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Announcing Zimfest 2019

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News — No Comments ↓

Dear Zimfest community,

The Zimfest Association Board of Directors and I are pleased to announce that we will be producing a festival next year! Zimfest 2019 will take place at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, from  August 8 to 11. Mark your calendars and make your plans!

When this year’s festival ended, we were unsure whether we had enough committed volunteers to staff an organizing committee (OC) for 2019.  It has been very gratifying to see a number of new recruits raise their hands to volunteer, and I have been in touch with almost everyone who wrote to us or signed up at the festival. While we are confident we have enough people onboard for the OC, we still – always – need volunteer help leading up to and/or at the festival. You can always write to volunteers{at}zimfest{dot}org or complete the form at the bottom of the Why and How to Volunteer page.

To those of you who are unable to attend Zimfest on the dates WOU is available to us (the second weekend of August): we are sorry we have not been able to accommodate you and are continuing to seek dates earlier in the summer. We are looking ahead to Zimfest 2020 at the Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA, where we have been promised (fingers crossed) an earlier date. We cannot confirm an exact weekend for Zimfest 2020 however.

Blessings to all, enjoy the fall colors!
Claire (Jones)
Zimfest Coordinator

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Update: Patience Musandirire Lost Luggage

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News — No Comments ↓

Dear Zimfest participants, Zimbabwean music and cultural enthusiasts,

Those of you who were at Zimfest may recall that Patience Musandirire told us that his flights from Zimbabwe had been delayed and rerouted, and along the way his baggage went missing. His suitcase arrived one week later, after the festival. It had been ripped open and a number of items were missing.  We have filed claims with United Airlines and Ethiopian Airlines for delayed luggage and lost content. These claims have been processed and partial payments made in the form of these transferable airline vouchers that expire in one year (summer 2019).

Consider helping Patience to get reimbursement for the loss of luggage, delayed claims, and mbira instruments stolen from his bag. If you travel on United Airlines, we have $500 in travel vouchers that we can transfer to you. Contact Gretel Baumgartner (in Oregon) to coordinate details in transferring these airline vouchers, valid on United Airlines. You will pay $500 for the same travel value – all money will be delivered to Patience in Harare, Zimbabwe. Gretel will arrange safe and secure wired funds. If you have current knowledge on the best means of transferring funds to Zimbabwe, please write to Gretel or reply to this blog post.

Please contact Gretel via email gjb9876 “at” yahoo “dot” com.

Posted on behalf of Gretel Baumgartner and Patience Musandirire

 

Thank you.

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Looking to Zimfest 2019

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Festival News

Greetings lovers of the music and people of Zimbabwe!

Wow, what a great festival we had this year. Taking some time off really helped to accentuate all the things that make Zimfest so wonderful: great teachers from around the world, music all day and night, and connections with friends both old and new! Those of you who attended our Village Meeting this year are probably waiting with bated breath to find out whether or not a festival will take place in 2019. What we can say at this juncture is this: while we are cautiously optimistic about having the festival next year, there are still a few things that need to come together before we can confirm with absolute certainty. We have had an outpouring of support from people all over the country who are interested in helping to organize Zimfest 2019, but we still need a few more. We are specifically looking for people to populate our organizing committee, a job that requires meeting by Skype every couple of weeks starting in mid December, usually with tasks to carry out in between meetings. We also need support personnel who don’t have to meet with the Organizing Committee and whose tasks would vary in duration. In other words, there are a number of crucial jobs to fill with varying levels of commitment, so please consider helping out in whatever way you can.  In the meantime, we hope you all sit tight and stay tuned. And don’t forget, it’s not too late to get involved. If you have any interest in helping out, please contact the board by writing board{at}zimfest{dot}org!

Hope to see all of you sooner than later,

—Your Friends on the Zimfest Board

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Zimfest Lost and Found

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Hello Zimfesters,

The following items were turned in as Lost and Found at the Zimfest registration desk. I am willing to mail them to the owners if you can identify them. Write to claire{at}zimfest{dot}org with descriptions.
Fleece jacket
Folding knife
Adult onesie

Enjoy the fall weather!
Claire Jones, Zimfest Coordinator

 

A message from Julia Chigamba:
Hello Zimfest family/ community
Sorry to bring you sad news. I had my mbira at my booth inside the mbira bags I was selling.
This mbira was made by my Father Baba Chigamba made it in a week as fast as he can and gave it to Kelly Takunda Orphan to bring it me. This mbira is so special to me very very special to me. I can’t stop thinking about it the story behind it and how it was made that quickly for me and was a gift to me from Jeanne Robinson Pimentel while we were in Zimbabwe in June. So please who ever has my baby you forgot to put it back on the table were the my baby was you can send it to my address.
It was truly fun and amazing to seeing everybody at zimfest. Don’t forget to message me about my mbira: nditistis55{at}gmail{dot}com.

