Stars in the Namibian Desert. Festival Orient in Põlva

Buy tickets. Festival Orient presents: Sunday, 8 November at 18:00 at Põlva Cultural Centre.

ON STAGE: Namibian folk ensemble, artistic director Perminus Matiure.

Festival Orient organisers and world travellers Peeter Vähi and Tiina Jokinen have made several cultural expeditions to Africa and have invited performers from African peoples (Damara, Shona, Mossi, Berber) to perform in the Baltic states since 2007. On a recent trip, they “discovered” a folk ensemble from Namibia, led by musician and ethnomusicologist Perminus Matiure, who has Zimbabwean roots.

The programme for this concert features songs and dances of the Bantu peoples and ethnic groups living in Namibia (Oshiwambo, Owambo, Tswana, Kavango). The songs and dances are accompanied by exotic folk instruments such as the mbira, known as the “spirit of the ancestors”; the nyunga-nyunga, or “sparkling” mbira; the chipendani (“mouth bow”); and various drums and rattles. You can also hear the multipart makwaira choral singing, which brings together traditions of the “Dark Continent” and church singing influenced by gospel. Between performances, storytellers of narrative songs and captivating hip-shakers will take the stage.

Come and discover a piece of world culture: folk traditions and heritage passed down from generation to generation on the African continent, in their most authentic form, at Põlva Cultural Centre!

Music