Herald
20 May 2009
Harare — The Culture Week celebrations are back with a bang and this year there are no lowlights with several standout activities lined up throughout the country to mark the seven-days of plenty.
One of the highlights at the launch ceremony held at the Zimbabwe College of Music in Harare on Monday night was a performance by poet – Mafumhe Mutasa otherwise known as Dapikushagada in poetry circles.
Dressed in traditional attire that blended well with the backdrop, Dapikushagada mesmerised the audience that included the Minister of Education, Sports, Arts and Culture Senator David Coltart with a high-energy recital of a befitting poem titled “Our Culture Is Not”.
In the poem, he sought to tell the various aspects of culture giving examples of how people often misconstrue culture. By and large, the Shona verse sent the audience in jibes of laughter as he delivered a short but flawless act.
Dapikushagada also features in a Shona soap opera called Tiriparwendo. Another show stopping performance came from the Murewa based Jerusalem drummer – Douglas Vambe who is credited for creating the ZBC news bulletin signature tune.
Indeed, Vambe is arguably one of the best Mbende drummers to emerge from his rural home of Murewa. He almost single handedly injected frenzy into the audience by using two drums simultaneously.
In true celebration of our cultural diversity jazz diva Rute Mbangwa also took to the stage and turned the auditorium into a dance floor. She churned some of her best songs from her two albums If Only My Heart Had a Voice to the latest Rute Goes Kumanginde (her fantasyland).
Rute has distinguished herself a solo artiste and many jazz lovers enjoy her singing as much as they do the sound. With more exposure and appreciative fan base, Rute is set to scale dizzy heights.
This year’s commemorations are being held under the banner: “Culture and Youth” and will run until Saturday in all the country’s 10 provinces. The National Arts Council of Zimbabwe said this year’s spotlight would be Matabeleland South province whose official launch was yesterday at Gwanda High School.
The Zimbabwe National Commission for Unesco will host a one-day seminar on the role of the cultural industries in national development. Elsewhere in Harare, there is going to be performing arts bash in the Harare Gardens.
The Culture Week first came into as part of the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity that was mooted by Unesco in 2001. They then proclaimed May 21 as the World Day of Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, and in Zimbabwe, the day is commemorated through various art performances across the country.