Announcing An Evening for Bazou 5 - May 3, 2014!

It's hard to believe it, but this is the fifth and final year of our partnership with École St. Albert Le Grand in Bazou, Cameroon. As such, this will be our fifth and final fundraiser, and we would love to have you all come out for this grand finale! There are two events on Saturday May 3: Afternoon Family Fun and An Evening For Bazou 5.

The Gladstone Hotel is graciously hosting our fundraiser again this year. They have supported each and every fundraiser and we really appreciate it. Thank you Gladstone!

The funds raised at this year's events will be used to expand the small business that was started last year as a result of our successful Indiegogo Campaign. The business - renting out equipment for celebrations in the village - was launched in December 2013 and is already off to a great start. The Indiegogo Campaign was about 50% funded, so the remaining items to be purchased for the business are tents and generators. If enough funds are raised, the school may also choose to purchase duplicate equipment and and/or set some funds aside in their bank account for business expenses and school operation/maintenance. The school has already done some improvements using money raised from their business!

Tickets can be purchased in advance from African Drums and Art Crafts located at 618 Dundas St. W. in Kensington Market.

An Evening For Bazou 5 

When: May 3, doors at 8pm, show at 8:30pm
Where: The Gladstone Hotel Ballroom, 1214 Queen St. W.
Tickets: $20 or pay what you can; cash bar

The evening will start promptly at 8:30pm with a presentation of all that has been accomplished over the past four years at École St. Albert Le Grand. You will be amazed by the transformation that has taken just four years! Njacko Backo will then open the evening with kalimba music, followed by some global beats by DRUMHAND that will certainly get you out of your seat. Afrafranto will close out the evening with some sweet palm wine and highlife music that will keep you dancing the rest of the evening. We are pleased to welcome back our talented MC's Luther Hansraj (English) and Jacques Yams (français) who will be your hosts for the evening. This is an all-ages show.

Afrafranto - Afrafranto ('Butterfly' in the Akan language of Ghana) performs authentic acoustic palm wine and highlife music. Afrafranto is a dynamic group that has entertained audiences over the past few years with their dance-driven music and electric performances.

Afrafranto features four members of the JUNO award winning African Guitar Summit - Theo Yaw Boakye on lead vocals and shakers, Pa Joe on guitar and vocals, Kofi Ackah on percussion and vocals, and Ebenezer Agyekum on bass guitar - along with Sam Donkor on balafon, and Marshall Nketiah on congas.

DRUMHAND - Hands, sticks and mallets pound out old and new rhythms on weathered skins: evoking ancient forms of ‘messaging’ via global beats for dancing bodies and curious ears! The Toronto ensemble was founded by percussionists David Chan, Larry Graves and Steve Mancuso in 2008 in an effort to combine the circuitous rhythms of West Africa, Cuba, India and Brazil with the jazz-imbued horn work in the spirit of New Orleans parade bands and the uplifting spirit of American Roots Music.

Njacko Backo - Born in rural Cameroon and raised in the hills in a small village called Bazou, Njacko has spent his life writing and performing music in Africa, Europe and North America. He began playing percussion and making instruments at the tender age three. Nicknamed the King of Kalimba, Njacko will open the evening with some sweet melodies on kalimba so you can shake off the stresses of your week and get ready for an evening of dancing and merry making!

Afternoon Family Fun

When: May 3, 3-5pm
Where: The Gladstone Hotel Ballroom, 1214 Queen St. W. 
Tickets: $10 per child, or pay what you can

Bring the whole family down for our popular child-friendly shindig. We are pleased to welcome back Soli and Rob as well as Marni Levitt who have all supported our fundraisers in the past. The Gladstone's café will be open right next to the Ballroom so that you can grab a drink or a snack while your little ones enjoy the show. The afternoon will be full of songs, dancing and stories!

Soli and Rob - Soli & Rob share a passion for performing to young audiences. The creative collaboration, now spanning over 12 years, came about as the duo, also a couple, combined Rob’s experience in songwriting with Soli’s background in theatre and puppetry. The result is a rare live show that mixes music, humour and puppetry in a way that is truly mesmerizing to children and their families.

"Toronto's #1 Children's Entertainers" - City Parent Magazine

Marni's Move-N-Music - Songwriter and holistic artist-educator, Marni Levitt nurtures a lifelong passion for expression and transformation through performance and teaching.  Move-N-Music provides interactive performances and workshops for all ages and abilities through yoga and holistic music (singing, dancing, drumming).

Njacko Backo - Njacko Backo is a percussionist, singer, storyteller, choreographer, songwriter/composer who has been performing for children and adults since his childhood in Cameroon. He has a lifetime of practice in capturing the subtlety of dance and storytelling with his music – an essential part of the African performing arts. 

Below you will find the posters (French and English) - please share with your friends and family!