The Pan African Youth Orchestra during a summer 2020 musical performance. The orchestra was featured in one of Riverfolk’s “Gazebo Concert” summer live stream videos.

The Riverfolk Music & Arts Organization invites the Manchester community to participate in creating works of art, music, or written essays/poetry/thoughts inspired by listening and viewing the Pan African Youth Orchestra (PAYO).

During February, in honor of Black History Month, Riverfolk will release short videos and photo posts about PAYO to educate and inspire our audience about the culture and community in Accra, Ghana. Posts will be shared on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and the Manchester Mirror as well as in hard copy at the Manchester Public Library and other community related organizations.

Watch the first descriptive clip, “The Journey,” here. This video is a short introduction of how the PAYO was organized as the Pan African Orchestra in 1988, to explore the history of African instruments and music, and the eventual need to replace the original players with younger musicians, who since 1995 tend to range in age from 5 to 16 years, some with no prior musical experience.

As you view the series and learn about the PAYO — past, present, and future — please send copies of your inspired works, whether artistic, musical, or poetic, to Riverfolk Music and Arts at PO Box 146, Manchester, MI 48158 or by email to riverfolkmusicandarts@gmail.com. Accepted formats include photocopy, or if sending electronically, PDF, JPG, MP4, or PNG. Items shared via Google Drive or dropbox are also accepted.

All works will become part of a compilation that will be gifted to the PAYO at the end of February. It will also become a treasured community publication that will showcase this shared project. A few select entries will be chosen to be featured at the PAYO Blacksmith Shop Concert on Saturday, February 27 to be broadcast on Crowdcast. Registration for this concert is required.

This project is sponsored by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, the National Endowment for the Arts, Arts Midwest, and the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation.