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Zimfest 2025 Recording on Bandcamp

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News — No Comments ↓

Greetings Zimfest community,
It’s been a minute!
Although 2026 is an off year for Zimfest, members of the Zimfest Association Board have been busy preparing a digital recording from Zimfest 2025 for download – to provide a memorable record of the festival at CWU, and as a fund-raising project.

We are ecstatic to announce the release of  Zimfest 2025 : Music Dancing Across Borders – check it out here on bandcamp. 
The recording includes one piece from each of the 12 performing groups on the evening stage from August 8-10, 2025 and is available for only $12 – pay more if you wish to donate more to the Zimfest cause!
Bandcamp only allows limited space for text, so we have prepared liner notes giving info on each chosen piece in the performers’ words.* You can download the liner notes here on the Zimfest website.

We have so many people to thank for this project: Thaddeus Moore and Liquid Audio of Eugene for the live audio; Alex Weeks for concert production and making the audio available to us; Stephen Spitalny for mixing and mastering (BIG thanks for Steve’s alacrity and quality of mixes); and of course all the performers, many of them composers and/or arrangers, for permission to share their music with you online as well as live!

*P.S. A couple of Zimfest music lovers have commented on a potential misspelling in the liner notes for performers on #3, “Thula Sizwe: Lucky, Tsungi, Mike and Friends.” Note that ‘Tsungi’ is Lucky Moyo’s nickname for Tsungai Tsikirai, and ‘Mike’ is his nickname for Michael Sibanda.

Best regards,
Zimfest 2025 Recordings Squad
Caden Davis
Parker Ediger
Claire Jones
Charlie Keziah

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April Board Meeting Minutes

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Minutes from the April 12th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.

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March Board Meeting Minutes

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Minutes from the March 8th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.

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February Board Meeting Minutes

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Minutes from the February 8th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.

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January Board Meeting Minutes

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Minutes from the January 11th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.

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Zimfest Fundraising Campaign – Thank You!

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To all those who have contributed to our Zimfest Fundraising campaign, a heartfelt thanks! Your generosity, along with the generosity of several donors who provided matching funds, has provided the Zimfest Association with a grand total of $7,799 for this campaign, according to our Treasurer, Heather Steele. This is almost enough to cover the deficit sustained after Zimfest 2025, and we are so grateful for your contributions! Tatenda, Siyabonga, and Thank You so much!

P.S. Just because the fundraising campaign is over, this does not mean you can’t donate to Zimfest. Of course you can! So if you happened to win the lottery or received a particularly nice Christmas bonus, you can support Zimfest 2027 by donating here.

Maria Minnaar Bailey
Interim President
Zimfest Association Board of Directors

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December Board Meeting Minutes

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Minutes from the December 14th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.

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Thank You Adrienne

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On behalf of everyone on the Zimfest Association Board, I would like express my heartfelt thanks to Adrienne Stewart, who has completed a two-year term on the Zimfest Board of Directors, and now needs to step off due to other commitments.

Adrienne has served in leadership positions on multiple other nonprofit boards. With her skills in governance, accounting and project management, she has done much to help further the goals of Zimfest during these past two years. I am personally in awe of her intimate familiarity with Roberts Rules of Order, which stems from the fact that she has actually read the entire 700-plus page volume!

When the Z.A. Board found itself in need of a new President, with nobody volunteering for the position, we came up with the idea of a rotating Presidency. Each interim President would serve four months of the year in turn, presiding over Board meetings and performing other presidential duties. Adrienne stepped up to the plate right away, and along with Tendai Muparutsa and me, she has been one of our three Presidents for the past two years. As the current President during Zimfest 2025, she did a beautiful job presiding over our Village Meeting, in addition to volunteering tirelessly during the festival itself. In fact, if you went to any evening concerts at Zimfest 2025, Adrienne was probably the one who took your ticket and stamped your arm.

We greatly appreciate her service, and all her knowledge of governance that she has freely shared with us. She assures us that she will still be volunteering at future Zimfests, and we look forward to seeing her there!

With deepest gratitude,

Maria Minnaar Bailey
Interim President
Zimfest Association Board of Directors

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September, October and November Board Meeting Minutes

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Minutes from the September 14th, October 12th and November 9th meetings of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.

