Minutes from the May 14th meeting of the Zimfest Association Board of Directors have been posted.
Please also note Workshop Changes posted on June 6.
Zimfest News Blog
Zimbabwean Guests
Hello Zimfesters!
At this time we would like to announce the 2023 Zimfest Travel Fellowships grantees. The ZA Board initiated two fellowships in 2019 awarding full travel costs to one veteran Zimfest teacher and one new to the festival. Because of the effect of the pandemic on worldwide travel, 2023 is only the second time we have been able to make these awards. Please welcome our 2023 fellowship winners to Zimfest (and sign up for their workshops!):
Tsungai Tsikirai
An award-winning singer-songwriter and performing artist from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, Ms. Tsikirai has been based in the United Kingdom since 2002. She previously taught (mainly choral music) at Zimfest 2018. Although she has a flare for dance, her greatest passion is singing, with influences ranging from traditional Shona and Ndebele music to contemporary AfroFusion sounds. Enjoy her performances on an electric version of “Nhemamusasa” and a recent collaboration with Zulu guitarist Maqhinga Hadebe.
There are openings in all four Zimfest 2023 workshops Tsungai will be teaching (enter her name under teachers): Dance Therapy, two singing workshops and an introduction to both chiShona and siNdebele languages, reflecting her heritage. The more people sign up for the choral sessions, the more fun! The Session 7 workshop Yimba/Cula will be the first performance at this year’s Festival Highlights on Sunday Aug 6. In addition, Tsungai is coordinating a special all-Zimbabwean show Sunday night at 9 PM on the evening stage, Celebrate Bulawayo!
Innocent Musafare Mutero
Innocent is a multi-instrumentalist who began his musical career playing marimba at his primary school in Chitungwiza and with CHIPAWO (Children’s Performing Arts Organization of Zimbabwe). He moved to South Africa in 2008 to play in professional marimba bands there and later began teaching music in Johannesburg. He is on demand as a teacher in a number of Joburg schools, and has also been invited to play keyboards with Thomas Mapfumo as a member of the Blacks Unlimited in tours to South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe from 2015 on.
With an impressively large and varied repertoire, Innocent is teaching several marimba workshops at Zimfest 2023. While one of them has filled up, there are plenty of openings in the others at this time. He would especially like more players for “Varipiko Amai,” a Thomas Mapfumo number, and “Fairytale,” his arrangement of a South African house track. He will be performing with Totem Marimba bandmate Michael in the Marimba All-Stars, Friday evening at 9:35 PM. Enjoy Innocent and Mike jamming together on marimba.
Ride Board
We have now published the Ride Board on the Zimfest website to facilitate carpooling. Zimbabweans (and others) are starting to purchase plane tickets and will be requesting our assistance getting from the nearest airports to OSU in Corvallis.
Two months until Zimfest 2023!
Zimfest Coordinator and Organizing Committee
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Zimfest Registration Update
Dear Zimfest community, some updates for you:
- Registration for Zimfest workshops is going briskly, and a number of workshops have filled up. The Teachers and Workshops team will be taking a look next week to adjust and possibly add to the schedule of offerings.
- On the other hand, all performers and teachers have been sent their official letters of acceptance and contract agreements, yet very few have been signed and returned. If you are a teacher or band contact person, please check your spam and junk folders for these important notices from Zimfest and respond asap!
- For those who are asking whether workshop groups may go outside (rather than stay inside with masks on), we have now received confirmation that there is adequate space outside Community Hall, so singing classes in that building may go outside if the teacher and students wish. Mbira workshop groups may go outside as well, and hosho classes will meet at registration and then go outside.
- We are happy to report that all our invited Zimbabwean guests resident in Zimbabwe now have their appointments for visa interviews, which has been a major hurdle this year. Send good vibes (play mbira for them!) so that they all get approved!
- We have a need for a job that does not appear in the volunteer signup list. If you are experienced in desktop publishing or page layout and are available in July to help put together the Festival Handout (sorry, no Festival Guide this year), please contact claire{at}zimfest{dot}org.
- The Volunteer Coordinators have been pleased to see a steady flow of people signing up for volunteer tasks–keep ’em coming as there are still many jobs to be filled.
Many thanks, enjoy the Memorial Day Weekend!
Claire and the 2023 OC
Music Dancing Across Borders
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Zimfest Registration Notes
Greetings Zimfesters,
The OC worked hard to get Zimfest Registration open at midnight May 1 as advertised! Those of us up late saw many new members registering for their preferred rooms and workshops. We have a few additional pointers for you:
- Once you have registered as directed and received your invoice/verification, you will notice it lists all concert prices whether or not you purchased concert tickets. Not to worry, it doesn’t mean you have been charged for tickets you didn’t buy, it is just a quirk of the registration system.
- If you have registered and would like to change or add to it, you will need to go to the Registration Manager and claim your account. See detailed instructions under Making Changes to Your Registration on the How to Register page. Be forewarned that there will be short wait times after logging in and after selecting a registrant to view or to edit.
- We have now published the concert schedule as it currently exists, to help you plan your days between workshops and hanging out at the Outdoor Stage and Marketplace area.
- And don’t forget to sign up for volunteer shifts once you know your schedule! Volunteers make Zimfest go!
