I'm in a spin! Today is the morning after the last evening - the
final performance - of the 5th Bulawayo Music Festival and I'm on a
high with the strains of Saint-Saens' Carnival of the Animals still
going round in my head. It will take days to recover from the
awesome experience of the past five days. It's a curious feeling of
fulfilment mixed with exhaustion from endeavours and determination
not to miss anything! It was a strenuous, exciting, tremendous,
exacting, stupendous, mind-boggling, not-to-be-missed five days.
How can one possibly put into words the terrific impact that this
wonderful happening has had on our lives? We have gone through so
many emotions and pleasures in a way we could never have envisioned.
An unbelievable, unprecedented and uniquely amazing period of time
that I simply cannot find adjectives to fully describe!
These last few days have been like none other and it's hard to
imagine 'Life after the Festival'. But we couldn't go on like that
anyway. All good things come to an end and we were getting near to
utter exhaustion anyway! How the performers themselves kept going
through five days of a rigorous and totally demanding, non-stop
programme is a mystery. They were just super human. The energy and
enthusiasm, quite apart from the technique and skill of producing
this intense musical immersion, is staggering. And their magnetic
personalities and constant good humour captivated the audience from
beginning to end. It has left us all with such a beautifully warm
feeling of well being and a tremendous appreciation of being in the
right place at the right time!
Michael Bullivant, appointed Director of the Academy of Music in
January 2006, is the indefatigable driving force behind all this. In
fact, the success of this fifth marvellous bi-annual event is due
entirely to the relentless dedication that Michael devotes to music
in Zimbabwe and we owe so much to this wonderful man! And how
blessed we are to have such a feast of culture and enjoyment right
here especially when almost everything around us is stressful and
uncertain. It's been like a shot in the arm to all those music
lovers who attended, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a more
determined and indomitable lot of followers anywhere! Even the
esteemed musicians themselves remarked on the enthusiasm and stamina
of the Bulawayo audience, which incidentally was made up of visitors
from all around Zimbabwe and even some from overseas.
The entire festival was also a delightful social event where people
became reacquainted with old friends and made many new ones.
Incidentally, there were a number of fellow WIT members which, for
me, added to the special camaraderie.
At the same time the visiting performers - Leslie Howard (pianist
from Down Under); Benjamin Nabarro (British violinist) and his wife,
Russian-born Ania Safonova (viola) and Matthew Sharp (British cellist
and baritone) along with our local homegrown talent (of whom there
were so many), mingled freely with the public so that by the end of
the five days we felt we knew them all fairly well - quite unlike
artists in other countries who are generally admired and appreciated
'at a distance'! The warmth and friendliness of people in Bulawayo
does not allow for this and our visitors are instantly and completely
at home - to the benefit of everyone concerned. I mean, where else
would you rub shoulders with famous musicians and actually observe
them pitching in doing 'menial' jobs like moving chairs from one area
of the Academy to another and shifting pianos across stage!
And what talent was on show for us! The choirs, soloists and
conductors, the orchestral players and the world-class visiting
performers who all charmed us with their marvellous music and
endearing personalities. To try to describe the emotions and
passion of their music - not to mention the skill and mental and
physical hard work of them all is beyond my capabilities. I prefer
to leave that to the experts but I think it's safe to say that all of
us in the audience were completely enthralled from start to finish -
from the opening Rachmaninov on Wednesday to the brilliant orchestral
concert on Sunday evening - and the memorable grand finale with
Martin Sharp's fine rendition of Flanders and Swan's Hippopotamus
Song (so appropriate to this country and a favourite, fun feature at
our festivals) with the audience joining in the chorus of 'Mud,
Glorious Mud'. Better than the last night of the Proms! Wow! What a
privilege and what a Festival!
PS: So here's looking towards 2008. In the meantime, however,
serious athletic pre- festival training is recommended!)
DOROTHY BOWMAN
mikebelinda@inspire.net.nz
Eve Beeson loved mother of Loretta and Reynolds died on 23 June 2006
SINCERE SYMPATHY FROM NIX AND RUDI
Just a note to let you know that Marianne's Mum, Mrs. Norma Moore,
passed away on Pentecost Sunday, 4th June, just 4 days before our
dear Fr. Odilo.
She had been at Nazareth House in Harare for some years, but lived
for many years (in our time in Bulawayo and for some years
afterwards) in Queens Park. We know she will be remembered by many
in Bulawayo still.
May we also add our deep sadness at the news of Fr. Odilo's passing -
he was a dear friend to all the family - I (John) played the organ at
Christ the King for some time before leaving Zim for Ireland.
May they both rest in peace.
Kind regards to yourself,
John & Marianne Aldridge
jaldridge@esatclear.ie
KATE HOLLINS
Our sincere condolences go out to the Hollins family, Ray, David and
Mandy after the passing of their dear wife and mother Kate. She was
such a wonderful lady who didn't deserve all that happened to her in
the last few months. She will be greatly missed. Mands know that we
are thinking of you and may God give you the strength to get through
this sad time in your life.
All our love
Ant and Sharon
Some of us who have already begun to break the silence of the night
have found that the calling to speak is often a vocation of agony,
but we must speak. We must speak with all the humility that is
appropriate to our limited vision, but we must speak. For we are
deeply in need of a new way beyond the darkness ... let us rededicate
ourselves in the long and bitter, but beautiful struggle for a new
world. --Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Happiness is a journey, not a destination. So work like you don't
need money,
love like you've never been hurt, and,
dance like no one's watching.
Greta
Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of
others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny
ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different
centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can
sweep down the mightiest walls ... --Robert F. Kennedy
You cannot strengthen the weak
by weakening the strong.
You cannot help the small man by tearing down the big men,
You cannot help the poor
By destroying the rich
You cannot help the wage earner
By pullingdown the wage payer.
You cannot keep out of trouble
By spending more than your income.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatreds.
You cannot establish security on borrowed money.
You cannot build character and courage
by taking away a man's initiative and independence.
You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and
should do for themselves.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
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