The Soweto String Quartet’s second album, Renaissance, is set to rocket the ensemble to international fame, writes GLYNIS O’HARA
RIGHT now we’re living through South Africa’s Renaissance, say the Soweto String Quartet. “It’s in all aspects of life. It’s an awakening, a rebirth, as well as in the redefining of South African arts. Europe had a Renaissance, now it’s our turn.”
The quartet have just brought out their second album, entitled Renaissance (BMG), in honour of that idea. And just as the Renaissance in Europe was born of the powerful, mercantile Italian city states, there’s also a political basis for this idea in the here and now.
“Our country,” says Makhosini Mnguni (viola), “is now a model of peace and reconciliation.”
“Yes,” says Reuben Khemese (cello), “now Unita leader Jonas Savimbi is talking to President Mandela in an attempt to settle Angola and give them a government of national unity. We regard this country as the mother country of Africa.”
Reuben is the oldest of the three brothers in the group. Sandile Khemese, who studied in Manchester and Soweto, plays first violin, and Thami plays second violin.
Their first album, 1995’s Zebra Crossing, had the industry buzzing. It won Best New Artist, Best Instrumental Performance and Best Pop Album in that year’s FNB/South African Music Awards. It went platinum at home and in New Zealand, and gold in Australia and Spain, where the group has been dubbed Los Violinistas de Mandela, in recognition of the fact that they play regularly at functions for the president.
For a group that used to rehearse in a disused public toilet, they’ve come a long way. Now they drive two BMWs painted in zebra stripes and have played all over Europe, in Australia and New Zealand. This year they’ll be touring South Africa before going overseas again, this time to Spain and France, Oz again, Scandinavia, the United Kingdom and possibly the United States. None of the dates have been finalised.
They still live in Soweto. After all, you can’t call yourself the Soweto String Quartet and live in Sandton, can you? Indeed, the interview was conducted on the grass under a shady tree in Dobsonville, Soweto, on the grounds of one of Credo Mutwa’s former homes.
The first home of the Khemeses, though, was Sophiatown, where they were all born to a deeply musical family committed to fine church singing. The notorious forced removals from the area were part of their formative childhood experiences. No wonder then, that one of the tracks on Renaissance is called Sophiatown, in recognition and celebration of the restoration of the area’s original name – and the dumping of the insulting title of Triomf.
The church singing of their youth, says Sandile Khemese, “culminated in a very sophisticated ear.
“When we started playing violins, we didn’t have problems with intonation. Our uncle, Michael Masote, started a music school in Soweto in 1965. Myself and Reuben were among the first violin students.”
So it’s all in the family. Indeed, Kutlwano Masote, Michael’s son, is a cellist currently studying in Switzerland at Lord Yehudi Menuhin’s school in Gstaadt.
Makhosini Mnguni, slightly younger than the around-40 Khemeses, also comes from a strong musical background. His brother plays jazz clarinet and he started on jazz trumpet.
“But I saw Sandile playing and I was impressed, so I started studying with Sandile and Thami.”
Michael Masote’s school produced a youth orchestra playing classical music in which the four participated. But in 1978 they went out on their own and formed the quartet.
“We did a lot of corporates and experimented with African music. We found the response positive.
“We’ve no regrets we’ve moved from pure classical,” says Sandile Khemese. “Classical is good for discipline though.”
As with their previous album, it’s a blend of acoustic string playing and instrumentation like bass, guitars and drums. Renaissance, though, includes keyboards which, to these ears, makes it a slightly smoother production.
Still, the most beautiful, moving piece is probably Dvorak’s Songs My Mother Taught Me, played straight and recorded live. Which is not to decry their Imbube, Weeping (sung by Vusi Mahlasela and also unspeakably high on the emotional scale), Mangwane/
Ee’Motswala or their own five compositions, including Blue Fountain and Eureka.
“The thing with our music,” says Thami Khemese, “is that we’ve managed to come up with a different sound, with no age, cultural or geographical boundaries. It can be listened to by everyone. It’s accessible – and it brings joy.”
And what on earth can be wrong with that?