Meeting Ivorian balafon player and musician Aly Keita is a great opportunity to discover what being passionate about music really means. 

Hailing from a family of musicians, Keita grew up surrounded by traditional instruments like the Djembe and the Kora. 

But his favourite instrument became the balafon, which he made with his own hands as a young man, and which he has played ever since.

 The balafon is a kind of wooden xylophone which plays melodic tunes, and usually has between 16 to 27 keys. It has been played in Africa since the 14th century, with origins in Mali. 

At this year’s Isaano Arts Festival held at Petit Stade between Friday, February 12 to Sunday February 21, the balafon made its first official appearance in Rwanda, courtesy of Keita. 

Judo Kanobana, the production manager and founder of Positive Productions and Isaano group, which jointly organize the festival admitted that this was indeed one of the highlights of the festival, being the first time it was gracing a Rwandan stage. 

He describes Isaano as "a market, a platform where you meet fine artists and performing arts, where you meet professionals, artists and the public.”

The main venue was the Petit Stade, although a more intimate side-show run at the nearby Champion Hotel for the duration of the festival. At the side show, the public got to see their favourite artistes up close, talk to them, get autographs and photo opportunities, even join the musicians on stage. 

Keita revealed at the festival that among his many dreams is the desire to raise awareness about the balafon all over the world. 

To do this, he worked with the German percussionist, composer and fellow balafon player Gert Kilian, and together they set up the project "Aly Keita & the Magic Balafon”, with the realization of a DVD released in June that narrates and explains the balafon. 

"I want my music to be alive and energetic, full of hope and love, music that I can share with the public and through which the public and I can share our joy.”

That was just one of the highlights. The other was the presence of Nigerian Hip hop/Soul singer, songwriter and actress Nneka Lucia Egbuna. 

"Many people did not believe she would perform in Rwanda or even appear on local radio and TV for interviews,” explained Judo, adding that it was the second time the artiste was performing in the country. 

"She came with her full band, two managers and many crew members. It’s very hard to get artistes of that calibre away from their home for more than three days, and I think even our partners at first had some reservations. 

The other highlights were the Zambian Afro-Jazz, Blues and Soul songstress Yvonne Mwale, "who performed with all parts of her body” according to Judo. 

The music aside, Mwale’s touching personal life story struck a major chord with her Rwandan audience. At the age of 12 years she lost both parents and had to take refuge on the streets of Zambia’s capital Lusaka for a while. 

Also worthy of note was the presence of diminutive Ugandan Kora maestro Joel Sebunjo, a continental force and expert of the Kora, yet who is hardly known in the East African region. 

Then there was the array of diverse local talent at the festival; names like Active, Peace, Indatwa, DB, Oxymoron, Riderman, Eric1Key, Weya, Sam, and Yoya, and Charly and Nina, among others. 

"I thought I knew the who-is-who of the local music scene because I manage musicians and organize events, but I was shocked at the talent I saw,” exclaimed Judo.

More than just music …an arts bonanza

The festival was a week of intensive activities in the fields of art, culture and entertainment, complete with a mini arts expo as one of the side shows.

Beyond just the music performances that offered the main draw, here were literature, dance, drama, spoken word, cinema and comedy performances incorporated in the festival program. 

It further drew international artists, chorographers, designers and producers from Ivory Cost, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, the DRC, Burundi, USA, France, Belgium, and Germany, among others and other places around the world will attend this festival. 

There were also back-to-back conferences, workshops, and the launch of the Rwandan chapter of a portal for African artists, and active networking. 

On opening day, February 12, for instance, there was an artistes’ expo featuring different art galleries, and a lighting and design workshop besides the days main music act – the Nigerian songstress Nneka.

On the second day there was an Event Productions Workshop and Sound system workshop to precede the day’s music performances. 

"Isaano Arts Festival is a unique platform where all performing arts professionals, fine artists, literature and crafts specialist all meet. It’s one-of-a-kind initiative where creativity, talent and diversity thought performances, meetings, conferences, workshops and special arts markets is highlighted and a full space for creative expression provided,” explained Judo, now in his fourth year of organizing the festival. 

"The Mission is to spot, promote and develop opportunities for artists and culture practitioners within the national and international networks. Ultimately, we want to see the creation of objective ratings for art, promotion of up-and-coming performers, and to showcase performing arts groups or artists from different regions to develop networking initiatives and foster solidarity with other arts institutions, promoters, culture organizations and festivals locally and internationally.”