Event information
The internationally acclaimed Cape Town Opera Chorus presents Horizons as part of Toyota Stellenbosch Woordfees.
The distinctly South African programme with musical direction by José Dias, features works by fourteen composers including Michael Moerane, Péter Louis van Dijk, Mzilikazi Khumalo, Clare Loveday, Mpumelelo Manyathi and Pieter Bezuidenhout.
The performance spans over 70 years of musical history and encompasses seven of South Africa's official languages. It also includes arrangements of indigenous songs, offering a compelling showcase of the nation's rich musical heritage.
Horizons is one of the best-known South African compositions internationally, having been originally commissioned for the King Singers’ 1995 South African tour, it has come to be known as one of the best examples of Van Dijk's choral works. The work creates a fusion of African melodic and rhythmic patterns that bind seamlessly with the English text that sets the narrative scene for us to follow.
This piece encapsulates a great part of the historical narrative of South Africa; the arrival of the colonists and the interaction with the native Khoi-San. The repertoire includes traditional isiZulu and isiXhosa songs spanning over a century, such as Ukuthula, Senzeni Na, and Bawo Thixo Somandla—powerful pieces that have resonated in churches, concert halls, and during protests.
