Africa, may be a continent of rich music, arts and culture. African music has survived different sorts of transformation within the global music industry. There has been several music genres like jazz, pop music, Blues, Rock and Roll, Reggae, Ragga, R & B, Indian and Arabic songs that have impacted the normal African music. there’s now highlife music which features a lot of traditional elements. it’s born to a replacement genre of music called hip-life and hip-hop, which are largely influenced by Western Ragga music. The influence is additionally seen within the use of Western musical instruments like guitars, pianos, saxophones, cymbals, et al. . An organized synergy of both the normal instruments and foreign musical instruments leads to interesting rhythmic instrumentals which when including morally educative lyrics would produce great music that morally educates and entertain listeners. the normal music in Africa is a vehicle for showcasing the intangible cultural heritage of Africans. African music should be a strong tool for promoting African peace and development. This has been the while dream of the president of the Aswan music festival, Yasser Mofaddel.
The Aswan festival is aimed toward bringing together different kinds and rhythms from the varied traditional songs, cultures and humanities of various countries in Africa. this is able to be a tool for celebrating African unity, while fostering cultural hybridity among the varied African states. Interestingly, the festival would showcase the rich artistic cultural heritage of Egypt, the primary centre of civilization on the African continent. it might open doors for tourism exchanges among the African countries, enhancing trade relations that might boost Africa’s development.
Also, the Aswan festival would open up avenues to market , preserve and disseminate African traditional music genres that encapsulates the rich cultural heritage of Africa. Celebrating Africa via music may be a great avenue for preserving the rich African values of affection , peace, togetherness and oneness that the African intelligent forebears constantly fought for. Promoting the organization of this music festival annually would be a solemn occasion for both the old and young generations in Africa to recollect the African virtue that we are one people, a strong force to finish the wars, misery and hatred that tears apart the good fabric of unity among the African people.
It is imperative that the ministries of culture, arts and heritage also as tourism within the various African countries support the genius idea of Yasser Mofaddel in bringing Africa together through music. they will offer such assistance within the sort of funding, advertisement and marketing for the successful organization of the event from 9th to 15th December 2020. This music festival would be an exquisite platform for reviving the African peace resolutions and efforts spearheaded by the Egyptian Gamal Abdel Nasser, the Kenyan Wangari Maathai, the Nigerian Chinua Achebe, the Ghanaians Kwame Nkrumah and Kofi Annan, the South Africans Mandela and Tutu , the Southern Sudanese John Garang De Mabior, the Tanzanian Julius Kambarage Nyerere, the Liberian Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the Rwandan Paul Kagame and lots of other African heroes of peace.
