The 2025 Chronicle

CHORAL PROGRAMME Master in Charge and Conductor: Mr Gareth Dry Choir Captain: Makena Githiri Vice-Captains: Ashton McCormick, Boitumelo Motsepe 2025 has been nothing short of extraordinary for the school’s choral programme. Both choirs reached remarkable heights, delivering performances that enriched the school community and earned recognition across the country. The Chapel Choir, with an impressive 70 boys, continued to be one of the school’s largest and most spirited cultural groups. Rehearsing three times a week, the choir showed unwavering commitment, resulting in a sound that was both powerful and beautifully polished. The entire choral programme reached a major milestone when the Chapel Choir were invited to perform at the renowned Mu sic in the Mountains Festival at the Drakensberg Boys Choir School on 25 May, sharing a platform with one of South Africa’s most celebrated youth choirs. Competition season brought exceptional success. The Chap el Choir earned a Gold Award at the prestigious ATKV Applous choir competition, which took place at Grace College on 6 May, a testament to their hard work and musical growth. The Chap el Choir then advanced even further, achieving an outstanding second place nationally at the finals in Pretoria at the ZK Mat thews Hall at UNISA on 2 August, firmly establishing the school among the top choral institutions in the country. One of the highlights of the year, as it always is, was the Two Schools in Concert celebration with Hilton College, hosted at the Michaelhouse Indoor Centre on 19 June. The choir also earned a diploma, the highest award possible, at the National Eisteddfod on 13 August. The National Eistedd fod was formerly known as the Roodepoort Eisteddfod and is a non-competitive national music festival. The adjudicator was host ed in the Chapel at Michaelhouse. The Chapel Choir proudly rep resented the school at the opening ceremony of the World Ocean Canoeing Championships in Durban at uShaka Marine World on 16 October, delivering a confident and memorable performance. Later in the year they were invited to join the Drakensberg Boys Choir once again for their annual Noël Concert on 23 Novem ber in the Michaelhouse Chapel, a highlight of the regional mu sical calendar. Beyond concerts and competitions, the Chapel Choir continues to serve at the heart of the school’s worship life, performing at Grandparents Day, the Chapel Rededication Service, the Prefect Induction Service, Remembrance Day and all full-school Eucharists. As always, the choir concluded the year with the traditional carol services, offering performances that were moving, joyful and mu sically refined. Audiences consistently remarked on how excellent the choir was sounding – balanced, expressive and confident. With such a successful year behind them, the future of the cho ral programme looks exceptionally bright as our boys continue to bring honour to the school and to nurture a lifelong love of music. CHAPEL CHOIR

Kwanda Dumasi and Olwethu Ntombela were selected for the 2025 KZN Midlands Youth Choir.

THE CHOIR’S REPERTOIRE THIS YEAR INCLUDED MANY TRADITIONAL SOUTHERN AFRICAN SONGS SUCH AS: • “Duduzu Moya Wami” by Mzwandile Mabuza – soloist Boitumelo Motsepe • “Bawo Thixo Somandla” (traditional Xhosa hymn) • “Jikelela” (traditional South African) • “Mbube” (arranged by Mr Gareth Dry) • “Moro Ke Ni” (traditional Namibian) • “Ndikokele Bawo” (traditional South African) – Soloist Luneziwe Mshengu • “The Crown of Roses” by Pyotr Ilich Tchaikovsky • “Die Blydskap Het Oornag” by NP van Wyk Louw FOR THE CHRISTMAS PROGRAMME THEY PERFORMED: • “Once in Royal David’s City” (traditional) • “In Dulci Jubilo” (traditional, arranged by WJ Westbrook) • “Holy Night” by Adolphe Adam • “Sing a Song for Christmas” by Mr Gareth Dry OTHER NOTABLE SONGS INCLUDED: • Psalm 121 (arranged by Mr Gareth Dry) This select group of 15 talented singers, rehearsing twice a week, has built a reputation for polished vocal blend, musical nuance and the ability to bring a heightened emotional depth to their performances. The choir’s calendar was rich with special performances that showcased their versatility and artistry. They began the year with an appearance at the Valentine’s Concert at St Anne’s DSG on 14 February. Their performance at the Anew Hotel in Hilton on 14 March further demonstrated their professional ism and musical maturity, and appearances at the Wembley College Festival of Music on 25 April and the Harvest Moon Festival in Nottingham Road on 2 May highlighted their ability to engage audiences across a wide range of settings. A significant highlight came when the Chamber Choir joined their larger counterpart at the Music in the Mountains Festival at the Drakensberg Boys Choir School on 27 April, performing in one of South Africa’s most celebrated choral showcases. Their efforts were further rewarded at the ATKV Applous choir competition on 6 May at Grace College, where they earned a Gold Award in the Prestige Male Voice Category, recognising their exceptional technical control and musical sensitivity. The Chamber Choir also earned a diploma, the highest award pos sible, at the National Eisteddfod, formally the Roodepoort Ei steddfod, a national, non-competitive festival of music, hosted in our beautiful Chapel. One of the highlights of the year, as it always is, was the Two Schools in Concert celebration with CHAMBER CHOIR The Chamber Choir enjoyed an outstanding year marked by musical sophistication, ex pressive performance and a series of mem orable engagements.

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