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Posts Tagged "Western Oregon University"

Zimfest Vendor Info and Applications

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Greetings Zimfest community,

Just a quick note to let you know that Zimfest 2016 Marketplace Vendor information and applications are now available on our website here. Booth fees are due in advance; you may choose to pay by check or PayPal. The deadline for Vendor Applications is July 18, 2016.

The Organizing Committee is working hard to get the website ready for online registration for workshops, concerts, housing and dining by the end of May.  Zimfest 2016 will again be held at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, OR. Join us from August 11th to 14th to sing, dance and play.

ZFest Logo
Sing-Dance-Play! Tambai Tambai! Dlala-Dlala!

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Zimfest 2016 Theme and Applications Reminder

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Dear Zimfest Community,

Zimfest celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, come celebrate with us! We thank Musekiwa Chingodza and Lucky Moyo (yes, both are planning to come this year!) for help in choosing the theme for this year’s festival.

Sing-Dance-Play! Tambai Tambai! Dlala-Dlala!

In Zimbabwe you only need one word to say “Play (music)” or “Dance” or “Play (have fun)”: Tambai if you speak chiShona, or Dlala in isiNdebele. What could be more appropriate to describe the three and a half days of Zimbabwean-inflected music, dance, song, culture and fun that is the Zimbabwean Music Festival? Come sing-dance-play with us at the 25th annual Zimfest at Western Oregon University, Monmouth OR, August 11-14, 2016. Tambai! Dlala!

Applications Closing Soon

The deadline for submitting your online applications to perform and/or teach at Zimfest 2016 is this weekend, March 12, 2016. We want your ideas! Don’t forget that this year’s emphasis is on Cultural Presentations. We encourage you (especially Zimbabwean instructors!) to propose workshops on a variety of cultural topics of interest to American students and fans of Zimbabwean music. Teachers of workshops with 20 or more participants will receive a higher pay rate. We’d love to see Presentation topics that attract large groups! All performer and teacher applications are available online at https://apply.zimfest.org.

As always, keep in mind that the festival can’t happen without your help! If you are interested in volunteering, please write volunteers {at} zimfest (dot) org.

Best regards on behalf of the 2016 Organizing Committee,

Claire Jones, Zimfest Coordinator

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ZIMFEST Applications Reminder

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Greetings! Kwaziwai! Salibonani!

We have received very few applications for teaching and performing at Zimfest 2016 thus far. The deadline of March 12, 2016 for submitting applications is fast approaching, and we’d love to hear from you! Take a bit of your time this weekend and enter your applications online at https://apply.zimfest.org – more info is available on our previous blog post at https://zimfest.org/blog/.

Groovin' at the Grove, WOU

Groovin’ at the Grove, WOU

Mark your calendars for Zimfest 2016 at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, OR, August 11-14, 2016. E-mail us with any questions at 2016 (at) zimfest (dot) org.

Hope to see you there!
Zimfest 2016 Organizing Committee

Claire Jones, Festival Coordinator

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Zimfest – It Takes a Village

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Hello Zimfest folks,

The Zimfest Association Board and I recently made the announcement that the 2016 Zimbabwean Music Festival will be held at Western Oregon University in Monmouth OR, August 11-14, 2016. I am happy to say that the Tech Committee has already started meeting in preparation for the next festival, and we are targeting mid-January for online applications to open on the festival website at https://zimfest.org. There is much to do before that date, and I am actively recruiting team members to work on the Zimfest Organizing Committee. It really does take a village—we are in desperate need of people who can give up some time to make the next Zimfest a great one! Helping out with the annual Zimfest gathering is a great way to give back for all the joy and enrichment you have experienced through this wonderful music.

What You Can Do to Help

If you have the time and commitment, volunteer for the core organizing committee (OC), members of which meet regularly via skype and take responsibility for major areas of the festival. We still need people to work on the following: Teacher and Workshop Scheduling; Concert planning and Performer Liaison; Zimbabwean Guest Coordinator; and Marketplace Coordination. Some jobs take a fair amount of time leading up to and at the festival, but do not require you to meet regularly with the OC: Instrument Procurer and Coordinator; T-shirt production and sales; Registration (non-tech) lead.

If you have small chunks of time, there are many other tasks that you can do before (as well as at) the festival: publicity and marketing; website content proofing and updating; festival guide proofreading; coordinating Portland shuttles and airport pickups/drop-offs.

If you are a group that would like to work on a project together there are several opportunities: work party to put together registration packets; festival decorations; festival signage; festival site cleanup crew.

Please let us know if and how you can help: e-mail: or , or phone me at 206-328-4011.

