I created a poster for the Soweto Gospel Choir to sign last week.

I thought it turned out pretty well!  Was a bit upset that the silver sharpie that I had brought was smudging off due to the gloss of the poster (should have tested it out, drats!); but I have it laminated now to preserve the siggies!

Thanks to the Choir for signing!

Sarah posted the below video of a 3D Art Project she completed for school.  I loved it so much that I asked her to share some info about the project and why she chose the Soweto Gospel Choir as her subject.  Great stuff!

Project Description from Sarah:

I am a graduate student in Illustration at the Savannah College of Art and Design. For my Materials and Techniques course, our final assignment was to create a 3D illustration of our musical hero. I wanted to do a gospel choir but not just because I love gospel music. I also love that in a gospel choir, even more so than in other choirs, each member is shown to be both a complete individual but also a part of the whole.

My family is from South Africa and I spent last year living in the Eastern Cape. My ears ache to hear South African singing again, so when it came to choosing which choir to illustrate, I had no trouble at all. I’d heard the Soweto Gospel Choir while I was still getting my undergraduate degree in Tacoma, Washington, and I fell in love with their sound. They are both distinctly South African and yet are also intentionally accessible to foreign audiences.

Anyone who has seen this choir perform knows how important movement is to their music. Seeing this choir involves the audience’s appreciation of sound, color and pattern, but also of movement and rhythm. So I built the soloist and the other choir members on small runners under the stage so that the viewer can move them back and forth.

Thanks for the share Sarah!

I just saw the movie Invictus today and am giving it two big thumbs up.  What a great story…and the music/score was awesome.

The song Shosholoza (the Choir sings a beautiful version of it in its African Spirit album) is featured predominately throughout the movie.

I am sure all fans of the Soweto Gospel Choir will enjoy the movie immensely–check it out!

Synopsis:

Invictus is a 2009 drama feature film based on Nelson Mandela’s life during the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa. Directed by Clint Eastwood, the film stars Morgan Freeman as the then South African President Mandela, and Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar, the South African team captain.[2] The story is based on the John Carlin book Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Changed a Nation.

Trailer:

TV alert for any Canucks out there, but the Choir will be on Bravo Canada (not to be confused with the American channel of the same name) tonight @ 9pm.

Bravo airs the Choir’s performances every once in awhile (I believe this is the 3rd time I’ve personally seen it), and it should be the Blessed DVD concert being aired.

Enjoy!

Miriam Makeba, the South African singer whose voice stirred hopes of freedom among millions in her country with music that was banned by the apartheid authorities she struggled against, died overnight after performing at a concert in Italy on Sunday. She was 76.

New York Times’ full obituary: Miriam Makeba, 76, Singer and Activist, Dies