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Support Zimfest Today with a Triple-Matched Donation

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Dear Zimfest Friends,

Giving Tuesday is almost here (December 2nd) — and there’s no better time to support Zimfest!

Make a difference with a tax-deductible donation, triple matched up to $3,000! And don’t forget to check if your employer offers matching gifts on top of that!

Support Zimfest – Donate

If you haven’t yet joined or renewed your Zimfest Association membership, this Giving Tuesday is the perfect opportunity. It’s an easy way to give back and help ensure the festival continues to thrive and grow for years to come.

Join or Renew Your Membership

Thank you for being part of the Zimfest family. Your support keeps this community strong, and we can’t wait to celebrate with you again in 2027.

With gratitude,
The Zimfest Association Board

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Your Opportunity to Support Zimfest — Plus, a Matched Donation!

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Dear Zimfest Friends, Supporters and Members,

As we approach the end of another year, we want to take a moment to thank you for making the 2025 festival such a joyful celebration of Zimbabwean music. Zimfest would not be possible without the dedication and enthusiasm of our community.

Relive the magic of Zimfest! Check out a highlight from this year’s festival here.

While there won’t be a festival in 2026, we’re already laying the groundwork for an unforgettable 2027 weekend. We also want to share that the festival operated at a loss of just over $4,000 this past year — a reminder of how much we rely on the continued support of our community to keep Zimfest strong and sustainable. Your contributions allow us to invite exceptional Zimbabwean teachers and performers, both new and returning, to share their talents each year.

This Giving Tuesday, we invite you to show your love for Zimfest by making a tax-deductible donation, or by joining or renewing your membership in the Zimfest Association. Every contribution — large or small — helps sustain the festival, support visiting artists, and keep this Zimfest going strong year after year.

We invite you to join or renew your Zimfest Association membership. It’s one of the most meaningful ways to help sustain the festival year-round.

Become a Member or Renew Today

Membership comes with special perks, including:

  • Free festival registration
  • Early access to workshop sign-ups
  • Knowing you’re helping Zimfest thrive for years to come

Already a member? Consider deepening your impact with a tax-deductible donation, or check if your employer offers matching gifts — an easy way to double your contribution. And for this Giving Tuesday, every dollar donated up to $3,000 will be triple matched — your $1 becomes $3!

Donate — Support Zimfest

Thank you again for your continued support, and for being such an important part of the Zimfest community. We wish you a wonderful holiday season!

Warmly,
—The Zimfest Association Board

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Zimfest 2027 and Festival Coordination News

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Festival News

Greetings Zimfest community,

More than two months have passed since our post-Zimfest de-briefing and financial assessment, and we have mixed news for you. While the ZA Board and Organizing committee share many great memories of a wonderfully vibrant gathering, we unfortunately lost money on the 2025 festival. However, the Zimfest Annual Campaign and Giving Tuesday are coming up soon, and you will be hearing from our fundraisers about donating to the Zimfest Association and/or taking out memberships to support the festival and get us back in the black. We invite you to be creative and think of new ways you might be able to raise money for Zimfest!

  • The general consensus of ZA Board and OC members is that Central Washington University worked well as a Zimfest location. As with any site, there were some less-than-positive-aspects, but also many positive ones, including the welcoming helpfulness of CWU personnel! We have asked Conference Services if they can host us again in 2027, and the answer is yes. Please mark your calendars for August 5-8, 2027 for the next Zimfest at CWU in Ellensburg, WA. (There is a slight possibility of an earlier date in late July, and they will let us know as soon as possible if that can happen.)
  • I regret to inform you all that I am stepping away from the position of Zimfest Coordinator. My current contract expired on October 31, 2025,  thus making the securing of the commitment from CWU to host Zimfest 2027 my last official action. Given our move to a bi-ennial festival, the services of a coordinator will not be needed for another year, giving the board plenty of time to determine the next steps. I will remain on the ZA board to help with that transition and provide some institutional memory – not to worry, I’m not going anywhere! It has been quite a ride since being named Festival Coordinator in late 2013, and I so appreciate all the support, all the volunteer help, all the expert teaching and invigorating performances from all of you across the globe! 

Thank you Zimfest Community,
(Former) Zimfest Coordinator Claire Jones

Music Dancing Across Borders

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