RAISING THE BAR:
Traditional Choral Music from South Africa, Vol. 2
Created by Mollie Stone & Patty Cuyler, with Matlakala Bopape, 2013
Book + teaching DVD set (audio tracks available separately on Bandcamp)
Price: $35
This is the second in a series of South African choral music teaching DVDs with accompanying book of resources, intended for mixed, youth and children’s choirs.
Songs in this volume:
– Likhon’ ithemba lam (Xhosa church chorus)
– Re dibini (Sotho folk song)
– Ndisondela kuwe (Xhosa church chorus)
– Swilo yini (Tsonga folk song)
– Sesimfumene (Zulu wedding song)
– Iindonga zaJeriko (Zulu folk/anti-apartheid song)
Included on the disc are pronunciation tracks, teaching video for the voice parts and the dance movements, and SATB choir performances for each of the songs. The DVD features 50 singers aged 8-18 from Chicago Children’s Choir and Matlakala Bopape, director of the Polokwane Chorale in Limpopo Province, South Africa, under the direction of Mollie Stone and Patty Cuyler.
The accompanying resource book includes tips for learning, teaching and performing traditional South African choral music, a guide to pronunciation, texts with translations and IPA symbols, background information about the songs, and suggestions for adapting the songs for different ensembles, as well as a short history of South African choral music.
In addition to the book and teaching DVD is access to an online resource site with source recording downloads and video links.
Listen to the songs in this volume on our Bandcamp page.