by Hannah Coombs | Jul 15, 2015 | South Africa 2015
We began our day at morning mass in a Catholic church in Soweto. Personally I have never spent much time in Church so I wasn’t too sure what to expect. But I am glad I had this opportunity to witness the spectacular singing from both the choir and the congregation. The music rang out through the magnificent church with its high ceilings and stained glass windows. Everyone there very well appreciated our music; they even called for an encore. We participated were we could with smiles on our faces, and as we walked out of the church at the end of the service many of us were stopped and complimented for our contribution and we had many conversations about the orchestra, everyone seemed very interested in what we had to say. ...
by Hannah Coombs | Jul 15, 2015 | South Africa 2015
The last concert of tour was our best one yet. The orchestra we so energetic it was night and day form our first concert in which barely anyone smiled. The second violin section definitely out shone the first violins with their synchronised dance moves. It was a full set and we were delighted to be joined with some members of the Johannesburg Youth Orchestra for a few numbers, they are all fantastic musicians who kept up with our fast pace Scottish tunes superbly. It was a sad concert for some of the senior members of the orchestra as for them it might be their last. I know they have all had an amazing time on their last tour and don’t want to leave their AFO family behind. However I don’t think I am quite ready to go yet, so I might just stick around for a while. In true AFO fashion the last concert of the tour called for a practical joke to be played on our musical director David Moore. Many of the senior players and myself put our thinking caps on about an hour before the concert and came up with a plan. During our final number Eightsome Reels we stopped about a third of the way through, following which our drummer rocked out and was then joined by our bass guitarist Niall McHugh, our lead guitarist Ross Brain and our piper Andrew Spence. Once they had finished their set three senior boys lifted David off the stage and I put down my double bass, came to the front of the stage and conducted...
by Hannah Coombs | Jul 15, 2015 | South Africa 2015
It was a harrowing and sobering day as we walked through the museum with JP – one of our Johannesburg guides – as he talked and explained the events surrounding the Apartheid. We were all very shocked that we hadn’t heard much about it before the museum, as it was such an influential topic that changed so many lives. By the end I was very eager to find out more and might do some of my own research when I get home. Unfortunately we had limited time there and didn’t get a chance to see everything, so it would be nice to go back one day and spend a lot more time reading the stories and watching the videos. We ended our time at the museum at the gift shop and café while thinking back on everything we had just learned. P.S. We were not allowed to take any pictures inside so i only have a few from outside....
by Hannah Coombs | Jul 10, 2015 | South Africa 2015
We left Cape Town for our final destination, Johannesburg. It was a normal travel day for us, filled with buses, airports and planes. Everyone was very patient even with all the long waits and travel and it was well worth it when we arrived at our last accommodation. Within 2 minutes of being off the bus we were greeted with African music and dancing form the hotel staff’s children. They were amazing and had us all smiling and clapping along. We then thanked them the best way we know how; with a quick Dashing White Sargent. We then quickly got our keys and went to see our rooms. The staff were incredibly helpful with our room keys and finding our rooms, and I would expect nothing less from the great people of South Africa considering the generosity we have been met with so far in this tour. The rooms are lovely and big, with great views of the amazing surrounding area, I can’t wait to see it all in full daylight. Our first meal was a delicious buffet with many people going back for seconds, and some may have even had thirds. We will have a quite evening in tonight before going to see the sights of Johannesburg....
by Hannah Coombs | Jul 10, 2015 | South Africa 2015
The afternoon after Robben Island was spent in a local high school with members from different orchestra’s in Cape Town. It was a similar set up to the day before with joint numbers and a workshop to follow, the sound that came of the two groups playing together was phenomenal. One of the senior violinists from the Cape Town orchestra, Sia, led us in a song Pata Pata. He was very talented and managed to get every AFO player smiling and moving about and that is no small feat. Just like everyone we have met in South Africa they were very friendly and welcoming and we had a great time chatting and sharing stories with them. The audience at this concert was the best I have ever seen, many of them were from Scotland and recognised some of our more famous pieces and joined in. Others got up and danced. The Hout Bay Music Project members surprised us by showing up to support us and they were great and showing other the dances they had just learned the night before. During the interval I was speaking to a few women from the Cape Town Caledonia Society many of whom were originally from Scotland. They were very enthusiastic and happy to have us bring a little bit of their home to them, they also enjoying using some Scottish slang and talking about where we lived and the local areas. parental locks It was great to hear that after 33 years in South Africa all of them still...
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