MUSIC FOR MADIBA
An orchestral work specially composed for Nelson Mandela’s centenary won acclaim in the US, writes
Acclaimed South African composer Bongani NdodanaBreen was enthralled with the world premiere of his Harmonia Ubuntu — which was specially composed for Nelson Mandela’s centenary — in the US last month. The Grammy Award-winning Minnesota Orchestra performed the piece, featuring soprano Goitsemang Lehobye, in a sold-out concert at the Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis last Saturday as part of its Music for Mandela project. The piece, which contains Mandela’s own words, was commissioned by international touring company Classical Movements.
“This was a great honour because I don’t think there is a living South African composer whose work has been performed by a professional orchestra. That was a big thing,” says Ndodana-Breen.
“To have this piece around Mandela’s centenary is a great privilege as well. The lyrics that we used were from Mandela’s speeches. It is so inspiring. The musicians played extremely well. The applause was amazing and them giving a curtain call and standing ovation was very nice.”
The Minnesota Orchestra will perform the piece during its five-city South African tour next month. The orchestra is the first professional American ensemble to tour Africa.
Ndodana-Breen speaks highly of the orchestra and its conductor, Osmo Vänskä.
“I can’t wait for South African audiences to hear this,” he says, describing Harmonia Ubuntu as a “balancing act”.
“It is an exercise in cross-cultural work. We’ve got the African element and we’ve got this euphonic tradition, and I had to create a piece that is intellectually challenging for the Minnesota musicians while staying true to the African tradition,” says Ndodana-Breen. “It was a matter of balancing these two cultures. I just listened to the recordings and the results are not something that I even dreamt of. I never imagined that it would work out the way it did.”
Vänskä says: “Music plays a central role in South African culture today — both choral music and a growing orchestral tradition — and we are excited to experience and be part of this movement.”
One of the highlights of the Minnesota Orchestra’s South African tour will be its August 17 performance at the historic Regina Mundi Catholic Church in Soweto, which opened its doors to anti-apartheid activists and has become a tourist attraction.
On August 10 the orchestra will perform at the Cape Town City Hall followed by a performance at the Durban City Hall on August 12. There will be two other concerts in Gauteng — one at the University of Pretoria on August 16 and another at Johannesburg City Hall on August 18.
Minnesota Orchestra president and CEO Kevin Smith is delighted about the tour.
“We recently became the first American orchestra to tour Cuba following a 2014 thaw in diplomatic relations. The experience was so uplifting and enlightening for us that we decided to forge similar cultural exchanges with other countries,” says Smith, pointing out that Vänskä had performed with the South African National Youth Orchestra in Cape Town and Soweto in 2014.
Says Smith: “The moving experience of that event persuaded us to tour SA next.”
Them giving a curtain call and standing ovation was very nice
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