Main Stage
Once again this year, the Main Stage at Africa Day Dublin featured an attractive line-up of both African and Irish performers. A number of African and Irish musicians developed unique collaborative performances especially for the event. The line-up included:
Jape
Jape returned to Africa Day Dublin in 2010, following a hugely popular performance at the 2009 flagship event.
To date, Jape has released three studio albums: ‘Cosmosphere’ (2003), ‘The Monkeys in the Zoo Have More Fun Than Me’ (2004) and ‘Ritual’ (2008), which won the Choice Music Prize last year.
To listen to Jape, click here.
Solo Cissokho
Senegalese musician Solo Cissokho is a master of the kora, the 21-string harp-lute, played extensively in West Africa. Cissokho comes from Siguichor in the Casamance district of Senegal, where he was born into a family that had seen the art of kora-playing pass from generation to generation for hundreds of years. He maintains a strong tradition as a griot (a West African poet, praise singer, and wandering musician, considered a repository of oral tradition).
Having lived in France and the UK, Cissokho moved to Norway – where he is currently based – in 1995. In 2003, he was awarded a BBC World Music Award and he has also been nominated to the Nordic Council’s Music Prize. He has released many highly acclaimed albums, and has played with such legendary African musicians as Youssou N’Dour and Ali Farka Touré.
Niwel Tsumbu and Dave Flynn
Niwel Tsumbu and Dave Flynn, two of the finest guitarists and singer / songwriters in Ireland, joined forces for a special Africa Day collaboration, which brought together their mutual love of African and Irish music, virtuoso guitar-playing and original song-writing. Central to this collaboration were the infectious rhythms and intricate guitar styles of Niwel’s homeland, the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the songs and instrumentals Niwel and Dave composed and arranged, these Congolese sounds merged with other African styles and traditional Irish melodies and rhythms.
The versatile percussionist Cion O’Callaghan (Paddy Casey Band) joine Niwel and Dave for their Africa Day performance to add layers of poly-rhythm to their mesmerising music. Cion has performed with Niwel and Dave separately, and this Africa Day performance marked the world premiere of all three musicians playing together on stage.
About Niwel Tsumbu
Since his arrival in Ireland from the Congo in 2004, Niwel has developed an enviable reputation as an elegant and fluent guitarist, vocalist and composer. His ability to vividly blend African rhythms, rumba, new jazz, classical flamenco and more has gained him ardent admirers all over Ireland. Raised on the traditional Soukous and Rumba music of his homeland, he began playing from an early age and went on to study both jazz and classical guitar - enrolling secretly in a classical music school where he also studied saxophone for a year.
The leader of several bands, including Song of the Nations, Sumu, Motema and Jazmu - all of whom have played at many festivals around Ireland, including the Dun Laoghaire Festival of World Cultures, the Bray Jazz Festival and Limerick Global Beats Festival - Niwel is truly a musical innovator.
Playing electric and acoustic guitars and singing mostly in his native Lingala, Niwel performs a range of music that stretches from contemporary versions of Congolese traditional music from the 1930s and 1940s to modern jazz.
About Dave Flynn
Originally from Dublin and now based in Spiddal, Dave started out as a rock guitarist before studying classical guitar with John Feeley. He was later awarded a Masters Degree in composition at London’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Since then, Dave has gone on to earn himself an international reputation as a composer and guitarist. He is particularly noted for his innovative compositions which fuse elements from traditional Irish music with other styles, including contemporary classical and African music.
These compositions have been performed internationally by artists including Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill, the Prague Chamber Orchestra, the Smith Quartet and the Dublin Guitar Quartet, of whom he was a founding member. As a guitarist, Dave is equally at home playing traditional Irish, classical and popular music styles.
His affection for African music was hinted at on his debut album ‘Draíocht’ which fused elements of African music with Irish music and jazz. His unique approach to playing traditional Irish music on guitar is demonstrated on his most recent release on Frisbee Records, ‘Contemporary Traditional Irish Guitar’.
About Cion O'Callaghan
Cion O'Callaghan has been one of the busiest percussionists and drummers in Ireland for the past 15 years. He made his major label debut in 1997 on Mundy’s first album, 'Jelly Legs'. He has since gone on to perform with artists including Clarence Clemons from Bruce Springteen's E Street Band, Shane McGowan, Ronnie Drew, Adrian Crowley and Roesy. In recent years, Cion has been Paddy Casey’s principal percussionist.
Cion lives in his native Dublin, where he is highly in demand for the teaching skills he inherited from his own teacher: the late, great John Wadham.
Amasis
Winners of the ‘Most Promising New Act’ Award at the 2010 Meteor Ireland Music Awards, Amasis is an Irish band with three Irish members and two from New York. Comprised of Les Stapleton, Fergal Toohey, Danielle Armstrong, Nofe Liberty and her brother Felix, their music is an edgy blend of pop and R'n'B.
The band has many influences that stretch to both sides of the Atlantic, and is driven by some of the most talented artists in the industry.
Amasis is led by Les and Fergal, two Irish musicians / producers / songwriters, who collectively share a deep knowledge of music performance, sound engineering and production. Their unique style is distinguished by their sound, songwriting skills and standards in production.
