African acts to take centre stage in Hamburg

The show is part of the ninth edition of the Media Sound Hamburg summer academy, which runs from 9 to 18 August.

The African artists' upcoming performances are a result of a partnership between Music In Africa's ACCES music conference and Media Sound Hamburg.

“It turned out that through the partnership with the Music In Africa Foundation, the African continent opened up for us," Media Sound Hamburg director Hans-Joachim Esser-Mamat told Music In Africa. "Through our participation at ACCES in Nairobi, Kenya, last November, we have made an incredible number of new contacts, and friendships have developed.

The same partnership saw a scholarship to the academy awarded to South African sound designer Rethabile Nyamate in 2018 and Alice Ragoi from Kenya in 2019.

“For the first time, a young sound designer from South Africa is taking part in our new three-month mentoring program,” Esser-Mamat said. "In addition to free participation in Media Sound Hamburg, the programme includes internships at various Hamburg institutions and companies. This year, we are again awarding a scholarship to a young African talent from the fields of film music, game music and sound design."

The scholarship is worth €4 000 ($4 500) and includes free Media Sound Hamburg participation as well as accommodation, travel expenses and per diem. 

Sahad and The Nataal Patchwork will also conduct a four-day music production workshop from 5 to 8 August, before the summer school begins.

The workshop will give insight into music production and conclude with a public concert at the Resonanzraum. Other workshop facilitators will be Thomas Görne and Made Indrayana from the Hamburg University of Applied Media. Musicians, composers, producers and sound engineers are invited to attend and learn about the effective usage of EQs, compressors, various effects in the mixing process, room acoustics, and mixing and mastering, among others.

On 11 August, Wainaina will lead a forum workshop where he will report about his musical work, primarily in the production of the popular TV series and musical Tinga Tinga Tales. Workshop facilitators will include Rens Machielse (Netherlands) who will speak about composing for film and Elias Struck (Germany) who will handle sound design and ProTools.

Media Sound Hamburg 2019 will also feature five masterclasses and forums, which will explore topics such as The Magic of Collaborations, What Does Sound Design Mean? Evolving Into a Working Film Composer and Sounds From Nature.

For more information, visit the Media Sound Hamburg official website.