The Sunday News
Ngqwele Dube, Life Correspondent
THE World Jazz Day main celebrations that had been scheduled for end of April in South Africa have been cancelled with the local edition of the celebrations also being put on hold due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Locally, the Jazz and Whiskey Club had planned to host the commemorations on 2 May at Maunga Sports Bar in Emakhandeni but the event has been postponed indefinitely.
Club chairman, Sibonginkosi “Mr Prince” Tshabalala said it was inevitable for the event to be postponed considering the health threat posed by the Covid-19 virus.
He said they had lined up a collaboration with the main World Jazz Day celebrations that would have seen the event being featured as one of the worldwide shows commemorating the genre.
Mr Prince said they had lined up several acts to take part in the show but would now be only sending self-generated video messages to be streamed worldwide on International Jazz Day as encouraged by the main organisers.
“Its an event that we were so much looking forward to considering we had engaged the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz which was organising the main event in Cape Town in collaboration with Unesco and they had accepted us to be part of the world wide celebrations.
“However, as the situation remains critical and gatherings have been banned, we will wait for another day. We are also taking heed of a circular sent to us by the National Arts Council advising the postponement of all events within the period when congregating is prohibited,” he said.
In a statement, Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz official, Michelle Menzel said they are calling on artistes and fans around the world to self-create video messages to be streamed worldwide on International Jazz Day.
“Due to ongoing concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, the International Jazz Day 2020 Global Host Celebration in Cape Town and other cities across South Africa, including the All-Star Global Concert on April 30, will not take place as scheduled. This decision has been undertaken in response to guidance issued by government and public health officials in South Africa and reflects the high priority that the Institute, its partners and local organizers place on the health and safety of all participating musicians, staff, affiliates and the public.
“International Jazz Day would not be possible without the thousands of independent organisers around the world who faithfully help bring the message of this unique music into their communities each year on April 30. We strongly encourage our partners to follow all local public health directives and Government guidelines when considering whether to go ahead with an International Jazz Day programme. Many partners have already rescheduled their programmes for a later date, pending the abatement of the current global pandemic. These
postponed events will be gratefully recognised as official celebrations of International Jazz Day.
“Additionally, I am happy to let you know that we have been brainstorming alternative ways to celebrate International Jazz Day online. We hope to bring many of our incredible organisers together virtually to celebrate during these unprecedented times. We hope that this year, with your help and despite the challenges, we will still be able to unite the world through jazz,” she said in a statement.
Last week the National Arts Council issued a statement recommending the cancellation of all arts events.
As National Arts Council of Zimbabwe (NACZ), difficult as it maybe, we call upon all stakeholders, players and consumers in the cultural and creative industries to comply to the response measures set by the Government. Unfortunately, Covid-19 knows no timeframe and knows no numbers, as industry players we need to think about people and not events. If players are to put people first and cancel, suspend or postpone events that had been planned already, we will go a long way in contributing in a positive way to the national response.
“As NACZ we call upon all organisers of World Theatre Day associated activities, meant to be held this March, to CANCEL them forthwith. The same MUST apply to all other events falling in April within the time frame given by the Government. This is obviously a sad chapter in the arts business in this country as artistes and promoters alike will find themselves in a precarious situation as livelihoods are threatened,” read part of the statement.
