For nearly a decade, MAMA JAZ has been more than a music festival; it is a movement. In this conversation, its founder, Gavin Poonoosamy reflects on the vision, resilience, and spirit behind Mauritius’ month-long ode to music and creativity, the importance of nurturing local talent, and the enduring legacy of Belingo Faro.
Gavin, you launched the first edition of MAMA Jaz in 2016. Since then, it has persevered through good times and tough ones. What inspired this journey, and what has kept it going?
I love the response from Malcolm de Chazal to a question addressing why he does what he does, which was: "Do you ask a tree why it blooms?"
In context, MAMA JAZ, as an idea, first appeared after a chat I had with Jerry Léonide (Ndlr: renowned jazz pianist) in December 2015. He was planning his year ahead, was due to perform in Reunion Island and asked me to produce a concert as an International Jazz Day special.
At that time, I was burnt out from a solid year of work, travelling, and needed to reorganise many things within myself, in my life, and in my professional world. Jerry’s wish became the seed that, through my potential, grew into MAMA JAZ; at first a week... then, a month... then, part of folklore.
The original vision was to shake the whole island: each beach, each village, each town and the capital throughout the month of April with life through Art and Music performances. Although reality has imposed certain parameters on the original vision, there have been many unpredictable developments that took the exploit beyond it: reaching 900,000 humans in the Republic of Mauritius or having our multimedia content reaching audiences in 70 foreign countries, for example.
How do you see MAMA JAZ contributing to the cultural and social fabric of Mauritius?
MAMA JAZ was born in Mauritius, shaped by its people and culture. It is deeply rooted in this land, created by it, for it: a true manifestation of its identity. The highest remit of MAMA JAZ is to emit positive energy through everything it does, to inspire and be accessible. Very close to that is the empowerment of the Mauritian creative genius through music. After that, comes the continuous work on improving conditions for staff, artists, partners and audiences.
MAMA JAZ has become an increasingly recognised reference, and the resilience shown over the years to curate performances by groundbreaking composers, improvisers, and performers we deeply respect, has earned us a strong position in the public sphere.
Through our campaigns, we generate a remarkable amount of content across traditional and digital media, offering visibility to talents who might otherwise go unnoticed by mainstream platforms. We also produce original works that are shared widely across social networks.
What makes MAMA JAZ so unique?
To start with, MAMA JAZ is Mauritian. And the month-long format with different chapters and different venues with a programme of primarily authentic Mauritian composers and international acts of global reference makes it technically unique on a global scale.
I wish to share that everyone and every event is unique. I believe that we, at MAMA JAZ have such a wide reach that this festival’s uniqueness is merely more exposed and, hence, notable.
Why is it so important to invest in local artists, and how has the creative scene evolved over the past decade?
If the ground is fertile, and we take the time to seed it, water it, and protect it, it will grow strong plants naturally. Now imagine if every plant had the space to grow into what it’s truly meant to be. Wouldn’t the results surprise us? It is the same for humans. In Mauritius, artists and professionals in the Arts sector producing original works, are still in precarious situations.
Since 2015, there has been a monumental shift in the creative scene. At that time, many festivals were part of popular culture, and I was myself producing big acts through Immedia and collaborations promoting regular local or international acts, throughout the year in various venues. Today, the scene has evolved with a growing number of DJ and EDM (Ndlr: Electronic Dance Music) parties, while live bands now appear less frequently on major stages and festival line-ups. Only a few remain and only some venues are still encouraging Mauritian creative performances on a regular basis.
On the other hand, it is also positive to note that, thanks to the internet, access to music theory and the purchase of instruments are much easier than before. And, as a result, the amount of music published as intellectual property has boomed, both locally and worldwide. However, making a living from music remains tricky.
The passing of Belingo Faro has deeply touched the MAMA JAZ family and the broader community. Would you like to share a few words in his memory, and reflect on what his presence meant to the festival and to you personally?
Benevolent Belingo was a master musician, an elder, and friend to me, a source of counsel, infinite love and support. We had so many projects together since I met him in 2010.
He was truly original with great knowledge of music theory, a multi-instrumentalist, a passionate educator, an outstanding performer and an open-minded explorer of art through sound and notes.
His physical presence and his performances will be missed but his warm aura is with us forever.
The reality of him not being around will hit me even harder in May, after the festival. But for now, I choose to stay strong, remain optimistic, and lead by example, continuing the dream of a better world that he helped shape through his work, and now, through the legacy he leaves behind.
From your perspective, what impact have long-term partners had?
Partnerships, collaborations, sponsorships, and grants have been a foundation of our model and have supported MAMA JAZ since it started. Having sustainable relationships with any partner in this adventure provides for peace of mind year in and year out.
CIEL Group, among others who believe in what we do, has shown benevolence, trust and a growing interest in MAMA JAZ as a project with strong potential and we feel safe to know that partners stand with us.
Looking ahead, what is your vision for MAMA JAZ in the years to come, and what do you hope it continues to bring to the community?
I wish for the spirit of MAMA JAZ to touch everyone and I am happy to work on this over the next hundred years, with continuous improvement at heart, institutional support, self- sufficiency and younger generations engaged.
I feel that through MAMA JAZ there can be a point made on the necessity of regulating territorial acoustic ecology to a healthy standard and, at another level, to support the professional arts sector in structuring itself into a nurturing mechanism conducive to sustainable talent development. Our wish is for people to practice benevolence with themselves and others, and to welcome fresh perspectives.
