adminIt also became the first African choir to perform at this prestigious cultural arts centre, which was built more than five years ago, to host some of China’s and international artworks.
The 19-member Zimbabwe College of Music outfit, which is here to take part in the China International Choral Festival and the International Federation for Choral Music Summit, where more than 160 groups from different countries are taking part, presented a medley of cultural, choral and Western music to an enthusiastic crowd.
Performing thousands of kilometres away from home and operating on a threadbare budget, the enthusiasm that the group created among the crowd was amazing, as they managed to hold everyone in their seats spellbound for the duration of their show.
The high-octane performance, which was punctuated by dance and mime, displayed a high level of ingenuity among the group, as they were able to combine different art forms in a non-stop two hour showcase.
But, of course, the highlight of the performance was when the ensemble sang six Chinese songs, which were met by thunderous applause from the packed auditorium comprised mainly of Chinese nationals, who were pleasantly surprised by the group’s intonation, melody, pronunciation and quick grasp of Chinese words.
During some of the songs, “Yellow River Cantata”, “Half Moon Rises”, “Beautiful Grassland: My Home and Forget Your Worries”, one could not help but marvel at the group’s level of ingenuity of having worked thoroughly at the pronunciation and were quite expressive, that it was easy to pick the meaning of the song by merely just looking at their facial expressions.
“Half Moon Rises” is a Chinese folktale in which a love-struck girl leans over the window to communicate with her boyfriend and asks him how much he loves her. The girl, who appears not to be convinced, asks her lover to throw something as a token of appreciation.
During the last part of their performance, they took a group of Zimbabweans on a memorable journey when they presented some of Zimbabwe’s folklore songs,
“Chamutengure”, “Nyoka Musango” and “Tsvimborume Dzinobayana”.
The group struck its last note, with an introductory chant of the whole ensemble, made up of 10 ladies and their performance was marred by their makeshift costumes, which was not in any way reflective of the Zimbabwe culture. Save for the animal print tops, the different costumes they wore were nothing but floral pieces of cloths with garish colours draped around their bodies. In the absence of proper costumes, the group could have just worn T-shirts with a Zimbabwean flag.
The group, whose trip was made possible by funding by the education ministry together with the Chinese Embassy, will travel to Mongolia, this week for yet another performance before returning to Zimbabwe next week.
Zimbabwe Government officials who attended the show included the Deputy Minister of Education, Arts, Sport and Culture, Lazarus Dokora; Education Permanent Secretary, Constance Chigwamba; principal director Reverend Damasane; National Arts Council of Zimbabwe head Elvas Mari, Zimbabwean ambassador to China His Excellency Frederick Shava, his wife and the embassy staff based in Beijing.
Online Reporter