Happy Turkey Day,

Claire Jones
Zimfest Coordinator

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Zimfest 2016 Announcement

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Dear Zimfest Community,

The Zimfest Board and I are pleased to announce the dates and location for next year’s festival. Zimfest 2016 will return to the campus of Western Oregon University in Monmouth, OR. The dates of the festival will be August 11-14, 2016.

The feedback we have received from Zimfest 2015 participants has been positive about this site, and we look forward to focusing our collective energies on improving the festival rather than starting over in a new location. As 2015 participants are aware, the town of Monmouth is in the heart of the beautiful Willamette Valley, wine country, with easy access to the Oregon coast.

I am recruiting volunteers now to form an organizing committee! If you would like to be involved in planning and organizing Zimfest 2016 in any way, shape or form, please e-mail me: claire-at-zimfest-dot-org. Feel free to ask about opportunities large and small to help out before and/or during the festival.

Best regards,

Claire Jones
Zimfest Coordinator

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Zimfest 2015 Survey

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Festival Details

We hope you were able to attend Zimfest this year. (If not, we look forward to seeing you at a later Zimfest!)

Thank you for coming to Zimfest 2015! We all hope you had a wonderful time. As we have done in past years, we would like to hear about your experiences so that we can make Zimfest better in the years to come. And to make that easier for you, this year’s survey is much simpler than in the past. Please take a few moments to share your thoughts about what works and what can be better. You are also welcome to share any other thoughts you have about Zimfest or Zimfest Association. We welcome your input!

https://zimfest.org/overview/survey/

Thank you!

2015 Zimfest Organizing Committee
Zimfest Association Board of Directors

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Final Announcement Before Zimfest 2015

Posted on by Zimfest Organizing Committee Posted in Festival Details

Dear Zimfest Community,

This will be our final announcement before Zimfest 2015 launches on Thursday August 13. The excitement is building, but there is still much to do! We have a few comments and reminders for Zimfest participants, whether you are new to the festival or an old hand:

  • The weather forecast for Monmouth OR is for temperatures in the high 70s on Thursday, increasing to the 80s next weekend. Be sure to put on sunscreen and bring fans for your rooms. Like most colleges, Western Oregon University has no air conditioning in the dorms or most of the classrooms.
  • Zimfest supplies (borrowed) marimbas and hosho for workshops, but it can be challenging procuring enough instruments for the many types of workshops we offer. If you have or can borrow a mbira in the tuning a workshop will be taught in, please bring it; otherwise the teacher or Zimfest will provide one. The same goes for drumming workshops; if you own or can borrow a drum for a workshop you are taking, please bring it. We are also requesting those can lend drums for our workshops to please do so. If you are taking a guitar workshop and have a guitar amp, please bring it as Zimfest cannot provide amps.
  • Zimfest online registration for housing, dining and workshops is now closed, but you may still sign up for volunteer shifts at https://zimfest.org/volunteer/list/. Onsite registration will open at the festival at noon on Thursday. You will be able at that point to rent rooms or additional nights in your already-reserved rooms, purchase camping passes and/or enroll in workshops that still have space in them. You can no longer drop workshops that you have signed up and paid for; see rules about workshops and cancellations at https://zimfest.org/wksps/about-workshops/ (scroll down to the bottom).
  • Very often bands performing at Zimfest like to sell their CDs after their shows. If you are on the outdoor stage in the afternoon, the Kutsinhira people may be able to sell your CD for you; inquire at the Kutsinhira Booth in the marketplace. If you are performing on the Evening concert stage, Zimfest can provide table space in the WUC West Lobby outside the Pacific Room concert hall. Please provide your own CD salespeople, as Zimfest volunteers have other tasks to carry out and cannot sell CDs for you.

Thanks for reading, and see you at the festival!

Enduring Rhythms ~ Gathering in Harmony

Zimfest 2015 Organizing Committee

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Zimfest Workshop Cancellations

Posted on by Zimfest Organizing Committee Posted in Festival Details

Hello Zimfest community,

Yesterday was the deadline for cancellation of workshops with low enrollments. Please check the Workshop Changes page (https://zimfest.org/news/festival-updates/#workshop-changes) for a list of cancellations and changes. If you have been dropped from a cancelled workshop and have Zimfest credit, browse the workshop list for a replacement. There are still many open workshops in all categories: dance, mbira, marimba, presentations, songs and games!

You will have until August 5th to register for any open workshops, drop workshops or transfer to other workshops. On that date, workshop registrations will be frozen until the festival and no changes will be allowed. During the festival, students may not drop or transfer to another workshop unless the workshop they are enrolled in has been significantly changed by the festival organizers (such as a different teacher.) See the page About Workshops for more information on cancellations and situations in which you may apply for a refund (https://zimfest.org/wksps/about-workshops/).

