Africa

Carnegie Hall’s World Orchestra Week festival in August was a week of one “WOW!” after another, as seven youth orchestras from five different continents joined forces in and around Carnegie Hall to play for and with each other, to share singular musical works and ethos from their countries, and to show us all what the next generation’s Wishes for Our World might be.

Music therapy for hearing-impaired people? I’ve been a musician for 20 years, and I am currently a third-year trainee music therapist studying at the University of the West of England in Bristol. But I never really knew how impactful music can be for children who are deaf or have hearing impairments until I had the opportunity to accept a professional placement with Rwanda Youth Music in Kigali, Rwanda.

Nigerian singer Divine Ikubor, better known as Rema, has made a significant investment to build the largest music school on the African continent.

When people see children with disabilities actively participating in musical activities, their attitudes can shift drastically. This mental shift is incredibly beneficial for these children, who thrive when they are supported by individuals who believe in their capabilities. In this way, music programs are a connector, educating both children with disabilities and those around them, who learn to celebrate their potential.

The river is fighting to flow through the densely settled garbage, scavenged by Korogocho inhabitants. The heat of the sun bounces from the ground, the rising dust fills my eyes, while a gang member greets me in Swahili.

Five years into my work with Ghetto Classics Dance, I am again presented with the opportunity to write about our program.

The potential of the arts and technology to address global issues has gotten the attention of funders around the world. In that spirit, the STARTS Prize is expanding this year to highlight African projects that bring together science, technology, and artistic practice to address social, ecological, and economic challenges.

Foster, a new initiative launched on June 2 by the African Music Library, is expanding opportunities for African music education in primary and secondary schools across the continent.

According to 2020 UNESCO report on education, more than 1.5 billion learners across the globe were unable to attend school because of the COVID-19 pandemic and its resulting lockdowns. South Africa was not exempt; most of our young learners here lacked Internet or smartphone access, preventing them from utilizing any of the few online teaching platforms available to them. Compounding this, many arts non-profits in South Africa—all of which provide a buffet of critical social and community services—faced severe rates of closure as funding and sponsorships disappeared in every direction.

Africa No Filter and the British Council have published a new resource that can benefit anyone involved in or interested in developing arts and cultural projects across Africa.

The Jameel Arts & Health Lab—the brainchild of the World Health Organization (WHO), New York University’s Steinhardt School, the non-profit organization Culturunners, and philanthropic foundation Community Jameel—was launched earlier this year with an ambitious mission: to research how the arts can improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities in some of the most challenging places around the world.