As a precursor to her highly anticipated, star-studded CAMAGU in Symphony: 10 Years of Gratitude show, multiple award-winning musician and artist Asanda Lusaseni Mvana, popularly known as Msaki, recently held an exclusive “open rehearsal” for a select and intimate audience at the Standard Bank Gallery in Johannesburg.
While audiences may be familiar with “live album recordings,” Msaki, in true consummate artist fashion, took it a step further. She not only invited her loyal followers to the open rehearsal but also encouraged them to engage with her (*and her visual art exhibition currently on display at the Standard Bank Art Gallery) as she fine-tuned her upcoming performance, accompanied by an orchestra.
For some, it must have been a unique and somewhat disorienting experience to witness Msaki go through her paces in such a stop-start manner—something they likely wouldn’t have expected as an audience.
To the untrained ear, which most of us (including this writer) have, it might have seemed that what they were hearing at any given moment was already perfection. Yet, bearing witness to Msaki’s creative process—which was both a privilege and a treat—offered a rare opportunity to see just how much effort (albeit in a controlled environment) goes into the creation, rehearsal, fine-tuning, and even more fine-tuning of a performance-ready song. It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime and surreal experience.
As Msaki celebrates a decade of musical and artistic impact, it’s worth noting that her singular and unmatched prowess as a songwriter, singer, performer, and artist has not been fully appreciated or recognised. Perhaps, after some time—if and when she returns from what we all hope will be a brief hiatus—she will finally receive the hard-earned and well-deserved recognition she is due.
Msaki’s CAMAGU in Symphony: 10 Years of Gratitude takes place tonight at the SunBet Arena in Pretoria and features a stellar line-up of her contemporaries, including Simmy, Black Motion, Tresor, Brenda Mtambo, Leomile, Neo Muyanga, Jesse Clegg, and Nduduzo Makhathini, among others.
