Nigeria’s classical music took a historic turn as Alchemy Group emerged overall winner of the first-ever classical guitar competition for children, as the Chocolate Africa Classical Guitar Society of Nigeria in collaboration with Guitare Classique Afrique in France, a non-profit Association, hosted the maiden edition of the contest in Lagos, marking a major milestone in the country’s music education landscape.
The competition, organised for students of the Chocolate Africa Classical Guitar (CACG) Academy in Alimosho, Lagos, brought together young guitarists who had undergone nearly one year of intensive training in performance, music literacy and sight reading, each competing on technical precision, musical interpretation, tone control and stage presence.
Alchemy Group clinched the top prize after a keenly contested outing. The group’s emergence marks a bold expansion of the nation’s performance culture beyond its dominant popular genres. For many in attendance, the competition re-echoed the call for a platform which is long-overdue for classical musicians who have largely operated on the fringes of Nigeria’s mainstream music ecosystem.
Speaking at the event, Founder and Executive Chairman, Chocolate Africa Classical, Adegoke Taiwo Oluwagbemiga, said the initiative was designed to provide young children with a platform to perform while creating awareness about classical guitar, an instrument he described as uncommon in Africa, particularly West Africa.
“We organised the competition for young children to give them a platform and create awareness. Classical guitar is not common in Africa, especially among people in West Africa, and very few Africans participate in global Classical guitar competitions,” he said.
Adegoke explained that the CACG Academy, a subsidiary of Chocolate Africa Classical, is Nigeria’s first specialised classical guitar school, operating as a non-profit organisation that offers free, quality music education to children from low-income communities, starting from Lagos.
According to him, about 65 students are currently enrolled in the academy’s tuition-free scholarship programme, with teaching and logistics largely supported through partnerships with Guitare Classique Afrique, a France-based organisation, and individual donations.
“The students do not pay any tuition. The school has been supported mainly by Dominique Morisse, president of Guitare Classique Afrique, a society located in France, and also by individual donations,” Adegoke stated.
He noted that beyond performance, the competition assessed students on music literacy, sight reading and stage confidence, stressing that regular performance experience is critical to the development of young musicians. He further disclosed that the society was established to help preserve Nigerian folk music, which he said is gradually facing extinction.
“In the next 20 to 30 years, some of our music may no longer be heard. As an ethnomusicologist and composer, this is very important to me. We want to document, arrange and preserve these sounds,” the CACG Academy founder declared.
Also speaking, Co-founder and Director, CACG, Hamilton Olushola Festus, said three groups —Imperial, Delight and Alchemy— performed at the competition, explaining that the groups were formed and named by the students themselves based on age categories.
“All the performers are students of our academy. This is the first of its kind classical guitar competition, and in due time, we plan to expand it to include students across Nigeria,” he said, adding that “the academy’s curriculum goes beyond performance. Students are also taught reading, writing, music documentation and promotion through sheet music. Some graduates are already serving as teaching assistants.”
Parents at the event commended the initiative, describing it as impactful and transformative. One of the jurors and Cooperation Officer at the French Embassy in Nigeria, Marianne Ournac, commended the quality of the performances, noting that music education plays a key role in building confidence and creativity in children.