Enjoy the blue moon tonight!
Zimfest 2015 Organizing Committee
Enduring Rhythms ~ Gathering in Harmony

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Transportation to and from Zimfest

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival Details

Dear Zimfest community,

As Zimfest 2015 at Western Oregon University draws near, we on the organizing committee have become painfully aware of the challenges of getting to the Monmouth location via public transport. Portland Airport is some 90 minutes away by car; but there is no direct transport link to Monmouth. As we mentioned on our website (https://zimfest.org/location/getting-to-zimfest/) the recommended route is to travel from the airport to Salem by bus or shuttle. The CARTS bus service Route 40, taken from the Salem Transit Center, then connects to WOU (stopping outside the Werner University Center). Here is the WOU link for the Route 40 bus schedule: https://www.wou.edu/online_catalog/display/transportation.php.

Two difficulties with this route have recently come to light: a) the transfer to the Transit Center in Salem may involve a walk of over one mile. This may not be a viable option for many travelers with luggage. b) It turns out the CARTS Route 40 bus service between Salem and Monmouth does not run on Saturdays and Sundays during the summer. Conference Services people at WOU have acknowledged to me the poor transport situation to their campus and noted that taxis are scarce and prohibitively expensive in Salem.

We are advising Zimfest participants who are traveling by public transport and need help with rides to post on Dandemutande. We hope those in Portland and the surrounding communities, aware of the difficulties, can step up with offers to pick people up, either in Portland or Salem. This is best coordinated through Dandemutande. At the festival we will have a ride board for transportation at the end of the festival. If there are any festival-goers who will have cars at Zimfest and can offer to make a run up to Salem (30-40 minutes) or even Portland, please write the organizing committee directly at .

Let’s all work together to make Zimfest 2015 a positive experience from start to finish!
Thank you,

Claire Jones
Zimfest 2015 Coordinator

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Zimfest Reminders

Posted on by Zimfest Organizing Committee Posted in Festival Details

Dear Zimfest Community,

Here are a few reminders:

Festival volunteers needed: Please log on to online registration to choose a volunteer task and time. Shifts are still available in every area — registration, concerts, workshops & marketplace. Go to: https://zimfest.org/volunteer/list/ (the program will not allow you to double-book workshops and volunteer shifts).

Housing registration closes July 28: Tuesday is the last day you can pre-register for on-campus housing, camping and meals. Go to: https://zimfest.org/location/housing/ for information on WOU housing.

Low enrollment workshops: We have had to cancel some workshops with low enrollment now to help ensure the best possible enrollment in the remaining workshops. If you have been thinking of taking a class that might be on the cusp, sign up now! Online registration for workshops will close on August 6.

Concert schedules are online at https://zimfest.org/overview/concerts/

Zimfest 2015 Organizing Committee
Enduring Rhythms ~ Gathering in Harmony

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Zimfest 2015 Volunteer Signup is Live

Posted on by Zimfest Organizing Committee Posted in Festival Details

Dear Zimfest Community,

Our Volunteer Sign-up page has now been integrated into the new website and is live! If you have already registered for Zimfest and were unable to sign up to volunteer, you may now log in, browse the volunteer tasks and sign up for shifts at https://zimfest.org/volunteer/list/. Further information is available at https://zimfest.org/vol/why-and-how-to-sign-up/.

The Workshop Coordinators have also added some new workshops as many of our marimba classes have filled up. Please check the workshop changes page at https://zimfest.org/news/festival-updates/#workshop-changes for new offerings.

Thank you for pitching in to help. Volunteers make our festival go!
Enduring Rhythms ~ Gathering in Harmony

The Zimfest 2015 Organizing Committee

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Zimfest Registration and Memberships

Posted on by Zimfest Organizing Committee Posted in Festival Details

We have had a tremendous response since Zimfest registration went live last week! Some of our marimba workshops are already filling up and we have added a second session of one at the Advanced beginner level. We would love to see more people enrolling in classes on other instruments besides marimba, and have added a guitar workshop to be taught by Matt Gordon. We also have many tremendous offerings in dance and cultural presentations. You can find announcements of these and all future workshop changes at the Festival Updates and Workshop Changes page.

For those of you who have been frustrated trying to purchase a Zimfest membership, the link to the Membership and Donations page has been repaired! Membership in the Zimfest Association gives you a waiver on the festival registration fee and helps support the Association and festival itself. We are grateful for any donations (all tax-deductible) above the cost of membership.

Join us at Zimfest 2015
Enduring Rhythms ~ Gathering in Harmony

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