Billy Monama, a renowned South African musician and virtuoso guitarist, is challenging the status quo of music teaching in black schools, seminar by seminar.
On Tuesday, November 8, Monama will hold the inaugural “South African Music Colloquium” at Wits University in Braamfontein.
Monama, who is renowned for his advocacy in documenting and preserving the legacy of African music, told IOL Entertainment that the seminars would revolutionize the South African music landscape.
“Over the course of my many years of research, I have conducted workshops and master courses, and as a performing musician, I have come to realize that our distinctive style of playing the guitar in South African music is rapidly vanishing. Monama noted that significant elements of our tradition and musical legacy could perish.
According to Monama, arts and culture formerly occupied a prominent position in South Africa’s curriculum and were integral to integrated teaching and learning.
“What we observe now in our schools is a sad state of affairs for music studies, which have become, at best, marginal for students in black schools.
A number of reasons have contributed to this unfavorable position, including the lack of specialized training for music teachers and the continued emphasis on formal, resource-intensive, Eurocentric curriculum and classroom procedures.
Monama stated that, in order to preserve our African heritage and culture, the transformation must begin at the grassroots level.
“For me, history is like a GPS that guides us into the future,” he remarked. The soul of the nation is music. Music contributes significantly to social cohesion.
“A lyric’s power is unlimited. When we learn an African song, we also learn the language of Africa. We frequently discuss decolonization, and I feel that the first place to practice decolonization is in the classroom by offering materials that promote consciousness.
“Preservation of African history in music will also provide weaponry to music students, composers, scholars, and authors so that they can establish a writing voice that speaks to our past and heritage and assists us in tracing our national identity.”
The colloquium will bring together policymakers, education planners, instructors, music practitioners, and other stakeholders to discuss and develop methods that will affect the much-needed reform of the music education system.
The South African Music Colloquium, hosted and produced by Monama, will be chaired by veteran broadcaster Pabi Moloi.
Among the guest speakers and panelists are Millicent Khemese, Innocent Ngwane, and Marius Venter, all of whom are education specialists.
In April, Monama released his first book, Introduction to South African Guitar Styles, Volume 1.
This book examines the history of the guitar in black South African popular music over the past 50 years, as well as the most significant forms that have developed around it, including marabi, maskanda, African jazz, kwela, mbaqanga, and XiTsonga.
“This book is a documentation of diachronic studies of South African music history, and it is replete with rare longitudinal studies of African music genres,” said Monama.
The book offers groundbreaking artists’ biographies and the historical context of each of the musical styles from the 1930s to the 1980s, as well as online images for reference purposes.
Monama stated, “It also includes multimedia, training videos, and guide tracks that demonstrate how to play South African guitar genres, along with over 90 pieces by different prolific South African artists.”
Tuesday, November 8, at 5pm, the South African Music Colloquium will be held at Wits University in Braamfontein.
The session is open to the public and free of charge. For additional details, please visit www.billymonama.co.za.