Cultural cornucopia at Exodus

Norman Muza from The Heritage Survival Band

by FELICITY CLARKE - Thursday, August 28, 2008

Where a lot of festivals throw together the latest collection of swaggering indie groups and claim it's the most exciting thing ever, this weekend's Exodus Festival tosses up an entirely different proposition. Celebrating the diverse cultures of Manchester's refugee communities, the event has, in previous years, been held in Hulme Park or as part of Feast in Platt Fields. This weekend, however, the show hits the city centre, taking over Urbis and Cathedral Gardens for a one-day event.

'The festival was born out of the desire among refugee communities to have an event to celebrate their cultures,' says Exodus co-ordinator Ruth Daniel. 'It's grown every year and we're really excited about its move into the city centre, where it can attract a larger audience.' Now in its seventh year, this Sunday's event is the biggest and most ambitious to date with two main stages featuring an eclectic line-up of musicians, dancers and performers, alongside a chill-out lounge and art exhibition, and representing more than 20 different cultures. 'It's such a mix: from stand-up to African dance to Kurdish fine art,' adds Daniel. 'Some elements have been specially developed for the event, though, working with community groups, and other acts have been successful in their home countries and are developing a profile in the UK.'

Established acts include headliners The Heritage Survival Band (6.30pm, The Pavilion), a Manchester-based group of Zimbabwean musicians who perform a lively combination of African mbriri (a Zimbabwean thumb piano instrument) and Afro-jazz. Last seen at Womad and In The City, other acts include Congolese music and dance group Nouvelle Alliance (6.30pm, Urbis foyer) and 70-piece samba band Menimos (5.20pm), who play following a lantern parade (5pm) around the festival site.

As well as the mix of music and dance performances on the main stages, an adjacent lounge with a traditional Eritrean coffee ceremony and free popcorn will host a programme of MC workshops by hip-hop performer and poet Ali Gadema (4.30pm, The Pavillion), short films and multi-language storytelling. A big part of the festival and, of course, any culture is food. Stalls selling dishes from Iraq, Bosnia, Afghanistan and many more will line Cathedral Gardens. 'It is hoped that people take something positive from it,' says Daniel. 'We want to challenge negative representations of the refugee communities and celebrate them instead.'

Sun Aug 31, Urbis, Cathedral Gardens, Central Manchester. 1pm, free. Tel: 605 8200. www.can.uk.com/exodus

O’Connor on the Ball

August 28, 2008, Irishabroad.com, Off the Record by Mike Farragher

Big Blue Ball is an album by multiple artists which grew from recording weeks at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios in the early 1990s. It features Sinead O’Connor and former Waterboy/ current World Party leader Karl Wallinger, who co-produced the project.

If you are a fan of experimental World music like the Afro Celt Sound System, then this record will be right up your alley. In fact, Afro Celts James McNally and Iarla Ó Lionáird join a diverse set of musicians like Japanese percussionist Joji Hirota, and Jah Wobble, who all dropped by during these recording weeks at Gabriel’s studio.

O’Connor’s voice is perched atop an atmospheric prayer called “Everything Comes From You” that begins in ominous tones that are drenched in feedback. It soon gives way to a gentle piano melody and simple prayer for peace.

“I’m your daughter/your mother is my mother/and my voice is raised giving you thanks and praise/I appeal to you, Lord, to stop war, to stop terror,” she sings purposefully. Japanese flutes waft in the background, making this tune infinitely more interesting than anything on Theology, her last faith-based album.

The disc is chock full of tasty textures that would be perfectly at home in a nightclub. Flutes, fiddles, and international instruments hug the bouncing beats to create a sizzling global gumbo. “Habbibe” is an intoxicating Middle Eastern track that is a highlight. The title track is a beautiful ballad written by Wallinger that features a more breathy vocal from O’Connor in the background.

In production for more than 15 years, Big Blue Ball is a project featuring several artists from all around the world working together. According to Gabriel, the initial recording was finished in three years during the early nineties, but “the tapes were left in a mess and it’s taken this long to sort out.”

Big Blue Ball was launched in America thanks to a venture-capital trust initiative. Bosses at London-based firm Ingenious raised more than $4 million to help promote the release in the U.S.

Gabriel has always had innovative ways to get music to his fans, and the Big Blue Ball project is innovative music that deserves your attention.

John Zorn, le moine et la forteresse

Arnaud Robert, Le temps (CH), Jeudi 28 août 2008

RENCONTRE. Le festival de jazz de Willisau s'ouvre ce soir. Dimanche, le saxophoniste américain s'y produit en deux formations. Portrait d'un maître pressé.

C'est une porte close. Avec une croix de David épinglée. Un immeuble carré, miné, semblable aux mille autres qui le précèdent, Village de Manhattan. John Zorn vit là. Dans ce réduit sans cuisine - «il me fallait de l'espace pour mes disques et mes bouquins», sans aucun meuble mais tapissé de partitions en cours. Au milieu du plancher encombré, un fax s'anime. Sur son répondeur, Zorn accueille: «File-moi du fric». Il a 55 ans. Porte les mêmes pantalons militaires qu'il y a quinze ans; il ne veut parler ni aux journalistes, ni à ceux qui vont retarder son travail. Quelques mètres carrés de cagibi retranché lui ont suffi, au fond, pour usiner l'une des œuvres les plus amples de son époque.

Zorn à Willisau, il y vient depuis vingt ans au moins. Un festival qui documente soigneusement les déflagrations de la scène downtown de New York. Une scène, dont Zorn est le punk déconstructeur, l'âme blafarde, l'icône obsessionnelle. Comment le décrire? Cet homme né à New York, le 2 septembre 1953, qui a sorti plus de 160 albums, créé un label faramineux (Tzadik), des clubs, un mouvement culturel et artistique (la Radical Jewish Culture). Un long bonhomme sarcastique dont la réputation d'arrogance lui sert de carnet de vaccination et de garde-barrière. On ne voit pas très bien d'antécédent à Zorn, sur cette île. Des génies qui ont réussi à coaguler les énergies de la cité - Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, John Cage -, on ne les compte pas. Mais un anarchiste taiseux dont le saxophone alto réussit à résumer l'avant-garde de son temps, non, on ne voit pas.

Zorn n'est pas jazz. C'est un fait. Même s'il raffole d'Ornette Coleman. Sa tradition naît de l'écriture contemporaine. Il cite Ligeti, Xenakis, Partch, Boulez. Il vient à la musique vers le milieu des années 70, période des lofts. «On jouait chez les gens, avec une brosse à dent sous le nez», raconte son compère de palier, le pianiste Anthony Coleman. Ils travaillent ensemble chez un disquaire, la Soho Music Gallery, où Peter Gabriel et David Byrne viennent se fournir en chants pygmées. Zorn crée des ensembles de durée variable, Naked City, Cobra, auxquels il refile ses microcompositions de cartoon hurlant. Trente secondes de débauche. De violons laminés. De guitares-pagaille. Il sélectionne une sorte de troupe théâtrale, une série de musiciens qui l'accompagnent en tout terrain, dont aujourd'hui la pianiste suisse Sylvie Courvoisier.

On est au carrefour des mondes. S'agit-il d'improvisation, de musique écrite? Pas le temps de s'arrêter pour penser. Zorn est au Japon. Il y loue un appartement. Apprend le japonais - il parle aussi français, hébreu et allemand, ne supporte pas de lire ses auteurs préférés (Genet, Mishima) en traduction. Il suffit de se rendre à Tokyo, dans une chambre infime et blanche qui sert de salle de concert, le Offsite, pour saisir l'influence de Zorn sur toute une génération de musiciens nippons. Otomo Yoshihide, Merzbow, Ruins. Ils ne jurent que par ce météore ricain qui ne demeure jamais longtemps. Au début des années 90, Zorn se rend à Munich pour commémorer la Nuit de Cristal. Le clarinettiste David Krakauer l'accompagne: «Quelque chose a changé en lui à ce moment-là. Il a décidé que nous devions être fiers d'être Juifs.»

