DANYEL WARO AND TUMI AT BAT

One-off concert by renowned Reunionnaise musician at BAT Centre.

Durban is in for a special treat with a one-off concert by renowned Réunionnaise musician Danyel Waro and his group at the BAT Centre on May 9. Promising an ultra-memorable showcase the performance will include a collaboration with popular hip-hop star Tumi (of Tumi and the Volume).

Last seen in Durban during Poetry Africa in 2007, Waro is the best known singer of maloya music, a compound rhythm which historically expresses the joys and sorrows of plantation workers in Reunion. The group use entrancing traditional instruments such as the kayanm, a flay instrument made from cane flower stems and filled with saffron seeds; the bob, a musical bow which is attached to a calabash for resonance (much like the South African umakhweyana bow), and the rouler – a big drum made from barrels with a cowskin head. Modern day Reunion is a majestic tropical outpost province of France populated by a people from a melange of ethnicities including African, Chinese, Indian and European. A proud affirmation of the struggles of the island people, Waro sings predominantly in Creole with deep political conviction about the effects of the post colonial and globalized world on this Indian Ocean island, envisioning a future with hope and resilience.

Tumi Molekane is no stranger to poetry and music lovers, having first risen to prominence in 2000 after performing with Dead Prez. Tumi is a poet, writer and MC who addresses the daily challenges of post apartheid youth with a responsibility and consciousness not found in most hip-hop artists. Not limited to hip-hop however, Tumi has performed with an array of artists including Blk Sonshine, Keorapitse Willie Kgositsile, Max Normal, Lesego Rampolokeng, Saul Williams, Sarah Jones and Mutaburuka. His concept band, Tumi and the Volume has played on various international stages including the North Sea Jazz Festival and the Quart Festival in Norway amongst others. His intriguing collaboration with Danyel Waro began on Reunion Island, was deepened with Waro’s recent residency programme in Johannesburg and will certainly shake up a few preconceptions about cross-cultural pollination.

This event is part of a season of cultural and trade exchange between South Africa and Reunion. This exchange will also feature a performance by Reunion dance company Theatre Taliipot at the Jomba! Contemporary Dance Experience on May 2 and 3 at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre at 19h30).

Open to all interested parties, a meeting to explore cultural partnerships between the Reunion city of Le Port and sister port city Durban takes place at the Centre for Creative Arts on May 7 at 14h00 and a presentation of trade opportunities between Reunion and KwaZulu-Natal is to be held at the Durban Chamber of Commerce on May 8 at 09h00. Look out for a broad programme of activities by b-boys outfit Soul City from le Port, culminating with their participation in the BAT Centre Throwdown at noon on May 9.

The Danyel Waro and Tumi show kicks off at 21h00 at the BAT Centre with local group FouZulu also appearing. Tickets R50 available at the venue two hours before the performance.

The programme is presented by the Embassy of France, the French Institute of South Africa, Region Reunion in association with Ethekwini Municipality, Centre for Creative Arts and BAT Centre. For more information, contact the Centre for Creative Arts on 031 260 2506/1816 or email cca@ukzn.ac.za