By Patricia Amogu

Tosin Salako, Artistic Director, Afrojazz Festival Nigeria, on Friday said African music “is bridging the gap between nations and connecting artistes and music enthusiasts globally” just as it is promoting tourism and strengthening business collaborations between countries.

Salako said this while speaking to reporters in Abuja on the sidelines of a two -day music fiesta  organised by Afrojazz Festival, Nigeria

“This year we took it to Europe and had someone from Norway to perform on stage.

“So it gives credibility to the fact that we are committed to having a musical exchange where we interact with other cultures and where we all speak the same language.

“Interestingly, for music you do not need to understand the language but once you hear the music it automatically spurs something on you and your body.

“Therefore, music is speaking for itself and music is going beyond borders. Music is the bridge closing the gap between nations bbasically," he added.

Sune krogstru,Ambassador of Denmark to Nigeria said at the sidelines of the event that the Afrojazz performing artistes were  amazing and as I told one of them I would like to see them come to Denmark and bring this same energy to Denmark with them.

“What I saw tonight was just really inspiring and of high quality compared to what I have seen anywhere else in the world. It was really great.

” They need to come and show to Denmark and Europe the quality, the intensity, and the fantastic spirit of African jazz music in Europe.

“That would be amazing it would show another image of Nigeria and Africans,” he added.

Solveig Andresen, Business Counsellor of the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Nigeria said it was a great opportunity to be a part of such great events.

She added that Nigeria has talents that can be better harnessed.

“For me, it is a great opportunity to be part of this lovely event and there are so many gifted people. I am so proud that this has given an opportunity to such skilled artistes to show what they have got and it is just great,” he added.

The most famous Afrojazz artist that performed at the evening event is Tosin Salako who took the lead with a three-song set, ‘Kosi Miyo Damile’ (Simioko) a typical AfroJazz that got the audience all fired up.

Abuja’s Mike Wonder also displayed an impressive guitar riff-off during the performance much to the audience’s delight.

“This wasn’t a Jimi Hendrix standard aggressive riff-off, rather a softly-tempered riff that played off Wonder’s strength.

Jessica Bongos Ekundayo Dbass and Abdulkass launched the ‘chillax’ section of the evening.

A”sian among others gave afrojazz music a new face with lots of music interfaces, from the guitars to the saxophone and other detailed lyrics showcasing unique african music beats and vibes.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the second edition of the two- day event which started on Thursday is dedicated to the promotion of African music influenced by Jazz. (NAN)