Un forage long, consciencieux, polémique, le long de ses racines sémitiques. «C'était une sorte de révélation bizarre», dit Zorn. Il baptise un quartette Masada, du nom de cette forteresse israélienne dont les habitants ont préféré se suicider plutôt que de se plier à l'occupant romain. Une vingtaine de disques, plus de 200 compositions, toutes dédiées à Theodor Herzl, fondateur du mouvement sioniste. Une entreprise jubilatoire, que des dizaines de suiveurs adoptent. Renaissance juive à Manhattan, dans une diaspora qui a largement contribué à la musique américaine. Si Zorn poursuit son œuvre, à ce rythme battant, il faudra encore plusieurs décennies pour en saisir la portée. Hors ses murs.

Jazzfest Willisau. Du 27 au 31 août. John Zorn, 31 août à 14h30, avec Bar Kokhba et Koch-Schütz-Studer-Amstad. http://www.jazzwillisau.ch

M for Montréal Comes to the Quays of the Old Port

MONTREAL, Aug. 27 /CNW Telbec

Sirius Canada, in co-operation with Astral Média, presents M for Montréal "Special Edition" on the Quays of the Old Port. The free event in Place des Vestiges at the Old Port of Montréal, from 5 to 11 p.m. on Saturday, September 6, will feature six of today's top bands: Socalled, Karkwa, Alfa Rococo, Radio Radio, Misteur Valaire and Torngat. Hosts Geneviève Borne and Anne-Marie Withenshaw will go head-to-head in a friendly DJ contest during a schmoozing BBQ kicking off the event.

The six bands taking part in this special edition of M for Montréal will be lighting up the two stages across from each other in Place des Vestiges, at the Jacques Cartier Quay entrance. "With M pour Montréal, we wanted to introduce the many alternative artists on the Montréal scene to people in the industry around the world," says Sébastien Nasra, founder of the event. M for Montréal on the Quays will allow the general public to attend one of these events and discover the incredible musical talent that's developing in our city and has a great chance of making it big on the international scene."

An enchanting setting

What better place than to host these artists than the Quays of the Old Port, an enchanting setting between downtown Montréal and the River? "Our vision for the Quays of the Old Port is that they should showcase emerging Montréal culture, both summer and winter," says Claude Benoit, President and CEO of the Old Port Corporation. "It made sense for us to be partners in this event, which will introduce the general public to some talented local artists."

A schmoozing BB Q

M is also taking advantage of the superb outdoor venue on the Quays of the Old Port to kick off the event with a schmoozing BBQ. Guest DJettes Geneviève Borne and Anne-Marie Withenshaw, both well known for their musical tastes, will face off in a no-holds-barred battle of the DJs.

All these artists, popular on the Montréal alternative scene and gaining broader public recognition, are ready to launch on international careers. The M for Montréal on the Quays event is committed to serving as a showcase for them and offering Montrealers some amazing musical discoveries. Don't miss this fabulous event!

About M for Montréal

M for Montreal is an export and networking platform founded in 2006 by Sébastien Nasra (Avalanche Productions) and the legendary British festival programmer Martin Elbourne (Glastonbury Festival, The Great Escape and co-founder with Peter Gabriel of the WOMAD Festival). In addition to bringing together an international delegation of buyers, journalists and other influential music industry players in Montréal, "M" is a unique, exciting concert experience for music and event fans alike. This year's international showcase will take place from November 20 to 22. Watch for further details!

