Preparations for this year’s e’Bosch Schools Choir Festival started on a good note with a masterclass for school music teachers in the Fismer Hall at the Stellenbosch University’s Endler Music Conservatorium.
The masterclass, which was presented by festival director John Frans, was attended by some 30 music teachers and choir leaders from Stellenbosch and Franschhoek schools. Phil Robinson, leader of the South African Youth Choir, led the workshop, which aimed to teach the choir leaders the mechanics of working with choirs, including warm-up routines, approaches to conducting and how to choose repertoires.
“My mission with the e’Bosch School Choir Festival this year would be to continue inspiring a renewed affection for choral music and singing,” said Frans, a prolific contributor to the development of musical talent in local communities. “I’m also specially delighted to announce that the South African Youth Choir, under Robinson, will be part of our programme with the primary school choirs’ performance on Thursday 28 September.”
Frans, who spent a significant part of his youth honing his craft as a pianist, organist and conductor, is a veteran of the choral world and has served the music well in a variety of capacities. His commitment to creating opportunities for communities to engage in choral music led to the formation of the St Luke’s Chorale choir in 2013.
He has produced, conducted and curated several concerts over 52 years, with notable performances of excerpts from, Handel’s “Messiah”, “Faure´ Requiem”, and Bach’s “Christ Lag in Todesbanden” with an orchestra. He has also produced live jazz programmes featuring the highly-revered Tony Schilder and Zayn Adams.
The festival, presented in 2012 for the first time, has grown into one of the flagship events of the e’Bosch Heritage Project. Every year, up to 1 000 learners from some 30 secondary and primary schools in Stellenbosch and Franschhoek get together for a festival of song to celebrate their cultural diversity and strengthen social cohesion.
This year’s secondary school programme will be presented at Hoërskool Stellenbosch at 19:00 tomorrow (Friday 1 September), while and the primary school event will be held at Coetzenburg Sports Complex on Thursday 28 September. Tickets, at R50 per person, will be available at the door.
