GRACE NOTES - Cape Town Opera

6 MAY

Curated by Thuthuka Sibisi, Grace Notes, a unique concert of a cappella sacred music, will be performed at some of Cape Town’s most exquisite churches. Following its acclaimed premiere in France in 2016, and sell out performances in Cape Town last year, we’re delighted to bring back this unique concert of a cappella sacred music. Juxtaposing ancient and modern music from Europe and Africa, Grace Notes intersperses sacred compositions by Byrd, Palestrina, Duruflé and Pärt with religious music drawn from Xhosa, Venda, Zulu and Swahili traditions. A moving reflection on the yearning to express spirituality through music, Grace Notes uncovers lines of connection across continents and centuries.

Curator Thuthuka Sibisi

Chorus Master and Conductor Marvin Kernelle

THE CAPE TOWN OPERA CHORUS

JODIE KHAN
FRANCES DU PLESSIS
BRITTANY SMITH
BABONGILE MANGA
CHRISTINE BAM
DANIELLE SPECKMAN
ABONGILE FUMBA
NKULULEKO MASUKU
MLUNGISELELI NQADINI
THAMSANQA MTSHAMBA
THANDO MPUSHE
LUVO RASEMENI
GARTH DELPORT

“Twelve apostle-like figures fill the stony, cold void in every corner of the space. Their melodic utterances are like a gospel for a new era. One that both breaks with tradition and, simultaneously, unabashedly upholds it. We are invited to an evening of art that draws in everyone and excludes no-one, not even those who are averse to choral or classical music. Overcome with emotion, the woman next to me exclaims, “I didn’t want it to end, I could sit here and listen to that all night!”

-What’s on in Cape Town reviews Grace Notes.

“Powerful voices full of Grace,”

-Beverley Brommert in the Cape Argus review of Grace Notes

PERFORMANCE HISTORY
2018 Toringkerk, Paarl

2018 Zeitz MoCAA, Cape Town

2018 St John’s Church, Cape Town

2017 St George’s Cathedral, Cape Town

2017 St John’s Church, Cape Town

2016 Aix en Provence, France