The Association of Nigeria Female Organists (ANFO) held the 2nd edition of its concert tagged “Ladies on the Organ, her hymn, her organ” at Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministry (MFM) headquarters’ Grace Hall Auditorium.
At the event, its patron, the General Overseer, MFM, Prof. Daniel Olukoya said some aspects of the world of music have a situation where some musical instruments are dominated by men of which one of them is the organ. He added that it’s only men, mostly old men with grey hair that are found playing the organ, monopoly that should be broken.
“Therefore, by the inspiration of the Almighty God, we decided to start this association of female organists to encourage women to play the organ, to evangelize among women, tell them that what a man can do, a woman too can do and for this reason that this initiative was started last year.
We’ve been training them, they’ve really improved. They have teachers, they have seminars, they have teachings. And from there, the others are getting interested and they are joining. I’m sure that with time, it will grow to a massive force”, he said.
More than 40 females drawn from different parts of the country participated in the contest where about 30 of them demonstrated their prowess on the Organ, playing classical songs and others on violin and trumpet.
Among them were Mercy Tonade Olaoluwa, an Organist in Cathedral Church of Christ, Marina who played Onwards Christian Soldiers (Haydn) by J.E. Newell; Rachael Ekenemchukwu Gold, Acting Assistant Organist at St. John Anglican Church, Port Harcourt who played ‘Must I go Empty Handed’ by George C. Stebbins among others.
The Chief Host, Dr. Folashade Olukoya said many women have been interested in playing organ, evidenced by a lot of participants that came from all over the country and not just from Lagos and also from different denominations.
“My advice to other young ladies is to join the association and they will be happily mentored. I grew up developing passion for women disparity and to come up with solutions in the nation and in every sector where this is found. My joy is to see both male and female having their own spaces and actualizing their potentials, fulfilling their God-given destinies.
“I am grateful to God for giving me a man who shares my passion, gives me my own space and allows me to have my own voice, who believes and supports everybody else to actualize their potentials. A nation that lacks a space for women will always be lonely and miserable” she said.
She assured that the Word of God is exalted to checkmate them in all they do so as not to veer off from the path of righteousness. She described the initiative as a stepping stone to greater heights in the life and in the world of women in this generation.
ANFO Coordinator, Temitope Abiodun George who also played on the organ ‘Variation on St. Anne’ by Christa Rakich said the platform created by the General Overseer, MFM, Prof. Daniel Olukoya was nothing short of exposure while the 2nd edition of the programme showcased what they were able to do within one year and earned them more confidence in their performance.
“It has not been a rosy journey. It’s been very, very challenging. Especially where we have these ladies coming all over Nigeria. It’s been a challenging one. And all thanks to God and appreciate our Patron who made the journey so easy for us because our ladies do come by flight.
“The association has given us a sense of commitment, affording us a space that was not created earlier when it comes to the male-dominated space” she said.