Lead singer Nofe and her brother Felix Liberty are son and daughter of African pop superstar Felix Liberty. They both came to Ireland to study at third level and, during that time, they became members of Amasis. Nofe and Felix have concentrated on developing their performance techniques and vocal skills and are ear-marked to succeed in the music industry, both here and abroad. They are joined by new girl Danielle Armstrong, whose soft, high vocals are the perfect complement for Nofe's soulful voice.
Check out their edgy new video for ‘Never Yours’ and the band's memorable award presentation at the Meteor Awards here.
Fidil
The first ever traditional music album to receive a five-star review in The Irish Times, Fidil’s new album, ‘3’, has been described as “a milestone in Irish music” and a “timeless album and a truly essential addition to your collection”.
All hailing from Donegal, what makes Fidil’s achievements all the more remarkable is the fact that the group don’t use any conventional accompaniment such as guitars, bodhráns, pianos or triangles. Rather, it is their diverse and groundbreaking use of fiddles – coupled with the depth of lore and tunes of the Donegal fiddle tradition – that makes Fidil the most unique and avant-garde ensemble in Irish traditional music today.
Fidil’s line-up is comprised of three Donegal fiddle players: Aidan O’Donnell, the 2010 TG4 Young Musician of the Year; Ciarán Ó Maonaigh, a former TG4 Young Musician of the Year and nephew of Altan’s Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh, and Damien McGeehan, whose unique ability to bring different sounds and techniques to the fiddle helps see Fidil go boldly where no trad band has gone before.
Fidil were formed in 2008 when Ciarán Ó Maonaigh and Aidan O’Donnell recorded a duet album of the same name. The group quickly morphed into a three-piece, and were awarded the Young Musicwide Award by the Music Network in 2008.
To check out their sound, click here.
The Amazing Few
The Amazing Few are wizards of feel-good frenzy, dancing, delirium and general mayhem. A two to 14-piece band, notorious for their high-energy shows, they mix peppy pop with punkish quirk, and throw in face-painters, pinatas, confetti balloons plus too many other colourful and noisy props to mention.
The band's wildly different, excitable songwriting has been compared to the B-52s, the Clash, Presidents of the United States of America, Frank Zappa, Pavement, Frank Black and the Mouldy Peaches.
The Amazing Few have supported or shared the stage with I'm from Barcelona, Adam Green, Presidents of the United States of America, Alex Zane, Har Mar Superstar, Mundy, Ham Sandwich, The Pale, The Aftermath, Dufus and many more. Their recent highlights include a special feature about the band on the RTÉ 1 television programme, 'Capital D'; three shows at the 2009 Electric Picnic, and appearances at last year's Dublin Fringe Festival, Dublin Arts Festival, Knockanstockan and Vantastival.
In 2007, The Amazing Few released their first single, 'The Fairy Omar', and in 2009, they released 'Russian Girls'. They have two new singles coming out in the very near future.
To hear the unique sound of The Amazing Few, just click here.
Discovery Gospel Choir 
2010 marked the third year in a row for Discovery Gospel Choir to take to the Main Stage at the flagship Africa Day Dublin event.
Formed in 2004, Discovery Gospel Choir was Ireland’s first integrated Gospel choir. Its members hail from all over the world, including Ireland, Botswana, Cameroon, Congo-Brazzaville, China, England, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda.
The choir has a strong ethos of reconciliation, development and integration and has campaigned for ‘Make Poverty History’. In 2008, Discovery Gospel Choir featured on the anti-racism single, ‘We People (Who are Darker than Blue)’ by Sinead O’Connor and the Republic of Loose. For further information, click here.
Newpark Afro-Cuban Orchestra
The Newpark Music Centre in Dublin has been nurturing and developing new young talent in Irish jazz for 30 years. The Newpark Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra is one of the latest initiatives to emerge from the Blackrock centre.
A big band collective of over a dozen young players, brought together under the tutulage of drummer and band-leader Conor Guilfoyle, the orchestra members bring their energies and craft to the dynamic music of ‘Latin jazz’, a heady musical mix that combines improvisation with the rhythms of Cuba and Africa.
TKO
Currently recording their debut album, due for release later in 2010, TKO has been entertaining audiences up and down Ireland for just over three years now. Having played over 200 shows since their inception, their live show is second to none: they are well-known for their crowd interaction and onstage antics.
The TKO sound is best described as micro-orchestral jam rock, infusing drums, bass and guitars with saxophone, acoustics, violin, clarinet, banjo and harmonica. It's an interesting mix of rock, jazz, bluegrass, classical and many other influences.
Their first release was the 'Hats Off' EP, follwed by a single, 'Lets Go', which went top 40 in Ireland. In recent times, the band has toured Italy; supported The Frames in Vicar Street; supported Duke Special, Mundy, Damien Dempsey, Delorentos, The Blizzards and many other established acts, and played five sold-out shows in legendary Dublin venue, Whelan's.
TKO has received positive reviews from many publications, including Hot Press, the Star and The Irish Times. You can find out more about the band through their website, www.tkohq.com, or listen to their music here.