Lariak Primary host Laikipia West Sub County Music Festival

By Bob Aston

Music enthusiasts were treated to a jovial occasion as Laikipia West Sub County Music festival was held at Lariak Primary School on June 19, 2014. The one day event received a huge turnout as music lovers thronged the school to relish the festival.

The competition brought together schools from four Divisions namely; Rumuruti, Muhotetu, Sipili and Ol-Moran. It featured dances, chants, folk songs, set pieces, poems and mashairi.

The Kenya Music Festival (KMF) has been structured to give prominence on wider community participation to showcase varied Kenyan cultural heritage through, music, dance and elocution.

Lariak Primary pupils entertaining guests during a past function

Schools performed in more than 30 different classes with Lariak Primary School and Rumuruti District Education Board (DEB) emerging victorious in most of the classes.

The festival Mission is to develop and promote Kenya’s intangible cultural heritage of music and other cultural expressions through enhanced dialogue amongst the diverse cultures of Kenya and the international community for sustainable development while its vision is to be the leading agency in the development and promotion of Kenya’s intangible cultural heritage locally and internationally.

The participants were informed that only schools that got more than 80% in their respective classes will be able to proceed to the county competition.

Sipili Division Area Education Officer (AEO), Mr. Edward Omondi urged participants who qualified for Laikipia County Music Festival to continue training hard in order to progress to the national competition. He also urged schools to start preparing for next years’ competition in order to improve upon the quality of items presented.

“We will look at how we can capacity build teachers involved in music festival together with Kenyan Primary School Head Teachers Association,” said Mr. Omondi.

Laikipia County is now set to hold the County Music festival on June 25, 2014 in Nyahururu. This year will mark the 88^th edition of the Kenya Schools and Colleges Music Festival.