(July 16, 2023) In a remarkable journey of passion and purpose, Kiara Ramklass, an Indian-origin South African, has made a significant impact on her community by using the power of music. Her social enterprise, Marimba Jam, has not only provided underprivileged learners with a means of expression through rhythm and music but has also become a catalyst for cultural and social harmony.
Recognized as one of the 100 Young Mandelas of the Future, Kiara’s journey with Marimba Jam has grown from a small school outreach initiative to a renowned organisation that enriches vulnerable communities with the joy of Marimba music in a post-apartheid South Africa. “We have a focus on nation building because in South Africa there is a huge disconnect between the privileged youth and the youth from underprivileged segments of society. We use music to bridge that gap,” said Kiara.
A Cape Town resident, Kiara has already earned herself several accolades, including being named one of the ‘200 Young South Africans’ by the Mail and Guardian in 2023. Her organisation, Marimba Jam has broken a Guinness World Record and has received several awards – the Number One Youth-Owned Business at the Western Cape Entrepreneurship Recognition Awards, first prize at the Investec Startup School Africa and the Billion Acts of Peace Award led by 14 Nobel Peace Prize laureates, where it was chosen from millions of acts of peace worldwide as one of seven finalists. As the winner of the Billion Acts of Peace Fellowship from the Peace Jam Foundation Kiara got the opportunity to participate in a one-year global fellowship.
Her award-winning social enterprise not just teaches but also has a band that performs across South Africa. The band has had the honour of performing for the likes of President Cyril Ramaphosa, the Western Cape Government, the South Africa National Rugby Union Team, and the Desmond Tutu Peace Foundation apart from performing at numerous events.
The rhythms of marimba
Marimba is an African musical instrument of the percussion family. It is like a xylophone and consists of a series of wooden bars of varying lengths. The instrument is played by striking the bars with mallets, allowing the performer to create melodies and harmonies by varying the rhythm, speed, and intensity of the strikes. Marimba is known for its rich and resonant tone.
The ground-breaking Marimba Jam syllabus are being used in African schools that wish to integrate marimba into their offerings. “We are to first to develop a syllabus that allows marimba to be the first African instrument to be taken as a subject in school,” said the 28-year-old.
Breaking world records and achieving recognition
In 2018, Marimba Jam achieved international recognition by breaking the Guinness World Record for the ‘Largest Marimba Ensemble’ with the participation of 241 females between the age of eight and 23 on South African National Women’s Day. Previous holders of this title included Australia with 108 players in 2016, and Zimbabwe with 222 players the same year.
The following year, the organisation represented South Africa at the prestigious Social Enterprise World Forum, showcasing its impactful work on a global stage at Addis Ababa.
Making a Difference
Marimba Jam actively supports community causes through Marimba Jam Cares to bring about social change.
As the Marimba Jams website states, “it’s built upon the ideology that music can act as a vehicle for social change,” following the organisations motto,” Finding Harmony in Community,” to connect youth of South Africa bridging the socio-economic barriers that divide them. The profit earned from every paid performance and workshop of Marimba Jam helps in supporting the causes of its NPO branch – Marimba Jam Cares.
It started when…
When Kiara Ramklass, was in grade 11, she was deeply moved by the plight of the underprivileged in her society. Recognising her talent for playing the instrument, marimba, she decided to utilize it as a medium for change. With the support of the youth development organization enke: Make Your Mark, Kiara started her initiative to provide marimba lessons to learners from underprivileged schools in her locality. Her efforts were acknowledged with the Amy Biehl Spirit of Youth Award in 2012, further fuelling her determination.
In 2014, when she was in the first year at university, both her parents lost their jobs. Kiara stated teaching marimba as a part time job to support her education. Her teaching skills were so much in demand that at one point of time she found herself teaching 15 batches of students a week while pursuing her full-time degree in film and media screen production at the University of Cape Town.
Kiara Ramklass, CEO and founder, Marimba Jam
Later, she was chosen for the Global Young Innovators Programme to participate in a seven-month course by Newable UK and Innovate UK. “I was awarded a grant of £10 000 to develop a new virtual reality app for the African Music Heritage project,” she said.
Kiara is also the recipient of the Mandela Washington Fellowship for young African leaders, which took her to the University of Texas’ McCombs Business School for a six-week fellowship.
From small initiative to thriving social enterprise
Kiara’s commitment to teaching marimba and her desire to make a deeper impact led her to formalise Marimba Jam into a full-time venture in 2015. Since then, Marimba Jam has flourished as a dynamic social enterprise, offering marimba lessons to thousands of learners in the Western Cape. The organisation also runs annual teacher training courses, festivals, and workshops, providing part-time employment to university students who want to be a part of the cause.
Held annually at an open-air theatre, the Marimba Jam Festival is a popular event. It not only provides Kiara’s students a platform to perform but also works as a fundraising event to continue with the organisations outreach programme – to provide weekly marimba band lessons at schools meant for poor children. “The underprivileged schools don’t have any access to music or art and culture. We invite students at such schools into private schools so that they can share and learn from one another. This initiative gives them the opportunity to unleash their talent,” Kiara says.
Kiara with her students
The Indian-origin musician and teacher was born and raised in Cape Town and is dedicated towards making a difference in a post-apartheid South Africa through the transformative power of music and social entrepreneurship.
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