Music warms and inspires
This week at the Monument’s Guy Butler Theatre, the Rhodes Gala Concert brought together musicians for a presentation of classical compositions. Rhodes University’s Chamber Choir, Instrumental Music Studies Vocalists and the Rhodes Band, in collaboration with musicians from Nelson Mandela University, Pretoria and King William’s Town, composed a beautiful evening of music.
Welcoming a packed audience Catherine Foxcroft, Associate Professor at the Rhodes Department of Music and Musicology and the night’s concerto pianist, thanked the different contributors to the event. The opening pieces were extended to the audience by the Rhodes University band. Although their three pieces offered a bit of a shaky beginning, the wit and quirk of their music promises an exciting future for the twoyear-old band of Rhodes instrumental students.
Following a rendition of Adele’s Skyfall, the Band expanded into the orchestra, joined by the NMU orchestra conducted by David Scarr. Scarr, who studied conducting at the Vienna Conservatoire, currently teaches at Kingswood College.
The orchestra’s first piece, City Slickers – a composition by Grant McLachlan – was a rollercoaster adventure for the ear. Definitely slicker than the band’s selection, the piece was sweet and tentative in parts and suspense- ful and dramatic in others. Punctuated by introductions of each piece by Scarr, the evening glided through Ihubo lika Mvelinqangi, a quartet featuring Jo-Nette Lekay (soprano), Nosiviwe Mqwebedu (mezzo-soprano), Sibusiso Mkhize (tenor) and Njabulo Mthimkhulu (baritone). Mieke Struwig delivered a glimmering Mozart clarinet concerto second movement, confirming her talent as a young clarinetist.
Along with Mieke, Foxcroft’s Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 first movement was a standout with one audience member commenting: “It was absolutely fantastic. She rocked my world.” Jo-Nette LeKay was another recurring name on the audience’s lips, embodying the vocal ability she seeks to impart to her Voice students.
It was no surprise then that the closing performances of Karl Jenkins’ Benedictus and Mozart’s Lacrimosa were an impressive summary of the concert as they featured her Voice students joined by the Rhodes Chamber Choir, the remarkable quartet and the orchestra.
Although the night was a bit cold and began with a few glitches, the instrumentalists soon warmed to their tasks. The promise of an evening of wonderful performance was certainly fulfilled. Set against a violet-lit stage, the Rhodes Orchestra Gala Concert was a spectacular night of music.