Posted by Claire on behalf of Julia

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Zimbabwean Guests

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Greetings,

Many of you have heard that we have had sad news about several Zimbabwean teachers and performers who are unable to come to this year’s festival. Polyphony Marimba had applied for visas for Tawanda Mapanda and Barnabas Ngalande. Their petitions were still not approved by the time the group was ready to leave for their tour, so they had to abandon the applications. They will try again for next Zimfest! The OC has worked hard to engage several experienced teachers to take over their workshops or offer others in their place.  Please consult the Festival Updates and Workshop Changes page for all workshop adjustments and replacement teachers.

Jacob Mafuleni and Martha Thom, both veterans of prior Zimfests, were inexplicably denied their visas at the US Embassy in Harare. This was devastating news to Dana Moffett and Matanho Project, their sponsor, who worked very hard to bring Jacob and Martha back to the US. However, their son Abel Mafuleni has been granted his visa and is coming. We look forward to Abel’s workshops and performance representing the Mafuleni Family and Tsoro Arts. Again, check the website for Workshop Changes; you may find some enticing new offerings on the workshop schedule!

Finally, we are not out of the woods yet. Marimba specialist Patience Musandirire has received his visa and was intending to purchase his own plane ticket as he has no sponsor. However, because of the drastic shortage of foreign currency in Zimbabwe, he has been unable to acquire enough US dollars for the ticket. He needs financial assistance. What would help most at this point is for someone to help him by setting up a GoFundMe campaign here in the US. If you think you can help, please write to the OC as soon as possible at 2018 {at} zimfest {dot} org.

Music Dancing Across Borders
Help these folks cross the the border!

Claire Jones, Festival Coordinator
On behalf of the 2018 Organizing Committee

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Zimfest Organizing Committee Notes

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Dear Zimfest community,

Zimfest 2018 registration has been open nearly a month, and it’s time for a word from the organizing committee (OC).  After a frantic “feeding frenzy” the first few days, registrations have slowed down to a steady trickle; we are up to 259 registrations as I write this.  There have been a few bugs, but things have been proceeding smoothly the last couple of weeks. Please consult How to Register, and if you experience any problems registering, write to registration(at)zimfest(dot)org and an OC member will help you out. Workshop signups for Friday August 10 have been especially heavy, such that many workshops on the first day are already full. We have added two workshops and made some adjustments so that there are more spaces available that day. However, there are plenty of workshop spaces available on Sunday. A lot is happening on the final day of the festival, so make your plans to stick around and take advantage!

A few brief notes:

  • Check the Festival Updates and Workshop Changes page for notification of all workshop additions and adjustments.
  • The Concert Schedule has been posted on the website, and performer biographies will be available soon.
  • We are aware that the Zimfest 2018 location in Monmouth, OR can be difficult to get to on public transport. Use our Ride Board for offering or requesting rides from nearby destinations such as Portland and Salem.
  • If you have signed up for the workshops that you want, and checked the concert schedule for the bands you want to hear, now is the time to sign up for your volunteer shifts. If we have 259 registrants, we’d love to see 259 volunteers signed up – Zimfest runs on your energy!

See you in Monmouth in August,
Claire Jones and the Zimfest 2018 OC

Music Dancing Across Borders

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Zimfest 2018 Registration Is Open May 3

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Dear Zimfest community,
We are pleased to announce the launch of Zimfest 2018 online registration today, May 3 at 5:00 a.m.! Go to the How to Register page on our website for links to all Festival offerings, tips on negotiating our new registration system, and the button for New Registrations (see “Register using RegFox”). More advanced topics including registering multiple people and making changes to your registration are also addressed on this page.

Further information about Zimfest 2018 programming will emerge in the weeks to come, but we’d like to point out one of the strengths of this year’s workshop schedule right now: the large number of workshops that integrate marimba with singing, dancing, drumming and/or hosho. These sessions, offered by Zimfest teachers in response to our Call for Applications, bring home to students the reality of musical practice in Zimbabwe, the fact that music and dance are rarely separate activities. Teachers, get your students dancing and singing along with marimba from middle school onward, just like Zimbabweans! To be fair to all registrants, we are asking leaders of student groups to not register members of their groups for more than half the maximum enrollment of any specific workshop. Thus, if a marimba workshop has a maximum enrollment of 8, no one group should register for more than 4 of the spots.

