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Soweto Gospel Choir blends traditional African, American spiritual sounds
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Nashville City Paper, Soweto Gospel Choir blends traditional African, American spiritual sounds >>
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Ladysmith Black Mambazo isn’t the only masterful singing ensemble from South Africa whose skills are electrifying international audiences. The Soweto Gospel Choir, who will be performing tonight at Langford Auditorium as part of Vanderbilt’s Great Performances series, has also drawn acclaim for their inspiring renditions of spirituals and gospel tunes not only in English, but several African languages as well. Their new CD, Blessed (Shanachie), the group’s second, was released last month and the choir has also appeared on The Today show and Late Night with Conan O’Brien.
Director David Mulovhedzi says finding the right voices for the 26-member group isn’t nearly as difficult as it seems.
“Actually, we get extremely talented performers from all over South Africa — gifted singers who’ve grown up in a multi-lingual environment and have no problem whatsoever doing numbers in different languages,” Mulovhedzi said in a recent phone interview from South Africa. “What is much tougher is making sure that the harmonies are correct, getting the arrangements down correctly and maintaining spontaneity, yet also having a precise, disciplined sound. But we’ve been very fortunate since the beginning (2002) that we’ve had so many wonderful vocalists who want to perform gospel music and also aid our mission.”
Blessed features vocals in six of the 11 official languages used by the Soweto Gospel Choir. The number that will be most familiar to American audiences is their sparkling cover of “Oh Happy Day,” which blends strong solos from Vincent Jiyane and Sibongile Makagathe with equally fervent instrumental accompaniment from bassist Lucas Bok and alto saxophonist Mpupile Mathibe.
They pay homage to Mambazo with a stirring rendition of “Lelilungo Ngelakho,” which was written by that’s group leader and star vocalist Joseph Shabalala. They also return the song “Mbube” (better known in the West as “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”) to its roots with a sweeping a-cappella turn that’s aided only by a lone percussionist.
Entertainment values, while important, are hardly the Soweto Gospel Choir’s major concern. Since their inception, they’ve raised thousands of dollars for the charities Nkosi’s Haven and Nkosi’s Haven Vugani, organizations that provide orphaned children with such basic necessities of life as food, shelter, clothing for school and electricity. They’ve also donated proceeds from CD sales and concert tours to Unite Against Hunger and the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, and last November backed Diana Ross and Christina Aguilera at a Unite the Stars celebration in Soweto.
“We see our music both as an inspiration and a weapon for good,” Mulovhedzi said in conclusion. “The gospel message of salvation becomes even more meaningful when you’re also helping others in tangible ways.”
-Rob Wynn | 02/10/06 >> go there
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