Happy May Day,
Zimfest Coordinator Claire
Music Dancing Across Borders
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April Board Meeting Minutes
Minutes from the April 16th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.
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Zimfest 2023 Registration Opens Soon
Are you ready to register for Zimfest!? Go to the website to Meet the Zimbabweans, meet the Workshop Teachers, browse all 79 workshops on the Workshop Schedule, learn How to Register, and much more.
Registration is due to open late Sunday night at midnight (when the date turns May 1st, Pacific Time) for ZA members, and on May 4th for everyone. Why not join, renew, verify your membership, or get your membership number.
A team of dedicated volunteers, the Zimfest Organizing Committee has been working very hard for the past few months preparing an amazing festival, August 3-6 at Oregon State University in Corvallis.
The Roommate Request Board is a new feature on the website this year (similar to the ride board). Because most dorm rooms are doubles and triples, you may want to find a roommate, to save money on housing.
You can always get the latest news by going to the Zimfest Home Page (in the white box in the middle).
Larry Israel
Zimfest website maintainer
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Announcing Zimbabwean Artists at Zimfest 2023
Dear Zimfest community,
The Zimfest OC is excited to announce the Zimbabwean guests for 2023, including five performing and teaching artists new to Zimfest: Othnell Mangoma Moyo, Joyce Warikandwa Chihera, Mudavanhu Magaya, Innocent Musafare Mutero, and Tendayi Kusaya. Read more about them and returning friends on the Festival Overview page. Also check out planned Festival Events, including a tribute in song to the recently deceased Ambuya Stella Chiweshe among the Festival Highlights on Sunday afternoon.
We are hard at work getting registration ready to go, targeted to open on May 1 for members and May 4 for all others; the workshop schedule will be published soon. We have had unexpected news from OSU University Housing services, in that many of the rooms for rent in McNary Hall are triples. This is a mixed blessing as the triple rooms will be great for participants coming in groups, but not all the beds will be at floor level as we requested. See On-Campus Housing for room rates and configurations.
Friendly reminder to those wishing to renew Memberships: If you are a long-time member but have not paid for a membership since November 2021 (when we introduced a new membership system), you cannot renew your old membership. You must take out a new membership in the new system. If you take out or renew a membership in April, you will be able to access the registration system on May 1 before the general public.
Claire Jones, Festival Coordinator
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Marketplace Vendor Applications Open April 1
Hello all,
Applications open April 1 for vendor booths in the Zimfest African Marketplace and will be accepted through July 18.
Because both daytime and evening concerts will be on an outdoor stage at the OSU Lower Campus/McNary Field, marketplace vendors will have the option to sell their wares in Zimfest’s first-ever Night Market on Friday Aug 4 and Saturday Aug 5. See the Vendor Information page for Marketplace fees, dates and hours, as well as the link to the vendor application. Zimfest will be renting equipment for the marketplace from a third party vendor; if your application is received later than July 18, you will be charged a late fee, and may not be able to request tables and chairs.
Browse our website for the many pages of festival information we have put up recently: check out On-Campus Housing and Dining, Festival Costs and Important Dates and Deadlines. We plan to publish the workshop grid in approximately three weeks, so you may peruse the offerings before registration opens May 1.
Zimfest Organizing Committee
Music Dancing Across Borders
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March Board Meeting Minutes
Minutes from the March 12th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.
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February Board Meeting Minutes
Minutes from the February 12th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.
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March Music!
March Music!
As we gear up for Zimfest 2023 (August 3-6 in Corvallis, OR), let us take a moment to revisit our wonderful Zimfest Online 2022 concert, and celebrate our friend Draze (aka Dumisani Maraire Jr.) with his new single and music video! Read on for more info on both.
Mazvita – Emmy Award-Winning Songwriter-Rapper “Draze” Drops New Hip Hop Single “Mazvita”
Mazvita is a single from Draze’s upcoming album, “African American.” Dubbed “Ancestral art,” the single blends rich African melodies with raw hip-hop energy to create a fresh, yet familiar sound that feels like “home” to fans in America and abroad. The album is dedicated to his father Dumisani A. Maraire, and his mother Lora Chiorah-Dye, in gratitude for all they instilled in him.
You can find the music video here, and learn more about Draze and his music here.
Zimfest Online 2022 – In December, Zimfest released on YouTube a live viewing of a collection of incredible pre-recorded performances and presentations. That video is still available!
You can register and get the link at Zimfest Online 2022.
Artists featured are: Ntswai Ntswai Arts, Tawanda Mapanda, Anesu Ndoro, Tafadzwa Matiure, and Napoleon Jambwa and Pangea.
We hope you are having a good (early) spring, and please enjoy some March Music!
– Zimfest
Music Dancing Across Borders
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Introducing the Zimfest 2023 Artwork
Greetings Zimfest Community,
We are pleased to present the winning Zimfest 2023 graphic by Penny Martindale of Olympia. It appears on the Zimfest website homepage in the form of a banner, and in a downloadable Save-the-Date card on the 2023 Overview page.
Zimfest applications for teachers and performers closed on February 28. Thanks to all who applied. The Organizing Committee has plenty of work to do in the weeks ahead and we look forward to putting together a program including old friends we have not seen in several years, as well as introducing exciting new teachers and performers from North America and Zimbabwe.
Here’s to the end of winter,
Zimfest OC
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