The next Kenyan musicians shine at Harmony Kenya Foundation Concert 2022
We were crammed in the matatu like potato sacks. Even when the spaces in between the 3 seats were occupied, the conductor added more potatoes. It was like the 2003 pre-Michuki era all over again.
Turns out I wasn’t the only one in this Mang’u matatu going to the Harmony Kenya Foundation Concert.
The guy seated next to me (on the wooden board) told the fishy conductor “MPESA Foundation”. Oh, you’re also going there? Like him, it was also my first time in this part of Thika. I reassured him that the school must be visible from afar. Si this is Safaricom.
And truly they did not disappoint.
After we alighted and breathed in the fresh countryside area, my neighbour Benson connected with another young man who was in the overcrowded vehicle. Coincidentally, they were both saxophonists and former students of Watatua. Who I would later find out is the founder of Harmony Kenya Foundation.
What is Harmony Kenya Foundation?
According to their website, The Harmony (Kenya) Foundation is a Trust whose main objective is to establish or support already existing music departments in Government schools. They provide teaching and learning resources such as music instruments and tutors to help the students learn these instruments.
Over the past 13 years, the Trust has donated over 200 music instruments and provided tutors to Kenyan public schools. These include Nairobi School, Pumwani High School, State House Girls High School, Westlands (Primary) School, and Moi Girls High School Nairobi. Is your alma mater one of them?
On this Sunday afternoon, an orchestra of over 300 students from these Kenyan public schools, M-PESA Foundation Academy and the Ghetto Classics would perform a joint concert for the very first time. The purpose of this concert was to raise awareness to the work being done by the Harmony Kenya Foundation. And initiate a fundraiser to support their current and future projects.
The only school missing that afternoon was Precious Blood Riruta. Maybe they had mass to attend.
It’s Show Time
At 2.30pm, we were not the only late comers.
After a screening at the maximum security gate, I walked into the grandiose compound. A football field with multi coloured bleachers on my left, a wide car parking on my right, and what I would later discover were tennis courts.
Lined on the tarmac road in front of me were buses from Pumwani High school, Moi Girls, Nairobi School and Ghetto Classics.
Benson caught up with me again near the Tamasha auditorium. I was lost but now I was found. We lined up behind students of SA Joytown Secondary School who came out of their bus in wheelchairs.
After confirming our tags, a school usher guided Benson to his seat inside. Then she led me to the upstairs wing since I had a green tag. And as we walked, I found out that the school offers an IB system of education. It includes the basic subjects plus PHE (Physical Health Education), Design and Arts.
She, Jane Waithera chose drama.
What would you have chosen?
The upper wing looked less crowded than the bottom. I sat in the middle of the auditorium next to a lady with nice curly hair. I almost complimented her during the break. It’s only until the end of the show that I discovered who she was. Wambui Kamiru. Collymore.
The first performance I caught was by the State House Girls High School Band. The latest Harmony Kenya Foundation beneficiaries. Can you feel the love (tonight?).
Afterwards, we learnt HKF donated brass and wind instruments to Pumwani High School. But in their performance, they also incorporated the kayamba, marimba aka xylophone and African drums. And performed an African Medley which featured Rhumba by Wanavokali and Kwaheri by Jua Cali and Sanaipei. The latter got the people going.
Wait, is that a chivoti?
Moi Girls School Choir also brought some African flavour. Led by a male conductor, they sang a Ugandan folk song called Wagongolo. It sounded South African to me.
I’ll admit, most performances were far from perfect. But this was not a Kenya Conservatoire concert. These were children. The second round of Havana (ooh na na) sounded better than the first. Under the yellow stage lights, the orchestra’s horns and violins glittering like gold. While the double bass looked like a whole human being.
Olivia Ambani is not only a female Kenyan musician but also a fiery MC. In a blue-red knee length dress and white sneaks, she engaged the crowd and prompted us to clap again and again. She also highlighted the partners of Harmony Kenya Foundation throughout the show.
She thanked Mrs Lee of Nairobi International School for the financial support. The music tutors in the different schools. The alumni of the schools for going back to teach other students. We met one Macharia who transitioned from Joytown Primary School to MPESA Foundation Academy to a UK University.
She also mentioned the board of trustees of which Moses Watatua is the chair. I finally got to see this mysterious man whose name precedes him. The short stubby man had a warm welcoming voice and kind face, if my eyes did not deceive me.
He shared that this was a dream come true, 10 years in the making. Public private partnership had happened. I would only understand what he meant when I later interviewed him.
During the breaks, another MC impressed me. This MPESA Foundation Academy student stood tall in his blue blazer, matching tie and slacks. He made laugh-worthy jokes, danced and even rapped. Not his own song though.
Call him MC Elvis Prince.
Another student who stood out was Jelly Dollar. The recording artist performed an original rap song, backed up by two other male students. Boys to Men.
Injete by Jacob Luseno was a unique piece. State House Girls High School Choir warned a village girl who’s come to the city to be careful of its cunningness. Think Auma by Coster Ojwang’.
Accompanied by the Conga drums and metal ring, those girls sang in Abaluhya and danced isikuti style on stage. And received a riveting applause.
