Small crowd for Jacaranda Music Festival

Tafadzwa Zimoyo
Senior Arts Reporter
Organisers for this year’s fourth edition of the Jacaranda Music Festival (JMF) have said there will be a limited number of attendees due to Covid-19 regulations and restrictions.

The festival, which will run for two days from tomorrow to Saturday at “The Venue” in Avondale , will have musicians like Jah Prayzah, Hope Masike, Bryan K, Mookomba and Mbeu performing.

It will run under the theme, “In Music We Trust”

In an interview, the festival director Walter Wanyanya, said this year’s edition is different from the previous years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This year’s edition is very different from the usual way we present the festival to the people. We are in a much smaller space because we cannot have massive gatherings.

“We encourage people to get vaccinated because that will see us doing outdoor shows so much quickly. So, instead of us gathering together as we usually do, we will be reaching the masses virtually and this means the production of the festival is much designed to keep those who will watch virtually entertained.”

Wanyanya said they were only working with the prescribed number of attendees in accordance with Covid-19 regulations.

Asked about the theme, Wanyanya said they chose, “In music we trust” which was inspired by the current situation.

“We have been through a lot because of the pandemic, but it would be wrong not to say that music has somehow still given us hope even as we were in our homes with our families,” he said.

“Music is one of the ways of making sure we stay resilient when all seems uncertain. We still have so much to be thankful for because of the music we trust.”

Wanyanya said they selected the artistes based on how they complement each other.

“We curated the acts based on how they will complement each other during the festival,” he said.

“From the flow of the play, thus one act to another, needs to be seamless very much like how we enjoy a three course meal. Each dish compliments the next.

“Covid-19 has immensely affected how we package and deliver events in a negative way, but our goal is to evolve along with the rest of the world in making sure we set the best stage for our creatives to do what they know best for the people.

“That’s our role in bigger picture and we focus only on that and we are grateful to our heroes in the medical fraternity who have fought tirelessly to make sure we are here today.”