A job may have been my avenue for going to Africa, but it wasn’t the driving force. I didn’t choose the job with a minor detail being “Located in South Africa”. I chose the job because it was located in South Africa. I love Africa for it’s beautiful landscapes and warm-hearted people, and I love to contribute what skills and ideas I might have for the betterment of others’ livelihood. Though my colleague and I stayed busy in the village with our students, when we were approached by the local youth choir to assist in their marketing efforts, we agreed.
Huntington is located near private game reserves that border Kruger National Park. Employment prospects are grim in the area, and the few that are employed, typically work at the game lodges. The youth choirs aim to perform at these lodges for tourists. Several villages in our area had youth choirs to help keep kids out of trouble. The HIV/AIDS rate is extremely high, as well as teen pregnancy. And, there is no shortage of talent in these small villages, from beautiful voices to perplexing dance moves.
As part of our assistance, we made over the printed material, and did a photo and video shoot. We took the videos and put together this short montage to give game lodges an overview of what the choir can offer their guests. Here is the video of the talented youth in my village in South Africa. If you want to see the hip-shaking cultural dances, watch until at least the 2 minute marker. If you want to see a clip of a song from Lion King as well as Shosholoza, hang in there until the end!
this is so wonderful! thanks for sharing!
Holy cow, they are incredibly talented! Both at singing and dancing. If I were a lodge I would hire them in a heartbeat. I loved the energy of all the songs and dancing in the video, I can feel it in the music even though I’m not there in person. I almost started crying at the end when it said, “We believe our voices should be heard.”
Ver powerful.
This is a fantastic video — their voices are beautiful and I watched from start to finish. I’d love to hear them in person.
I fell in love with South Africa through a Zulu choir – the amazing talent whether it’s singing or dancing is amazing! There’s always music when I’m around my Zulu friends. One of the most fun things I just did a few weeks ago? My friend’s Zulu wedding – music, singing and dancing all around!! :-)