US military band imparts music skills to the youth
Oleosi Kgosi | Tuesday July 11, 2017 15:36
The main intention of the event was to support skills building and to celebrate the power of artistic expression. Six members of the United States (US) Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) Five Star Brass Ensemble, led the master class workshop for 20 youth aged 14-24 from the Botswana Society for Jazz Education (BOSJE).
Following the workshop, which was held during the day, the American and Batswana musicians performed together in a jazz concert. “The reason why we are here today is to be able to share our music and bridge our differences in cultures through music and more importantly to be able to share our experience and knowledge with the young musicians of Botswana,” highlighted the group leader, Jeff Reich.
The combined band of Americans and Batswana presented soothing jazz performances by playing common songs. The songs were both American and African so as to ensure the bridging of different cultures. Every musician was given a chance to perform a solo to allow musicians to share their interest in music with the audience as well as to show a variety of what different musicians are capable of doing.
One of the workshop attendees, Justice Mojeremane said they learnt a lot in terms of music dynamics and articulation. “It was worth the attendance and I am going to share what I learnt today with other musicians. Everyone can read music vocally and play an instrument, but it’s rare to find someone who can combine the two and do exceptionally well so that’s one of the things we learnt today” he added.