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Tiny Choirmaster Firmly in Control
- Details
- Published on Tuesday, 17 July 2007 23:09
It is almost time for the main service to begin at Gekomu II Seventh-Day Adventist Church in Kisii District. The children jostle for seats on the front row so that can get a good view of the choir conductor, eight-year-old Joshua Karori.
The Standard One pupil at Gekomu Primary School in Kisii is determined to spread the word of God through gospel music.
However, to the children, he is a great source of entertainment. They find it fun watching their playmate, smartly dressed in a black suit and shoes, white shirt and bow tie, conducting a choir of adults as he sings along with them.
"I had no idea that my son wanted to be a choir conductor," says his mother, Georgina Kokulamuka. "Whenever we went to church, he would insist on sitting in the front row. After a while, I saw him conducting from his seat, but I had no idea where all this would lead to," says a beaming Kokulamuka, who is a member of the church choir.
"Then one day he just got up, went to the front, and started conducting the choir. I thought my son had gone mad. I was about to go and take him back to his seat and reprimand him for being mischievious but I noted that the congregation was enthralled by his bold move," says Kokulamuka.
Unknown to her, the choirmaster, Argwings Otieno, had noted the young boy's rare ability. Otieno later called Karori and gave him some tips on conducting a choir.
I encouraged the boy to keep it up since I realised he was not only talented, but was also very interested. It is such a special gift and I felt there was a great need to treasure it, said Otieno.
When Kokulamuka arrived for the next choir practice without her son, the other choir members asked her to go back for him.
After a short stint with the choir, it became clear that Karori would be an asset.
Otieno, who is very proud of the boy, notes that many talents go to waste because they are not tapped in time. A child like this one can grow into a responsible and reliable adult if he is assisted to nurture his talent. His talent can easily go to waste if he is not given the necessary support, says Otieno, who predicts that Joshua will be a great gospel musician by the time he is 15.
Karori in his element Master
He adds: At the moment, Joshua only conducts the choir and sings along. He has a good, round tone and it is just a matter of time before he starts training the choir as well. It is still difficult for him to teach the choir at his age because he cannot hit some of the deep notes for the male voices, that is why we are keen on encouraging him to do what he can do at the moment.
Otieno says that Karori's ability to quickly learn the songs sang by the choir has made the young boy's work very easy, adding that one cannot conduct a choir without fully understanding the song they are singing.
Karori, a son of the former Shabana Player, Eric Karori, and a Tanzanian mother, says his interest in music began even before the day he stunned the congregation in church. He would practice conducting at home when he heard his mother singing at home in the sprawling Mwembe Estate on the outskirts of Kisii town. Her singing inspired him to pursue gospel music.
Says the friendly boy: "Watu wakubwa hufikiri kuwa sisi watoto hatuwezi vitu zingine. Sisi pia twajua ila tu wengine hutuzuia. Mimi ningependa kuwa mwimbaji na mwalimu hodari ili nami nipate kumwimbia rais wetu jukwaani. [Adults think that we children cannot do some things. But we know a lot, only that we are denied the opportunity to demonstrate what we know. I would like to be a great singer and teacher in order to sing for the president from the pulpit.]"
The calm youngster says that it did not take him long to learn how to conduct the choir and his interest in conducting made him face each occasion with courage. However, he says, he never imagined he would be given the chance to conduct the choir in which his own mother sings.
Although he draws a great deal of attention wherever he goes, Karori does not see anything unusual about what he is doing. As far as he is concerned, he is only pursuing his dreams.
Karori, who would like to learn to play the piano, says he always feels relieved when he sees listeners nodding to the tune of a song or smiling in appreciation of the choir's songs. "That this is a sign that they understand the song, which means there is effective communication," he explains.
Karori, the last-born of four siblings - he has two sisters and one brother says - he would like to be a professional gospel musician like Jim Reeves or Faustine Munishi.
