Musicians copying a lot from foreign works – Chimwemwe Mhango
Musicians Union of Malawi (Mum) President Reverend Chimwemwe Mhango has said they are planning to hold more workshops in order to uplift the skills of musicians so that they refrain from copying more foreign works.
Mhango observed that although the country has made progress in the music industry and that there was a lot of talent, there was too much copying of foreign works.
He said they are planning to, among others hold workshops in online music marketing and choral music.
“As musicians, we need to move with technology and I have always said this time and again. We are losing quite a lot as far as online music marketing is concerned. Again through these platforms we need to master the skills on how we can benefit more,” said Mhango.
He added that everything is migrating to digital and that the country has not been spared.
The Mum president, who recently engaged musicians in the Southern Chapter, observed that artists are not taking their time as far as music composition is concerned.
“On choral music, we feel that musicians are copying a lot from especially foreign works. Many are just playing around with lyrics already done by other artists without even getting consent,” he said.
Mhango said through the workshops, they want to tackle the issue on a deeper scale and encourage artists to strive to have their own songs and that composing songs is an art that can be developed.
“Composition is an area which we need to invest in a lot because there is a gap. We cannot all be composers but we need to have the best on the ground.
“We also want to groom leaders in various aspects of discipline such as conducting patterns, vocal gymnastics, blending and usage of instruments,” Mhango said.
He also observed that female musicians were being abused in so many ways and that there was need to protect them also encourage them to stay focused.
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