The show was just getting hotter.
Next was the Pumwani High School Choir. Zilizopendwa Soweto was a Swahili song about saving Southern Africa from suffering. But what impressed everyone most was their dance moves. When they were not singing, they were busting popular moves including the odi. The real entertainers, they got the loudest applause of the show.
But we were not done yet. The Nairobi School Orchestra came with the Injili Medley, a mashup of popular Kenyan Swahili gospel songs. Imagine listening to instrumental versions of Uninyunyuzie Maji by Our Lady of Fatima Kongowea Catholic Church, Taunet Nelel by Emmy Kosgei, and Mkono wa bwana by Zabron Singers (onaa).
The result: youngins in the crowd stood up and danced. Mind you the most recent song in that list was released in 2016. I’m surprised no Kenyan music producer has made club versions (yet).
At the end, the Patch boys received a standing ovation from both young and old. They were the clear winners of the day. No doubt about it.
Before the final performance of the concert, it was that inevitable time for Vote of Thanks. Alan Adlington-Corfield, the executive head of MPESA Foundation School aka the headmaster gave a brief speech thanking all the students for a great show. And most especially to Watatua who brought them all together.
The joint orchestra came back one more time. They looked like an organised crowd on stage. Instrumentalists at the front, singers at the back. And Watatua was the conductor – there was no better man for the job.
Standing on a Masai shuka-draped box like many conductors had done before him, he played his role. Flipping pages, waving his magic wand and casting music spells on the young Kenyan musicians. They played In the jungle (complete with jungle noises), Mkono Wa Bwana (again), and Joy To The World. Because… Christmas.
We asked for an encore. We got none. It was way past 5pm.
I left the auditorium way after it had emptied. It was indeed a family affair with children everywhere; I would have brought mine if I knew. The best time to expose them to the performing arts is when they are young and impressionable, right? It might just inspire them to become musicians themselves.
Who is Watatua
After the show, I talked to the right people (read Olivia) and got a few minutes with the famous Watatua. He was just as friendly in person. A man who’s been teaching music to students of all ages for the last 22 years. And is determined to dissipate more music into government schools.
I wanted to know – How did the Harmony Kenya dream start?
He had been working at Brookhouse School for 18 years. As its music department grew, he wished he could carry the instruments in Brookhouse and put them in Nairobi school – his alma mater. Because even though they had nothing, they were much more driven.
When he left Brookhouse in 2011, he needed to do something about this bug; the disparity in the availability and quality of music education in Kenya between private and government schools.
The name behind the foundation came to him in an interesting way. It was July 2012 during the general elections. “I said to myself, there is no harmony in the country. There should be harmony in Kenya.”
And that was it.
“I made Nairobi School my pilot project because I actually knew the administration. I was going there to volunteer. Then the kids I taught would just say, Come back. Come back. So I started looking for people to give me a few resources.”
He later got Precious Blood and had a joint program with them for a while.
Community is the reason for HKF’s growth. His private students from Brookhouse and other places came to see what he was doing. And they got sold on it. “A lot of the people here are either my former students or former colleagues.”
He then extended to his former primary school – Westlands Primary. And he wants to get alumni because “there are more alumni than the current students. They can each give a little by either teaching, giving their resources or instruments to someone else.”
And no, an alumnus or alumna doesn’t have to go through Harmony Kenya. Watatua encourages them to go directly to the school and help. But if they feel like they want a structure to work with, then they can come to HKF.
I noted that there was a mix of African traditional music and Western classical music in the concert. Which one does his structure lean to?
“We let the school take the lead. First of all, do you have a department? If you do, what would you like it to be? We like to see what the music teacher’s aspirations are. Some people like singing but they would like to introduce instruments, whether it’s traditional instruments or western. We can get traditional instrument teachers, we can get Western instrument teachers, we can get vocal coaches. We have every expertise. So it depends on the school.”
On how he got MPESA Foundation Academy to join hands is another interesting story. While diving into Harmony Kenya and private music lessons, Elizabeth Njoroge the founder of Art of Music Foundation reached out to him. Their Ghetto Classics is a social project in the Korogocho slum in Nairobi where the youth learn instruments and music theory. Then perform at concerts in Kenya such as this.
According to Liz, MPESA Foundation was looking for a music education consultant to build their music and performing arts. Watatua agreed and helped the school get instruments and teachers in 2019. Inevitably, after Covid things changed. But he still kept the doors open. So when he asked them if they could do the concert here, they agreed.
“And then I thought the three foundations can work together. Art in Music Foundation, MPESA Foundation and Harmony Kenya Foundation have the same ethos of giving needy kids a good quality education. This event is the first example of partner foundations.”
“For me, poor kids getting opportunities is what really drives me. Cause I feel like sometimes the ones who deserve it don’t have it.”
The beneficiaries
After talking to Watatua, I met two students who performed at the first Harmony Kenya Foundation concert. JohnBrighton Ouma and Emmanuel Magutu in Form 4 and 3 respectively. They had never heard of a music journalist before. I explained it’s someone who writes and reports, but on music – in case you were also wondering.
