TEBOGO THOBANE
The SMS choir’s first official performance after the lockdown was a resounding success. News of the choir’s excellent performance at the choir festival, hosted by the Choral Celebration Network Foundation in co-operation with Oranje Meisieskool, spread like wildfire. Eight choirs participated in this prestigious event and the hall was filled to capacity. SMS was definitely a crowd pleaser that evoked pride in South African heritage. According to Mr Jaco Cilliers he even saw people swaying to the music, demonstrating their appreciation.
Many choirs saw the lockdown as a hurdle but the Chapel Choir appears to have been put on the right track. This can be seen as a blessing in disguise for the choir. In that tough time the girls regrouped and made use of every spare moment to practise. The girls practised and over-performed three songs: Nuwe Lied, Yo Le Canto, and their own African medley.
The Chapel Choir might have been one of the least experienced choirs singing at the concert but critics said that they produced a very beautiful sound. To the surprise of the audience, most of their songs were accompanied by fierce but elegant moves. To add to that, the girls were so unified that there weren’t any blunders with the moves or the notes.
After the blood sweat and tears (literally!) from the choir’s lengthy practices, the feedback the choir received was amazing. It was gratifying for the choir to see that their hard work was finally paying off. The girls were able to make parents, teachers and friends proud at the concert with their classy comeback.
The concert served the purpose of motivating girls to stay at the top, while also preparing the choir for Applous – the oldest school choir competition in the country, presented by the ATKV in May. At the competition they will be adding Donkerberg se kam to their repertoire.
The Chapel Choir has dedicated staff members, Ms Joanie Prinsloo, (conductor), Mr Jaco Cilliers, Mrs Ester van der Merwe and Mr Hederick Prinsloo are to thank for their progress. During their camp at the beginning of the year, they rehearsed for hours on end. The girls had the opportunity to show off their perseverance and their ability to work together under strict time constraints. Whenever the girls got tired, Ms Prinsloo always said, ‘You will hate me now, but you’ll love me when we win.’
Maselspoort offered the girls the luxury of going for a swim or enjoy the thrilling experience of whooshing down the super tubes. The weekend was meant for practice, but because of the magnificent memories made, the girls barely felt the pain of working so hard.