About the Old Port of Montréal Corporation

For the past 25 years, the Old Port of Montréal Corporation has pursued the mandate assigned to it by the federal government, of promoting and developing the Old Port. As manager of the Quays of the Old Port, one of the most popular attractions in Quebec, the Montréal Science Centre and the IMAX(C) Telus Theatre, and by planning and offering a varied program of activities throughout the Old Port, the Corporation is a major player in the city's economic development.

For further information: and/or artist interviews: Clarah Germain, Media Relations, Quays of the Old Port of Montréal, (514) 283-8085, cgermain@vieuxportdemontreal.com; Source: M for Montréal

Festival of World Cultures in Dublin

The Irish Times, Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Last weekend's Festival of World Cultures in Dún Laoghaire Co Dublin is assessed by Siobhan Long

From the roof of the world to the western hip of Africa, the serene heart of Japan and the plains of inner Mongolia, Dún Laoghaire's Festival of World Cultures sought out diversity in this year's programme to match anything you'll encounter in the so-called melting pot of NYC or in the most ambitiously programmed Womad festivals of Peter Gabriel.

The opening headliner, Yungchen Lhamo, playing for the first time in Ireland with a full band, drew a packed house in Monkstown, and the raw power and bell-like timbre of her voice transfixed like nothing else.

She was at her best when she let the inherent dissonance of her voice bask in her Tibetan repertoire, propelled by her most divine sinuous movements, but her choice of backing musicians (including a keyboardist from San José and Living Colour's Will Calhoun) imposed a blandness that diluted rather than distilled her magnificent repertoire.

Her attempt at audience participation was laboured too, hampered by her choice of a melody line that was far from compelling and ultimately too complex for rapid rote learning by an audience unschooled in the nuances of Tibetan songlines.

Yungchen Lhamo's spontaneous decision to embrace two wheelchair users in the front row served to underline some cultural differences that grated fundamentally too: her Tibetan instincts prompted a distinctly patronising response to audience members who surely came for the music, and not for a dose of maternal mollycoddling.

Fellow Tibetan Lobsang Dargye lent some vibrant support to the evening with an edgy set that betrayed the strangest echoes of both sean-nós and Appalachian singing.

On backing vocals, Julie Fields brought a curious Irish language song about Tibet, Mo Phaidreacha and Niwel Tsimbu explored the rhythmic possibilities of Dargye's songs with his customary inventiveness.

Freemuse award winner Tiken Jah Fakoly was an able headliner at Newtownsmith's outdoor stage on Saturday afternoon, his heady mix of syncopated rhythms drawing an enthusiastic response from a hugely eclectic audience. Fakoly's acrobatic antics and charismatic communication, together with his highly politicised agenda, did much to underline the essential commonalities (rather than the differences) across his beloved Africa.

Andy Irvine echoed Fakoly's refreshingly articulate political repertoire with his own, at the smaller Kingston Garden stage, where his visceral cover of Woody Guthrie's All You Fascists served as a timely reminder of the ties that have bound so many folk and traditional singers to one another, crossing boundaries and continents without a backward glance towards passport control.

The Geisha Performance transpired to be all about unveiling that essential mystique that renders them so compelling. Although dispelling any tawdry western presumptions that the Geisha are a veiled form of prostitution, MC Peter McIntosh did little to embellish the stark beauty and restraint of the two Geisha, whose artful performance was marred by his off-the-cuff, unrehearsed explanatory asides.

Sunday's unstinting sunshine happily lured the crowds out in their thousands, but this led to a bottleneck at Lisa Hannigan's outdoor stage, where her much-anticipated solo performance was barely audible or visible amid the throng.

Later, Mongolian singer and performance artist Sa Dingding brought a magnificent exoticism to the mix, her porcelain skin and lyrical dance movements underpinning a vocal repertoire drawn largely from the endless plains of her home country.

A pair of accompanying dancers added a deliciously primeval quality to the evening, their intense acrobatic choreography tracing the storylines of her songs with sensual and, at times, bullet-speed ease.

Sa Dingding's lo-fi backbeats, electric violin and pumping percussion was an interesting, if at times curious backdrop: the gorgeous effeteness of her performance shoehorned into a shape less refined by the demands of the orchestrations.

