Music meets memory at the MUSON Festival

At the Agip Recital Hall, Muson Centre, four guests—two men, two women; three Nigerians, one German—shared songs reflecting their experiences, memories and philosophies to a packed audience at a session moderated by Kitoyi Ibare-Akinsan.

Earlier in the evening, the official opening of the festival had taken place at the Agip Foyer with tape cutting by Lady Ibru and opening remarks from Mr Louis Mbanefo, Vice Chairman of the Musical Society of Nigeria (MUSON) body of trustees. A concert held the previous night had served as prelude to the festival.

MUSON, known for orchestra, choir, music recitals and jazz events, generally caters to an elite music sensibility. My Kind of Music, however, featured songs that cut across time and social strata. German Consul-General Ingo Robert had an opera-heavy list of songs, reminders of his time working as a theatre manager in Berlin after law school and as a young man sneaking into operas in Salzburg. He shared a love for Schubert with Opunimi Akinkugbe, who played a piece from the Austrian composer as performed by her son.

Bolanle Austen-Peters and Ituah Ighodalo, the latter a pastor, shared more contemporary music. Austen-Peters’s selection included Sade Adu’s ‘Sweetest Taboo’; Ighodalo had Whitney Houston’s rendition of George Benson's 'Greatest Love of All’. They both had the two contemporary gospel songs of the night in Michael W. Smith’s ‘Grace’ and Nathaniel Bassey’s ‘Onise Iyanu’ respectively.

Tekno’s ‘Rara’ was selected and danced to by Austen-Peters and Wizkid’s ‘Ojuelegba’ was one of Mrs Akinkugbe’s choices. Both artists, recently united after a feud, were the only Nigerian contemporary popstars in selection. Kaliné’s ‘Bring them Home’—a tribute to the abducted Chibok girls—and Fela Kuti’s ‘Water ‘No Get Enemy’ were also played.

All of the guests shared a love for Michael Jackson. The King of Pop’s ‘Man in the Mirror’ was selected by Akinkugbe; his death was referenced in the selection of Nat King Cole’s ‘Smile’ by Robert; Pastor Ighodalo and Mrs Austen-Peters named him as influential in their youth.

The guests introduced their selections with anecdotes and asides. Speaking of a song he almost selected, Ighodalo said, “I thought I can’t face church on Sunday with Sexual Healing,” denying the audience the Marvin Gaye classic, but gifting them laughter.

The audience lolled their heads to evocative lyrics as contained in ‘Smile’, did mini dance moves on their seats to Tekno’s catchy beat, hailed the mention of Saturday Night Fever, and an older section of the crowd sang long after the hymn ‘Dear Lord and Father’ stopped playing.

The night was a good reminder that childhood, youth, birth, and death are all contained in the soundtracks of our lives. And if, in evolving, we sometimes forget who we used to be, music returns us to our younger selves.