A
couple of weeks ago (September15th & 16th), we held our first Eisteddfod
in Hamburg. We are grateful to Dr Francois van den Berg and his team at the National Eisteddfod
Academy for making this possible! For those who have no idea what an Eisteddfod
is (or even how to pronounce it!), it is a festival of music, literature &
performance dating back to 12th Century Wales! Transplanted from
Welsh soil to South Africa, Eisteddfods have a rich tradition here, and
thousands of these 'sessions' (the nearest translation of the Welsh word) take
place at venues across the country, and beyond, each year.
In
the future we hope to have visiting groups of performers perform with us, but
'small is beautiful', and this inaugural event featured only our Keiskamma Music
Academy students. However, for some of the younger boys & girls it was
their first nerve-wracking chance to stand up on stage and give a performance.
Unlike our concerts, most of the pieces were solos, or duets, with an
occasional larger ensemble piece. In all we had over 80 entries featuring a
wide variety of instruments and musical styles.
Our
adjudicator, Mr Neels Boonzaaier, from North West University, seemed to enjoy
our music-making. Every student received a certificate, graded bronze, silver,
gold or diploma. Mr Boonzaaier had told us earlier that he had to be really
'wowed' to award a diploma, but in fact, several of our students received this
honour. By the end of a busy weekend, approximately 25% of entries had received
diplomas, 40% gold, 25% silver and 10% bronze. Our adjudicator also gave our
group lots of useful advice on how to progress our playing, in particular, to
keep practising every single day!
The
Eisteddfod came hard on the heels of our UNISA practical exams, so the week was
a busy one for Music Academy. A big thank you is in order for Jen and Karen,
our recorder teachers, who prepared us for these events.
We
did not have a large audience this time; just a handful of friends and
supporters popped in, and a few curious cows turned up by the door! However, as
always, the surprisingly good acoustics of the Old Hall complemented the magic
of the music as it drifted across Hamburg main street on a wild and windy
spring afternoon.
Brenda
Fishwick