This year's Festival of World Cultures was a mostly exhilarating mix of music, dance, performance art and magic - not all of it persuasive enough to warrant deeper excavation, but certainly enough swagger and panache to keep the punters cleaving firmly to the harbourside for the entire weekend.

Concert -Daby Toure - Samedi 18 Octobre 2008 à Bobigny

Samedi 18 octobre 20h30 et Vendredi 21 novembre 2008 20 h 30 Salle Pablo Neruda à Bobigny

DABY TOURE

Voix douce et guitare soyeuse aux racines africaines...

Descendant de la fratrie sénégalaise Touré Kunda, Daby Touré est né en Mauritanie mais a grandi en traversant une grande partie de l’ouest africain entre les villes de Dakar, Nouakchott ou Ziguinchor. Ses innombrables voyages lui ont apporté une parfaite maîtrise des langues wolof, soninké et pulaar, ajoutant cela à ses langues maternelles le hassanya et le maure. Curieux et assoiffé de musique, Daby Touré découvre Police, Dire Straits, Bob Marley ou le jazz à travers les ondes de la radio.

Daby Touré quitte l’Afrique à dix-huit ans, armé de solides atouts culturels et linguistiques qui façonneront l’essence de sa musique, et la poésie de ses paroles. Entre Paris et Londres, il fera les premières parties de la dernière tournée européenne de Peter Gabriel en 2004.

Sans compromis, Daby Touré a su imposer une musique où se mêlent harmonieusement ses cultures africaine et occidentale, séduisant un public de plus en plus large et s’affirmant sur les scènes internationales. Guitariste hors pair, arrangeur avisé, il nous embarque dans les eaux d’un folk raffiné et aérien d’une rare intensité. Une boussole à suivre les yeux fermés et les oreilles… grandes ouvertes !

Critique Telerama : Big Blue Ball, Peter Gabriel & Friends

Big Blue Ball, Peter Gabriel & Friends

L'enregistrement de cet album a commencé au début des années 90 et cela s'entend à un je-ne-sais-quoi de vieillot, sans doute du côté de la batterie pépère... Pourtant ces rencontres voulues par Peter Gabriel entre des rockers et des musiciens du monde entier ont bénéficié du cadre de rêve de ses studios Real World conçus par un artiste pour les artistes.

Trois sessions furent organisées, en 1991, 1992 et 1995, sans autre souci que le plaisir du dialogue musical. S'y sont côtoyés Natacha Atlas, Papa Wemba, Billy Cobham, The Holmes Brothers, Jah Wobble, Manu Katché, Billy Cobham... Soixante-quinze artistes venus de vingt pays pour « un voyage initiatique à travers tous les continents ».

Mais leurs univers contrastés ne s'entrecroisent qu'à la marge. Et une bonne moitié de l'album reste assez banalement rock ou même pop, l'autre plutôt ancrée dans les traditions européennes ou africaines. Mention spéciale au chant lancinant de l'Irlandaise Sinead O'Connor qui, sur Everything comes from you, s'allie à la flûte évanescente de la Chinoise Guo Yue.

Et aussi à l'ample voix de la Hongroise Marta Sebestyén, qui, dans Rivers, se déploie sur un tapis de planantes ondes électriques (à ses côtés, Vernon Reid, l'ex-guitariste de Living Color). Sur la pochette, au milieu d'une verte prairie où paissent de minuscules moutons, une gigantesque boule bleue est dessinée. C'est ainsi que, depuis la Lune, la Terre apparaît aux cosmonautes : sans frontières !

"REAL WORLD PETER GABRIEL, BIOGRAPHIE" VIDEO TEASING

mercredi 27 août 2008

"Real World ... Video Teasing"

Voilà la vidéo promotionnelle de "Real World - Peter Gabriel, Biographie".

