moving towards joy: kujenga

Set against the backdrop of Nirox Sculpture Park’s rolling lawns, BMW Art Generation was a coming together of art walkabouts in the park, studio visits, live music performances, as well as food, wine and fashion offerings that demonstrate Africa as a destination for lifestyle excellence.

One of the standout performances on the day was undoubtedly Kujenga — an Afro-jazz band based in Cape Town, South Africa. The word ‘kujenga’ comes from Swahili meaning ‘to build,’ symbolising the band’s belief in their calling as musicians: to build and create meaningful experiences with every single listener through their art. “What does it mean to move towards joy? Well, speaking about joy as a place, as a location, that in many ways we spend most of our time and effort moving towards in our life,” says Bonga Mosola, trumpeter for Kujenga. “Our music deals with anguish and pain, whether it’s societal or personal, and I think that experience of pain in our lives is because we understand that we are dislocated from this location of joy. By moving towards joy, we express pain as a cathartic experience that allows us to experience and acknowledge pain, transporting us into this place of joy where we are not defined by pain alone.”

Often, the idea of moving towards joy doesn’t necessarily equate to the music itself, it’s the practice and creative licence of being free and able to make the music. The idea of ‘joy’ is subjective and each person has their personal definition of what brings happiness and what doesn’t.

What’s amazing about music as an art form, especially non-lyrical music, is that it’s so individualistic,” says Kujenga’s trombonist, Tamsyn Freeks. “We are all different people, with different experiences, so we’ll never be able to hear one song the same way. Each song has the ability to evoke different emotions in differnt people. For me, our songs are not just a source of joy — but rather a source of hope or something that heals you, both when I listen to it and when I play it.” 

As African artists, it’s no stranger that music can be born out of despair, as it mirrors the despair of life, both generational and societal. But, within that despair, you can create art, whether it’s being able to convey those emotions through a song’s narrative or the sound of the instruments themselves. In that effort and that achievement alone, that’s where the joy arrives: the opportunity being able to see oneself as a conduit for a multitude of emotions brings a specific kind of joy to each person.