Cape Philharmonic Orchestra

The Cape Philharmonic Orchestra’s Outreach and Education programme was started in 2003 as part of the orchestra’s Transformation Plan. The CPO’s teaching programme and schools outreach concerts started in 2003 and the Cape Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (CPYO) and Cape Philharmonic Youth Wind Ensemble (CPYWE) were launched in 2004. This programme has expanded over the years to include an instrument bank, study grants, small ensembles, rural outreach, the Masidlale Strings project and in assisting local and international groups in setting up similar projects.
In 2007, the CPO Outreach and Education programme received an award for Outstanding Achievement in Youth Development (Music) from the Western Cape Department of Arts and Culture.

 

The Masidlale Music Project

In 2009, the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra started the Masidlale Music Project in the townships of Gugulethu and Nyanga to provide children with instrumental training in their area - irrespective of financial means or background. The projected outreach will amount to 400 new musicians sourced and prepared annually to enter the CPYO and later the CPO.

 

 

 

To become a professional musician, 15 years of intensive training is needed. It is crucial that training starts at grass-roots level to ensure a pool of potential new instrumentalists representing our diverse cultures to feed the professional orchestra. The projected outreach will amount to 400 new musicians sourced and prepared to levels that allow them to audition for a position in the CPYO. With further training and experience, some could then be considered as members of the CPO or other full-time orchestras.

The Masidlale project also creates new employment opportunities by training facilitators from the townships in the Suzuki method and appointing them as part time violin teachers at the project, an opportunity which changes their lives and creates economically viable citizens.

The main target is youth from communities thus far excluded or without financial means to participate in professional training in classical music.

 

Cape Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (CPYO)

The Cape Philharmonic Youth Orchestra was launched in 2004 and most of the members of the CPYO come from previously disadvantaged communities. The members of the professional orchestra are committed to a programme of teaching and training the young musicians through coaching and one-on-one tuition.

This flagship of the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra’s Outreach and Education programme has made great strides under the leadership of Alexander Fokkens since his appointment as resident conductor of the CPYO in 2006. Some of the CPYO’s performances include the orchestra’s debut at the First Cape Town International Summer Music Festival (November 2006) and all the subsequent Cape Town International Summer Music Festivals. The CPYO regularly performs full-length showcase concerts together with the CPYWE and their performances at the Grahamstown National Arts & Schools Festivals have been very successful. The CPO Education showcase concerts take place quarterly when the CPYO performs with the CPYWE. During the past three Cape Town International Summer Music Festivals, members of the CPYO have performed side-by-side concerts with the CPO. Four CPYO members were included in the CPO’s USA tour.

Cape Philharmonic Youth Wind Ensemble (CPYWE)

The Cape Philharmonic Youth Wind Ensemble made its debut before a local audience on 1 May 2004 and has become a well-established group participating in many concerts with the CPO but also performing on its own.

Some of the CPYWE’s highlight performances in the past years have included participation in the Artscape Wind Band Festival (2006) and its international debut at the First Cape Town International Summer Music Festival (November 2006) and subsequent festivals. The ensemble also performed during the Mayoral Welcome (an event which welcomes dignitaries attending the Opening of Parliament) in Feb. 2007 and at the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport’s Artistic Showcase at Artscape in May 2007.

In 2005 & 2007 the ensemble performed with the visiting Dutch group Brass Band Schoonhoven (BBS) at the V & A Waterfront and in Bands in Concert at Artscape (the latter concert also featuring Windworx).

The CPYWE is privileged to have Sean Kierman, the retired head of Brass (UCT) as its conductor. Sean Kierman started the wind band movement in South Africa in the 1960’s and brings a vast amount of experience to this programme. We have also welcomed international guest conductors to the CPYWE podium, namely Christian Kohler (Germany, 2007 & 2008) & Dr John Stanley (USA, 2009). John Rojas, Head of Winds at Beau Soleil Music Centre conducted the CPYWE at the showcase concerts in 2009 & 2010. Showcase concerts take place quarterly at various community venues.
The CPYWE undertook its first tour in 2010 where it participated in the Mandela Bay Festival of Sound, in Port Elizabeth. The ensemble received a Certificate of Participation as well as the Best Ensemble as Voted by Peers.

 

Conductors' masterclasses

Arjan Tien (Holland) presenting a conducting masterclass (December 2010)

The CPO Outreach and Education programme is privileged to have a pedagogue of the calibre of  internationally renowned Maestro Victor Yampolsky involved in its education process. Maestro Yampolsky also oversees the overall vision and objectives of the education programme and his insights have proved invaluable to the growth of the youth orchestras to date. The master classes for trainee conductors are conducted during the time that Prof Yampolsky works with the CPO during the symphony season. This programme culminated in the first Len van Zyl Conducting Competition in 2010, which was won by Brandon Phillips, a founder participant in the conductors’ masterclasses.

Since Brandon’s return from Philadelphia and Chicago, as part of his prize, he has started a Conducting Training programme on Saturday mornings for young conductors which will hopefully culminate in participation in the future Len van Zyl conducting competitions.

Instrument Bank

The instrument bank started in 2004 with a generous donation from the Vodacom Foundation, which made it possible for the CPO to provide instruments for very talented, young musicians who didn’t have an instruments or who needed a better instrument than the ones they were using. These instruments are used by members of the CPO Education programme, namely CPYO, CPYWE or the CPO’s Teaching programme.

Since the funding and launch of Masidlale in the townships of Nyanga, Guguletu and Langa an additional three sets of violins have been purchased for this purpose. The satellite at Wynberg Senior Secondary received brass, woodwind and percussion instruments from funding.

We have subsequently also received a donation of instruments from Germany which assists us in helping more learners in our various programmes.

 

Teaching Programme (Orchestral instruments: Practical & Theory)

The teaching programme involves about 90 learners who receive weekly tuition in their respective instruments at the Good Hope Seminary High School. The tuition is provided by 20 teachers drawn from CPO musicians and music teachers from schools.

International Advisor	Victor Yampolsky
Manager	Laurika Steenkamp
Artistuic Director & Conductor – CPYO	Brandon Phillips
Conductor – CPYWE	Sean Kierman
Trainee Conductors	Charl van der Merwe, Dane Coetzee, Gavin Phillips, Andrew-John Bethke, Angus Petersen, Ash-lee Louwskieter.