BG reporter

Kabomo Sight Mongweotsile of Kanye, Kemoitsesemang Makasu of Letlhakane, and Solly Sebotse of Letlhakeng emerged victorious, all scooping first prize at the traditional instruments competition in the categories; segaba, setinkane and katara respectively.
The competitions, which were hosted last Saturday night by the Department of Arts and Culture as part of the President’s Day celebrations also saw Mmoloki Matlho of Gaborone, Xare Qoma of D’kar and Monaga Stiga Sola Molefi of Maun each taking second prize in the categories respectively.
The traditional instruments competition was an inspirational show that displayed talented segaba, setinkane and karata players from the different parts of the country.
In all the three categories, both the young and old were well represented. Maitisong Hall, where all the action took place was turned into a cultural centre where the traditional string sounds revived one’s patriotism.
Contrary to popular belief that young people are losing touch with their culture, many in attendance danced to the traditional tunes and cheered on.The competitors, most of whom displayed raw talent, were sometimes not sure what to do when on stage, however once they punched and plucked their traditional instruments melody and tone quality became prominent expressive features of their music.
From time to time, instrumentalists would add a dash of movement and entertaining dances to the variations of their rhythms. Some would sing along while some would allow the audience to create their own lyrics and match it to the sounds. It could not go unnoticed that most songs were long, taking more than six minutes. The length of the songs was also not necessarily because of the lyrics but because the instrumentalists kept on repeating a single sentence. This was prominent in all the performances.
Most of the songs that accompanied the traditional melodies seemed like they were created on the spot as instrumentalists were playing. In all the three categories represented, performances varied through individual participants, each displaying rich unique elements of the instrument they played.