Monday, February 10, 2003
South African’s
Ladysmith at Goshen College Feb. 25;
General
admission tickets available one hour before show
GOSHEN, Ind. — Reserved tickets are sold out
for the event, but Ladysmith has given permission for an additional
audience located above and behind them on the choral terrace, which
adds a possible audience of 100. Terrace seating will be
general admission of $10 sold only at the door one hour (6:30 p.m.)
ahead of the performance.
South Africa’s Ladysmith Black Mambazo
spiraled to world fame after singing and dancing with Paul Simon
through his landmark Graceland” album in 1986.
But for the 12-man a cappella group, their defining moment came as
they sang their way to freedom at South African President
Mandela’s 1994 inauguration, marking the end of 40 years of
apartheid.
Ladysmith, which is now the number one African
group in record sales, will bring colorful harmonies, guttural
gulps and songs of freedom to the Goshen College Music Center at
7:30 p.m. Feb. 25 as part of the college’s 2002-03 Performing
Arts Series.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s music was born in
the diamond mines of South Africa, where black laborers developed a
form of competitive singing and dancing called isicathamiya
to distract from their oppressive working conditions. Joseph
Shabalala, the group’s founder, recruited brothers, cousins
and friends from his Zulu tribe to sing the rousing harmonies he
had dreamed about, and the group went on to win every competition
they entered. A radio broadcast in 1970 led to their first record
contract.
Ladysmith met American musician Paul Simon in a
Johannesburg recording studio, and their discographic collaboration
has been regarded by many as seminal to today’s explosive
interest in World Music. In addition to presidential inaugurations,
Ladysmith has performed at two Nobel Peace Prize ceremonies, for
the Pope in Rome, Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace, the 1996
Summer Olympics, NBC television’s “Saturday Night
Live” and with noted artists such as Michael Jackson, Dolly
Parton, Stevie Wonder and Eric Clapton. They have appeared in
movie soundtracks and commercials, and have recorded over 40 albums
including “Shaka Zulu” (1987), “Gift of the
Tortoise” (1993) and “The Star and the Wise Man”
(1998).
While Ladysmith’s successes have reached far
beyond the country’s borders, they were also a crucial voice
for change within South Africa. From their high-kicking dances to
songs about apartheid, the group has retained their distinctively
South African style despite racial roadblocks. “I always told
the guys that the task before us was not greater than the power
behind us,” said Shabalala of the apartheid years. Singing at
Mandela’s inauguration was, for Ladysmith, a momentous
culmination to their years of peaceful protest through
music.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s no longer sings
Homeless,” its famous plaint about dispossession that
appeared on “Graceland” and that embodies the pain of
over 40 years of apartheid. Their current repertoire of upbeat
trills and stomps reflects changed political conditions. But
they still have challenges to deal with in the new South Africa;
recently, Shabalala’s cousin was killed in a racially
motivated incident. Yet when asked how Ladysmith will go on,
Shabalala responded, “We will sing, this is what we
do.”
Fourteen Shabalala, guitar, and Shongishilo Ndlovu,
concertina, will open for the group.
https://www.goshen.edu/events/performingarts
or to Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s site at http://www.mambazo.com/.
Future series concerts include:
• 7:30 p.m. March 11 – Los Angeles Guitar Quartet,
Music Center Sauder Concert Hall
• 7:30 p.m. April 4 – Bach’s “St. John
Passion,” Music Center Sauder Concert Hall
Goshen College is a national liberal arts college known for
leadership in international education, service-learning and peace
and justice issues in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition.
Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program and
exceptional educational value, GC serves about 1,000 students in
both traditional and nontraditional programs. The college earned
citations of excellence among U.S.News & World Report,
Yahoo! and Barron’s Best Buys in Higher
Education. For more information, visit www.goshen.edu.
– Jessica Yoder
Editors: For information, contact Jodi Hochstedler at jodih@goshen.edu or (574)
535-7572.