Les idées tordues de l'Intruder mises en images et montées par Aurélien Guillaume. A visionner jusqu'au générique final ! Un maître, dans sa catégorie... Bravo l'Artiste !!! Que les dieux honorent son juvénile talent.

Peter gabriel real world
par SGazole

Dreaming of Kate

Gabnews : "Ma" chère Kate Bush a eu 50 ans le 31 juillet dernier. Cela fait trente ans qu'elle accompagne, comme Peter Gabriel, mes rêveries musicales, les joies et la bonheurs, les heurs et les malheurs de ma petite vie. Cela méritait pour le moins que je vous fasses part de l'anniversaire, très symbolique, de cette grande dame. Voici une belle video sur Myspace qui tente de resumer totue une carrière, exercice difficile mais relativement reussi (voir aussi le site "Kate-Bush-france" qui en fait un commentaire :

Merci à "Ame" pour avoir fait part de ce lien et rappeler cette information

Peter Gabriel : The creator

by Staff | 08.26.2008

FILTER 32 Hits Newsstands on September 12

At a time when music and culture coverage needs it the most, FILTER has once again raised the bar. Running through the heart of our latest issue—featuring an exclusive interview with cover artist Peter Gabriel—is the central theme of creation. As such, Patti Smith delves into her transformation from an angsty New York poet into the punk icon we know today. Jon Brion connects with Randy Newman to explore the latter’s enigmatic nature, Matthew Broderick pays tribute to Marlon Brando and their work on a film called The Freshman, and award-winning political satirist Bill Maher takes a leap of faith with his new film, Religulous, with commentary from acclaimed director, Larry Charles (Borat, Curb Your Enthusiasm). Also between the covers are exclusives with Oasis, Of Montreal, Black Kids, Ra Ra Riot and more.

With the latest issue of FILTER, we have striven to create much more than a typical music magazine. Instead of simply “reporting the news” with profiles of bands and artists, we hold our story-telling to a higher standard, thus enabling our readers to be changed by the experience of reading. These creators and visionary artists spoke to FILTER because they respect our credibility and share our creative vision. We are forever committed to the tangible aesthetic of holding a magazine in one’s hands, and FILTER continues to deliver visually appealing and thought-provoking content not found anywhere else.

Where other magazines are shrinking and disappearing, we’re thriving. Good music will prevail. Here at FILTER, we’ve never been more certain of it. And times have never been better.

Gwyneth Herbert's got some stories to tell

by ARWA HAIDER, Metro.co.uk, Monday, August 25, 2008

When Gwyneth Herbert became the first British artist to sign to the legendary Blue Note label for two decades, she was hailed as part of a new generation of jazz talent. Conversely, she also prompted debate as to whether her 2007 album Between Me And The Wardrobe could be defined as jazz at all. It's a question that she's equally happy to ponder.

'There are definitely jazz dialogues in my music, but I'm also really influenced by blues and folk and the 1970s singer/songwriters that I grew up with,' she says. 'It's a really exciting time to be making music because so many people are into a huge variety of genres.'
Herbert's charismatic chattiness is key to her narrative-based songs and her presence as a live performer. Her vocal delivery is so warm and mellifluous that some of her music's darker themes catch you by surprise; tracks such as Slow Down Brother initially seem easy on the ear but actually convey tragic scenarios, often based on real life. That heady mixture of moods also applies to her latest tracks, which she will be showcasing over two nights at Ronnie Scott's, alongside established album tracks and 'surprise' covers.

Earlier this year, Herbert and her band were invited to record at Peter Gabriel's Real World studios as part of a Bowers & Wilkins-sponsored music club. The fruits of that session, entitled Ten Lives, have so far only been available to subscribers but she's planning to expand the material for her next full album.

'When we do the next album, I definitely want to capture some of the "in yer face" clankiness that we had in the Real World sessions. When I was making Between Me And The Wardrobe, I was in quite a reflective mood.
'The new writing is quite different; the songs and arrangements have got a lot more balls. And Seb Rochford is the special guest at these shows - I'm really excited about hearing him work his octopus-like drumming magic on the songs.'