In Nairobi School, music is a subject and a club. They took me back to school.
“So the first thing, when we came in form one, we were introduced to the theory part of music. We get introduced to the beats and everything. When you are in term two form one, we start practising the instruments starting with the recorder.”
Later on, Magutu chose to learn the flute. I asked him the difference between the flute and clarinet. The black clarinet faces down, whereas a flute is held sideways.
Ouma plays the trumpet. I didn’t need a demonstration. I’ve seen Mackinlay of the Nairobi Horns Project plenty of times.
They get their instruments from school and from Harmony Kenya Foundation. This year they received a euphonium. In case you’re wondering (like I did), that’s a brass wind instrument that looks like a tuba with the bell facing up.
Are there African instruments as well? Ouma concurred. They have traditional drums, the Abagusii obokano, and the metal ring.
For KCSE, they have to use an African instrument for their exam practicals. Ouma will do a Luo folk song and Magutu a Kikuyu folk song. With an African orchestra backing them up.
I wanted to know how Harmony Kenya has impacted them. For Ouma, “Harmony Kenya Foundation has changed the passion we had for music as now our dream has come true. Because before I leave school at the end of this year, I can say that I’ve achieved something. So where I’m going to start from after school, I won’t begin like a learner.”
Meanwhile, Magutu shared that HKF has helped him getting instruments and a reed.
What is a reed? My clueless self asked again. It’s a thin piece of flat material made of cane that is used for playing the saxophone and the clarinet. “You put it in the mouthpiece and it just enhances your blowing.”
As I said, back to (high) school.
The final piece of the puzzle
At 6pm, the compound was almost empty. The MFA students were probably in preps or whatever they do on Sunday evenings. The last person I met is the first person I talked to.
Wallace Mecha.
Wallace is the one who invited me to this Harmony Kenya Foundation concert via email a week prior. Like Benson, he was also a student at Nairobi School and Moses was his teacher. After completing high school in 2017, he went straight into the foundation and started teaching in 2018 till date. He teaches the tuba, the largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument.
Why did he go back and teach?
“It’s some sort of responsibility because I was also taught by older students who came back. So it’s always been ingrained in us to always give back because we know this is not easy.
Music is expensive. A lesson is 1500 for half an hour and that’s something people in public school can’t afford. We like giving back so we can give this opportunity to as many people as possible.”
His highlight at HKF is this concert. Even though it was very very stressful, he really enjoyed it. ”It’s a dream come true for me. I know Mr. Watatua will tell you the same thing. He’s always dreamed of putting all these schools together and it was very beautiful.”
He’s looking forward to more schools, more concerts. “I like events cause you know, music is all about sharing with other people.” I nodded.
I asked him who’s been his biggest supporter. His answer surprised me. Turns out it’s Olivia Ambani. Part of the team, she’s helped them with strategy. She’s also the one who connected us.
Wallace’s job is more than just communication. He also links and assigns tutors to schools, organised the concert, basic admin stuff. He admits his office is looking as though it needs another person now.
Before I left he asked me one question. Why did you start your blog? I answered it’s the love of music. To share what’s happening in the Kenyan music and events scene. Such as what Harmony Kenya Foundation is doing. It’s inspiring. It’s about music and about people. It’s not just about money, money, money, money.
How you can support
Harmony Kenya runs entirely on donations and volunteers. If you don’t have the money, you can give your time to teach students. You can also donate instruments you no longer use, instrument accessories (like music books or reeds) or other resources like furniture and electronics. Anything helps.
If I had access to these resources when I was young, my life would be completely different. If I learnt the piano or the marimba when I was in primary or high school, today I would be probably more than a music journalist. What about you?
This is MPESA Foundation Academy
Before leaving, I had to admire this state of the art high school one more time. Founded in 2016, The MPESA Foundation Academy’s motto is Thinkers Doers Leaders. And let me tell you Maina, I have never seen so many trees in one school since USIU.
The architecture was straight out of an Ivy League university – or Brookhouse. There was a rugby field, soccer field, swimming pool, hockey field, even a golf course. Brass statues at every corner guiding you to different areas. African paintings decorating the inner and outer walls of every building. With names like Utafiti, Mashujaa, Tamasha and Uongozi Centre.
Let’s talk about their strange curriculum. MFA offers The International Baccalaureate Middle Years (IBMYP) for 11-16 year olds, International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) and the IB Career-Related Programme (IBCP) for 16-19 year olds. Started in 1968 in Geneva Switzerland, IB focuses on the holistic development of students not just in academics but also in technology, sports, the arts, outdoor pursuits and community service.
Basically what we all wish our public high school experience was.
But here’s the most amazing fact. All the students at MFA are fully-sponsored. Every year, students from humble backgrounds in Kenya’s 47 counties registered for KCPE or CBC Grade 6 can apply. And both their high school and university education is fully funded by MPESA Foundation.
So that’s where all our transaction fees go.
You can visit the IB World school during its Sarafina theatre play on 26th November 2022. It might inspire you to help bridge the gap between public and private schools. And give a musical future to less priviledged children. Like Harmony Kenya Foundation is doing.
Images courtesy of Harmony Kenya Foundation