Southern rhythms

Amal Chourci Catta celebrates the celestial harmonies of the new South Africa

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Mpumalanga Youth Choir, South Africa, conductor Esme Solms. Venue Al-Gumhuriya Theatre 25 November 8pm

South African choirs have always been welcome performers at Cairo's Opera House: since they first appeared on the scene around 14 years ago, they have never failed to attract large audiences. Young and old enjoy their songs, in particular the lovely melodies and lively rhythms of the traditional African songs. Last Thursday, at the Al-Gumhuriya Theatre, the Mpumalanga Youth Choir, under the leadership of their extraordinary lady-conductor Esme Solms, and accompanied by the remarkable pianist Annerie Weber, enchanted Cairene music lovers with Christmas carols, traditional and ethnic songs, spirituals and secular music.

Aged between 14 and 18, the young singers represent 13 high schools across the region, travelling from surrounding towns such as Witbank, Belfast, Kriel, Groblersdal and Ermelo to attend rehearsals in Middelburg every Friday. Founded on 21 February 1981, the Mpumalanga Youth Choir is a multi-racial vocal ensemble consisting of 55 members chosen after rigorous auditioning. It is financially self-supporting: parents of the youngsters are responsible for expenses. Over the past 23 years the choir has enjoyed many magical moments. While on their first European tour in 1989, the ensemble took part in the Graz International Choir Competition, Austria. They toured Europe again in 1995, participating in the Cantonigros Choir Competition in Spain; and in 1999 they won the first prize at the Christmas and Advent Competition in Prague, Czech Republic.

At Cairo's Al-Gumhuriya Theatre, their tuning was impeccable, pulsating at times with passion and unfettered joy, at others turning grave and meditative. Their voices soared beautifully into the hall and echoed in the aisles. Giving flight to fantasy, they brought back memories of silent nights and white Christmases. They jubilated with "Hallelujah" and "Glory to God" before solemnly chanting "The Lord's Prayer" from the South African Sanctus. Showering their good wishes upon the audience, they sang "The Lord bless and keep you, May He be gracious unto you and give you peace".

That night, peace and love formed the quintessence of the choir's performance. They came on brilliantly with Gloria in Excelcis Deo and the impressive "Prayer of Saint Francis" ("Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace, let me sow love") which the singers accompanied with a perfectly synchronised sign language, before leaving the stage for their first break. This, however, was not a break in the usual sense of the word, for the hall lights never came back up. Instead, onto the stage marched a charismatic young man who told the audience how happy he was to be participating in this fabulous performance, and how thankful to be given this opportunity. He then gave the viewers a vivid demonstration of his vocal and performing abilities, which were quite enchanting. With hard work, and serious musical and vocal training, he is destined some day for the international opera stages, for he had a good, strong voice, an extremely agreeable timbre and a striking presence on stage. He should, however, work on his pianissimi, which are not always as pure as his fortissimi. The audience loved him and would have liked to hear another song from him, but he vanished backstage, leaving the scene to the members of the choir, who preluded the second part of their concert with an ardent wish: "Come again, come back, sweet days", they sang before turning to one of the loveliest secular tunes, "Shenandoah", a song filled with longing for the great rivers of Missouri, followed by the evergreen spiritual, "Swing low, sweet chariot -- coming for to carry me home". Melancholy and nostalgia were in the air, and the singers carried their tunes on wings of sadness into the quiet hall. But the dejected mood did not last: with the choir suddenly going into a vivacious African beat, merriment returned and everyone started smiling. The audience admired the singers' versatility as they eagerly followed their conductor's baton. Esme Solms, at the head of her choir, has been involved in music and choral works for many years. She trained as a choral conductor with Philip McLachlan, under whom she also sang as a chorister in the university choir of Stellenbosch, where she was also a soloist. Her reputation as a performer dates back to her teaching days at the girl's high school in Paarl. She was conductor of the South African Pretoria Male Choir for six years, and has been conducting the Mpumalanga Youth Choir since 1986. Esme Solms is presently head of the music centre at Middelburg High School, and frequently acts as adjudicator at choral competitions. Her performance at Cairo's Al- Gumhuriya Theatre was a fascinating example of subtle refinement and potent professionalism. Annerie Weber, who accompanied the signers at the piano, was also greatly appreciated by the audience, despite her decision to remain modestly concealed in one corner of the stage, giving out cues and most often playing softly, so as not to obstruct the singers' voices. Nevertheless, it was clear that she is a remarkable pianist, enjoying a marvellous touch which she deploys with great subtlety. Weber started piano lessons at the age of five, completing all piano grades at the University of South Africa. Having taught music, she started to accompany the Mpumalanga Youth Choir in May 2003. She thoroughly deserved her share of the applause.

As the second interval was announced, the audience once again took pleasure in applauding the young soloist, Botha by name, who sang his very personal version of "Silent Night" in three languages, as he said, though the German part was rather inadequate: he should not try to sing in a language he does not know without making sure he has the right pronunciation.

For their last session, the singers turned African in costume and in song. They went hunting with "Dubula Mfana Ndine", a sprightly Zulu tune, and then treated us to "Amagugu": "People who love this world will be left in their graves". They went on to narrate the story of the man who went up a mountain to chop down a tree: his chopping frightened a dove away, then a jackal and then a buffalo. The dangerous buffalo, however, finally killed the man... or so the storyteller says. Story and song are from South Sotho, and are entitled "Monna o nkile selepe".

These African songs had an extraordinarily vivacious rhythm and a merry tune: the singers swayed and danced, accompanying each song with matching movements. It was a lovely sight, and provided the undoubted highlight of the evening. The audience loved every minute of the performance, and just kept asking for more. And the singers complied with an excessively rhythmic "Ya Ba Bom" ("There shall be peace") which brought the house down in a shower of applause.

And so the evening ended. The choir had filled the hall with the glorious beauty of their young voices, combining rich tone and enthusiasm with moments of rapt contemplation and an intensely mature involvement in the quiet, devotional sections of the Gospel songs. The lyrical elements were brilliantly managed, particularly in some striking moments of elation, when the soprani soared to angelic heights before returning to a hushed pianissimo, reminiscent of a sublime prayer.

The Mpumalanga Youth Choir doubtlessly deserves our sincere appreciation, for it is one of the best amateur choruses from South Africa that Cairene audiences have applauded to this day.