It's also significant that Herbert has now established herself as an original songwriter rather than a covers artist, although she points out that this wasn't an orchestrated move.

'I always loved interpreting other people's material,' she explains, earnestly. 'But I originally found my musical voice when I worked with Tom Cawley (another intrepid young jazzer). We went on this amazing six-month journey of writing songs and throwing words around. I've always been fascinated by the fact that everyone has an emotional story to tell. People strike up conversations with me on the Tube; I'm kind of the anti-Londoner.'

It will be intriguing to hear where Herbert sources her next musical stories. She confounds expectations with real beguiling charm.

Tue-Wed Aug 26-27, Ronnie Scott's, 47 Frith Street, W1. 6pm, £15 to £30. Tel: 020 7439 0747. www.ronniescotts.co.uk Tube: Tottenham Court Road

GRAMMY AWARD WINNING SOWETO GOSPEL CHOIR'S NEW PROJECT

August 25, 2008

GRAMMY AWARD WINNING SOWETO GOSPEL CHOIR'S NEW PROJECT: Shanachie releases 'Live at the Nelson Mandela Theatre' CD/DVD

On Sept 16 the Soweto Gospel Choir will simultaneously release their new CD/DVD 'Live at the Nelson Mandela Theatre.'

It comes just in time for their Oct. 3rd 48-city North American tour kick-off, which will run through the holiday season - a first for the Choir in America.

In the five short years of their existence the Soweto Gospel Choir has achieved an almost unbelievable array of accomplishments: two Grammy Awards, two number one Billboard World Music Chart albums and collaborations either in concert or in the studio with Bono, Robert Plant, Peter Gabriel, and Celine Dion.

They were one of the featured performers at Oprah Winfrey’s New Year’s Eve party in South Africa where they wowed such invited guests as Quincy Jones, Mariah Carey, Patti La Belle and Sidney Poitier.

Not many artists can count as their supporters the likes of Archbishop Desmond Tutu (an official patron of the Choir) and Nelson Mandela, for whom the choir performed at his original star-studded AIDS awareness 46664 concert and most recently his 90th Birthday concert along with Leona Lewis, Annie Lennox, Will Smith, Joan Baez and others in London. Yet the choir’s greatest achievement of all may be the fact that they have raised over $1,000,000 for their charity, Nkosi’s Haven, which provides care for families victimized by AIDS.

One of the highlights on their crowd-pleasing CD/DVD is the township jive number “Avulekile Amasango” and Bob Marley’s “One Love.”

As Soweto Gospel Choir executive producer/show director, Beverly Bryer notes, “'One Love' has been sung and popularized by several African groups. The song is a perfect match for the choir as it contains a special spiritual message that is relevant to the choir and the music we enjoy singing.”

Another highlight is the choir’s interpretation of the spiritual standard “River Jordan,” which they recorded for the first time. Listening to the CD or viewing the DVD offers an experience that is indeed the next best thing to being there.

Soweto Gospel Choir began in late 2002 when South African executive producer Beverly Bryer and noted musical director David Mulovhedzi held auditions in Soweto to form an all-star “super-choir” and was able to create a powerful aggregation made of the best singers from Mulovhedzi’s own Holy Jerusalem Choir, as well as various Soweto churches and even the public. Ultimately a 26-member aggregation of mainly singers in their twenties and teens were formed.

Africa in general (and South Africa in particular) has a long diverse history with Gospel music. When Africans encountered European missionaries and churches, they quickly absorbed their religious music and blended it with local traditional music to come up with unique styles and repertoires of spiritual songs. South Africa has long been noted for powerful singers and a capella vocal traditions of great beauty. In addition, dancing is an integral part of African church worship and so the dancing seen onstage is an authentic representation of African religious experience and not, as some would assume a “show-biz” device.