Winners feted as music festival comes to an end

Kitale School win in a choral verse at the 92nd edition of the annual Kenya Music Festival. [George Orido/Standard]

The 92nd edition of the Kenya Music Festival has come to an end, with winners awarded trophies and certificates.

Education CS Amina Mohamed and Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang awarded the winners at Dedan Kimathi University in Nyeri yesterday.

Sony Complex won the Own Choice Western Style singing game with a colourful performance as the Aga Khan duet of Abigail Obiero and Dinisha D’Silva enthralled with their song, Do Reh Mi, from the musical play Sounds of Music, winning this class three years in a row under the directorship of Philip Mbinji.

The school also won the best solo on drugs and substance abuse by Jazmine Locklear.

Kapsabet Secondary School for the Deaf scooped the Central Bank of Kenya trophy for the best item in secondary schools with the item Can I Carry You.

Authenticity and being true to the idiom helped Dago Kowuor from Nyanza to win the Best Folk Dance Primary Schools when they performed a Ramogi dance.

Uthiru Genesis Primary excelled in persuading the audience on matters nutrition with their choral verse themed, ‘Promoting good nutrition in schools, enhancing learning through proper feeding’. Ortum High School were in their element as they won the best piece in Africa folk songs in Turkana and Pokot as Kodich AIC Primary took the primary school mantle led by James Lotop.

Solemnly, Obera Boys took the audience through a divine journey with their song Ohinga, winning the Africa folk song with sacred text category.

Nairobi’s Harambee Primary elocuted themselves to victory with a verse, Tuemnaswa on countering violent extremism and counter-terrorism.

Sacred Heart won the hearts of many with the serenading rendition of a Taarab song on national cohesion and development, winning the class in a big way and making Maxwell Ouma arguably the king of Taarab at the fete.

Spiritual category

And Kenyatta University continued to soar with several wins, including in solo opera (O Zitte Nitch Mein Lieber Sohn) by Janice Liayuka as well as African American spiritual category with I Can Tell the World.

Bukulunya Secondary School won the best choral verse on the theme the Big Four agenda as Erusui Girls High School came tops with a choral verse on the role of teachers in instilling positive values in students.

Moi University Primary School came top with a Kiswahili choral verse on child protection and safe use of the internet for primary schools.

Mazeras Primary School from the Coast had no equal when they performed a Mijikenda piece in the category of traditional cultural dances.

Unicef special composition on the rights of the child went to Gildwadzi Primary School as Maseno won at the university level with their piece that emphasised the need for all children to access quality, inclusive education.

Kenya Technical Training College scooped gold in the Central Bank of Kenya’s category with the best African folk song.

From the western region, Mukumu Girls excelled in the ‘Zilizopendwa’ category and won the NSSF trophy for their song on care for the old.

Pumwani started the ‘Zilizopendwa’ with instrumentation. They won in the first instance and have continued to win.

Also winning yesterday was St Joseph’s Chepterit, Starehe Boys and Girls centres, St Mary’s Tala, Kinyanjui TTC, Ugenya TTC, Mwikhome Special School, Maseno Girls Boarding School, Tengecha Girls, Kaimosi TTC, Joytown Special School, Kitui TTC and Melangine Vocational Training Centre.