This year's Folklore Festival will span 30 days in three cities – Tshwane, Johannesburg and Cape Town – and celebrate 30 years of democracy.
The word “folklore” was reportedly first used by British author William John Thoms in the London Magazine in 1846. Atheneum.
Since then, August 22 has been designated World Folklore Day. More than 50 years ago, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) proclaimed a global commemorative day for folklore.
The day is designated as World Folklore Day, honoring the various artistic and cultural expressions of people from all over the world, without exception.
South African Folklore
In South Africa, a festival of the same name begins in early August and runs for 30 days.
“People ask me what folklore is, but they use the word incorrectly. Some describe music as a folklore genre, but the real purpose of the Folklore Festival is to educate each other and be the keepers and archivists of our stories,” asserted Pilani Bubu, founder and director of the Folklore Festival.
“Folklore is basically created when we pass on a story to other people through oral tradition — that is, as long as we all decide that this is something that needs to be passed on. Whether it's a joke, a proverb, or a story, that's important folklore.”
This is the festival's third year. Previous festivals took place over one day, but this year's Folklore Festival will span 30 days in three cities – Tshwane, Johannesburg and Cape Town – to celebrate 30 years of democracy.
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Celebration of Cultural Heritage
The Folklore Festival focuses on storytelling, intergenerational dialogue and showcasing Indigenous knowledge systems through a variety of art forms including music, poetry, literature and dance.
The goal of this year's festival is to build and grow the folklore community by creating intimate bonding moments within the community.
As part of the festival, a theatre screening was held. Do you remember IGAMA? ‘Dalisu Ndlazi’ by multi-talented storyteller Surindile Mthembu was performed at the National School of the Arts (NSA) and was performed by jazz musician Siya Makuzeni.
“There are so many artists and storytellers who have created artworks, written books, written poetry (spoken word), made music, made theatre. They are telling stories about each other and about ourselves, finding each other in the exploration of our identities, cultures and traditions.”
“The Folklore Festival is a festival of cultural heritage, but this year we want to better understand what it means in this context and we think this is the right year,” Bubu said at the festival's opening ceremony.
Later in September, Constitution Hill Women's Prison will host a music festival featuring musicians, authors, spoken word artists, poets and storytellers.
Featured artists include Amanda Black, veteran and multi-talented music anthropologist Dr Madala Kunene, singer-songwriters Malay and Sibusile Shaba and many more.
Performers include renowned author and storyteller, Dr Gcina Mhlophe;
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