CPO puts on debut concert for young talent
ON SUNDAY, the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra will be holding its Debut Gala Concert showcasing community talent, offering a chance for the brilliance of Cape Town’s youngsters to shine. The CPO recently embarked on this exciting new project to catapult local music stars from various disciplines into the spotlight. While many have made their mark in top competitions, singers, musicians and dancers will be making their debut with the mainstream orchestra in a popular programme that offers something for everybody.
The line-up includes Paxton Fielies, Craig Lucas, Kyle Shepherd, Heavenly Quartez, members of Zip Zap Circus, the Luke de Kock Dance Ensemble, Emilio February, four young violinists from the Cape Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, Talitha Luiters and more.
The CPO is planning a professional video of the concert and plans to give all participating artists copyright to use it on YouTube or their own websites, thus creating a professional platform for the musicians.
This celebration of talent will be conducted by Brandon Phillips.
Headline acts will be singing sensations Paxton Fielies and Craig Lucas, while jazz pianist Kyle Shepherd and the Khayelitsha-based singing group Heavenly Quartez will reach out to the audience with something entirely different.
Louis Heyneman, the chief executive of the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra says, “Cape Town has an incredible array of talent, much of which never has the opportunity to perform with a symphony orchestra. Their time has come and we are delighted that Idols winner Paxton Fielies, winner of the 2017 The Voice, Craig Lucas, and Heavenly Quartez will all perform with the CPO.
“Heavenly Quartez has sung before in regional concerts with the CPO, bringing the house down with their glorious voices; Fielies and Lucas will sing some of the songs that made them famous and Kyle Shepherd will show us why he already has an international reputation.”
“We caught up with Fielies just before she was about to go into rehearsals with the CPO earlier this week. In the months since she has scooped the title as the 2017
Idols SA winner, the 17-year-old from Bishop Lavis seems to have matured as a self-assured up-and-coming vocalist.
“While debates have been shared on Facebook regarding her schooling, she answers simply when asked, ‘No, I am not in school right now. I do have one more year left. At the moment, my main focus is my career and I have an agent, and I am looking at releasing an album in late March or early April’.”
Speaking of the songs that made her famous, she says, “Idols definitely raised me and made me grow up a little. As I focus on the future, I have to be steadfast and really level-headed. And while I don’t have a specific ‘sound’, what I’d like is to appeal to as wide an audience as possible.”
For the concert, she’ll be singing her debut demo song and Somewhere Over
the Rainbow, and will team up with Craig Lucas to sing their hit number, Smother.
On the future, Fielies says her primary goal is to make it internationally. She’s also travelled to London and performed in Germany with the Cape Town Children’s Choir, and in early April, jets off to Sweden to meet its Queen.
“I am incredibly excited about my upcoming trip and it will be yet another wonderful opportunity.”
Meanwhile she travels the country performing gigs to receptive audiences Johannesburg, Kimberley, George and Port Elizabeth.
What is it that makes her so different and appealing? “I like to think I have a sweet voice but it’s something new and different. I have always looked up to someone like Rihanna, who also started very young and I like the way she works, but I am just going to take it the way it comes with my voice.”
Her message for other aspiring singers is simply, “the future belongs to those who believe in themselves. Take pride and persist.”
The CPO Debut Gala Concert takes place at 6pm on Sunday at the Artscape Opera.Tickets cost between R90 and R190 and are available from Computicket or Artscape Dial-ASeat, 021 421 7695.