Heads-up: you will find the following features of the 2018 registration system different from previous years:

  • We are charging room rental by the room, not by the person, and the first person to register will be charged the entire rental amount for the number of days the room is to be occupied (the other person is “the roommate”). Please be aware that you will not be able to choose specific rooms as in past years. See On-Campus Housing for details.
  • WOU is requiring that all participants rooming in the dorms for one or more nights purchase one of three meal cards. Requirements and plans are described in detail on the On-Campus Dining.
  • Registration is to be paid with credit cards (not PayPal) this year. You will need to pay in full at the time of registration; you cannot hold rooms or places in workshops without paying for them.

See you in Monmouth, August 9-12!
Claire Jones, Zimfest Coordinator

Zimfest 2018 – Music Dancing Across Borders

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Zimfest 2018 Delay of Registration

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Hello Zimfest community,

The Zimfest 2018 Organizing Committee and Tech Team will not be going live with online registration today, our target date of May 1. We have discovered some issues with our new registration software and want to make sure we can work around them to make the registration process go as smoothly as possible. Look for another message later this week (possibly as early as tomorrow!) that registration is open.

The good news is that we are pleased to have completed most Zimfest 2018 content and supporting information and published it on the website. You are welcome now to browse through the Workshop List, acquaint yourself with the 2018 teachers, and/or explore the 2018 festival website for information about the schedule and housing and dining options. The 2018 homepage is a good place to start your explorations.

      • Don’t forget that the Registration Fee (now $15) is waived for Zimfest Association members. Become a ZA member now or renew your membership before you register for Zimfest 2018. An individual membership costs $25; there are special rates for couples and families, and a teacher membership for leaders of student groups.
      • Announcing festival events on the website: We are excited this year to present a panel discussion on the topic of Cultural Appropriation. This will take place Saturday morning August 11 from 9:30 to 11:30 when no workshops or concerts will be happening. All Zimfest participants are invited to attend.
      • Browse the volunteer tasks to decide how you’d like to contribute at the festival, or claim your shift(s) now on the Volunteer Signup page.
      • Reminder: Vendor applications are open on the website. We look forward to a varied and exciting African Marketplace this year!

Look for more news very soon,

Your Zimfest 2018 Organizing Committee &
The Fabulous Zimfest Tech Team

Zimfest 2018 – Music Dancing Across Borders

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Zimfest 2018 Updates

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Greetings Zimfest community,
Following the end of the application period, March and April have been very busy and productive times for the Zimfest 2018 Organizing Committee and Tech Team. As we work towards the target date of May 1 to open online registration, we want to let you know that:

  • Vendor applications for the Marketplace are now being accepted on the Vendor Information and Application page on the website. The deadline for vendor applications is July 16, 2018.
  • The Organizing Committee has announced this year’s Zimbabwean guest teachers and performers on the 2018 homepage – a truly stunning and star-studded lineup!
  • While you are on the Zimfest 2018 homepage, please note that we have been adding informational pages as they become available. Click on the overhead menus for the festival schedule, housing and dining info, etc.
  • We received what might be a record number of workshop proposals and performance applications, requiring difficult decisions on the part of the Organizing Committee. We now have a workshop grid and tentative performance schedule, and teachers and performers are being notified of the status of their applications . Contracts will be sent later in the month.

Enjoy the spring weather!
Claire and the Organizing Committee

Zimfest 2018: Music Dancing Across Borders

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Applications Deadline Looming

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Hello Zimfest community,

With the winter holidays over, and Valentine’s Day behind us, it’s a perfect time to make summer plans. Join us as a teacher at Zimfest 2018!

The deadline for Zimfest applications is February 28, one short week.  Make a difference to the festival by applying to share something you know – we especially need marimba teachers at Beginner, Novice and Intermediate levels.

Photo courtesy of YAAMBA

For information and the link to the applications, see https://zimfest.org/overview/teacher-application-information/

Zimfest 2018: Music Dancing Across Borders

 

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Submit Your Zimfest 2018 Applications

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Greetings Zimfest community! Salibonani! Mhoroi!

We are waiting for your applications to teach and perform at Zimfest 2018. You have one short month before applications close on February 28, 2018.

Check out the fabulous Zimfest 2018 graphic by Rachel Edson on the 2018 webpage. Let us know if you would like a pile of these Save the Date cards to distribute in your community.

And as always, we’d love your help organizing and producing Zimfest 2018! Write volunteers[at]zimfest[dot]org to find out what you can do.

Best regards,
Claire and the 2018 Zimfest Organizing Committee

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In Loving Memory

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Dear Zimfest Community,
The Zimfest Association Board regrets to announce the passing of our friend Karen Wolf. Karen was a beloved member of the NW Washington Zimbabwean music community. She also loved Zimfest and was a committed volunteer. We will miss her warmth and beautiful photographs of the festival. Our deepest condolences go to her family and friends. May her soul rest in peace.

Sincerely,
– ZA Board of Directors

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