Huntshu Mthembu, a praise song to Nelson Mandela by composer Litha Jali, will have its premiere performance with the CPO. PETA STEWART found out more:
A baritone or a tenor? A composer or a conductor? A composer of opera or musicals? At the age of 31, Litha Jali may be a little conflicted but one thing is for sure. He will make a go of whatever he puts his hand to.
Jali, whose dream was to have a piece of his performed by the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra is having his dream come true. Twice actually. His praise song to Nelson Mandela, Huntshu Mthembu, will be given its premiere performance by the CPO in the opening concert of the 13th Summer Music Festival on 24 January 2019 at the Cape Town City Hall. But it was also played by the CPO in an earlier incarnation with the Cape Serenades Choir in September 2018 to celebrate 60 years of Gugulethu.
“That’s when I realised how I could change and improve it and the eight minute piece is now 12, and only for orchestra,” says Litha Jali.
“When we heard it in September,” says Louis Heyneman, CEO of the CPO, “We realised we had to broaden our base from western classical works to incorporate African compositions, allowing our audiences to experience a part of where they live.”
Jali says that writing the piece was a challenge.
“People consider me a composer only of Western classical music and I wanted to show them that I could write something that represents Africa with its rhythms, style and idioms and even some jazz,” he explains.
Early love of music
Litha Jali was raised in Butterworth in the Eastern Cape. He started composing music before he could actually write it and taught himself staff notation. He was 16 when he wrote his first piece, a setting to a poem called Goodnight Irene. It was two minutes long and was for soprano, alto, tenor and baritone with piano.
“I was thinking small, since I had only been exposed to choral music,” he says.
After school he went on to Fort Hare where he studied piano, voice and African instruments and in 2013, when he was 26 and completing his Post-Graduate Certificate in Education, he composed a Xhosa Mass, later orchestrating it. Of course he would like to have that performed!
Earlier this year, two commissions for the South African Tertiary Institutions Choral Association (SATICA) were performed; and he was asked to write what became Huntshu Mthembu for the Old Mutual National Choir Festival. He also composed a piece for mezzo-soprano and orchestra for the Western Cape Choral Music Association which was conducted by Monde Mdingi, his first piece ever played by an orchestra, this one very small with only about 14 people.
What’s next? He has asked Siyabulela Heshula to write a story about cyber-bullying of homosexuals, which he will make into a musical.
Taking up challenges
It was in 1999 that Jali heard the Hallelujah Chorus and as a result he joined the school choir simply so that he could sing more pieces like it. Like a footballer progressing through the levels until he gets to the professional league, he says, he went up step by step learning all the way. When he was as in high school, he was introduced to solo singing and The Magic Flute and says: “I fell in love. I am addicted to opera – and I have never seen a musical, so writing one will be another challenge! I have a feeling that with musicals I will appeal to more people.”
Music consumes him but in between composing and conducting his Cape Serenades Choir, he teaches English and Creative Arts at Abedare Primary School in Delft.
Note: If there are no seats left for this concert, tickets will be available at the door for the dress rehearsal which begins at 11am at the City Hall. Martin Panteleev conducts the CPO in the concert which also features the Dutch piano duo, Lucas and Arthur Jussen performing the Poulenc Concerto for Two Pianos and the Symphony no 2 by Rachmaninov.
What: CPO 13th Summer Music Festival opening concert
Where and when: Cape Town City Hall on 24 January 2019
Book: Computicket and Artscape Dial-A-Seat on 021 421 7695
WS
