la Festival in the capital on 22 November.
The annual event, held the Alliance Française Garden, celebrates music in its various facets. This time around, the Francophone organisation is partnering with the aforementioned organisations as it the festival continues to grow in stature. Unlike yesteryears, this edition will be an evening affair with musical performances from France and Lesotho in store for revelers, as well as the lighting of the Christmas tree at Ouh la la café.
The festival will feature local acts, Sotho Sounds and Afro-Jazz maestro Bhudaza, and from abroad, Mystic Margins as well as the headline act Caribbean African Brazil (CAB).
CAB is a French band currently on an African tour. The three-piece band is the combination of African, Caribbean and Brazilian music orchestrated by Martinican pianist Mario Canonge, Cameroonian singer and guitarist Blick Bassy and the talented young Brazilian percussionist Adriano Tenorio. CAB has performed in festivals around the world in countries such as England, Australia, Norway, Swaziland and South Africa. The band will bring its jazzy-African tunes to Lesotho for the first time, with the highlight of their performance being their collaboration with Bhudaza.
The award-winning Bhudaza will need no introduction to local music lovers. The talented saxophonist and vocalist has, over the years, put Lesotho on the musical map.
Sotho Sounds is a Famo music band from Malealea. It specialises in traditional handmade music instruments made from recycled materials. Historically these instruments were used by herd-boys in the mountains when they were tending to their livestock in the summer months.
Their “Junk Funk” refers to the music created by the band using these recycled materials such as wood and oil cans among others.
The concert will be followed by a master workshop On Sunday from 10am to 5pm which will see more than 20 Basotho musicians and music industry people participate in a training facilitated by CAB, to discuss with them topics such as product promotion, authors’ rights, vocal techniques, and artist and sound engineer relationship among others.
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