SEASON 3 AT A GLANCE   

Photography by CHarles Michael Ballestamon

To paint the scene - we were leaving Tafaria en route to Gilgil on a bus with all of our KICF participants. We had just completed four intensive days of music making together. Mornings of body and rhythm work and chamber music coachings. Afternoons of lessons, performances, and outdoor activities (horseback riding!). Evenings of lectures and chamber orchestra rehearsals. Meals together that invited conversations rich with laughter and curiosity. So, on this ride to Gilgil where we were to perform four times at the Pembroke House School, Robert and I asked a question of two nearby students. To help us find a word in Swahili that held the essence of our work together. We had various parameters in the hopes that the word will ultimately find a new home in work based in Laikipia. After about twenty minutes we were given the most thoughtful list. Words and accompanying terms that allowed each to function as an acronym. They ranged from the concepts of culture to opportunity. And then we heard Pamoja. Togetherness and unity. Mic drop. That’s it. Building community, creating shared understanding, coming together. Chamber music in every way. So as I begin to reflect on our third season, I find myself returning to Pamoja. With the deepest gratitude to each faculty member and student for the willingness to enter that world - a world seeking togetherness. Asante sana.

-Rebecca Merblum, Co-Artistic Director