Patience Makwele
A Baroque concert set for this weekend in Windhoek will place young Namibian musicians at the centre of a live orchestral performance.
The concert is presented by the Namibian National Symphony Orchestra and will feature 52 participants, including seven young Namibian soloists selected through auditions.
The event’s chairlady and organiser, Irmgard Rannersmann, said the selection was based on performance, not competition.
“They did auditions where they had to play and show if what they’re playing is good enough. Their prize was that they were good enough to be one of the soloists at the concert,” she said.
She said the event is not a contest.
“We do not have prizes… It is not a competition. It has a concert. The price for them is to let them be on stage,” said Rannersmann.
The youngest soloist is a 13-year-old violinist. The group includes young musicians from different parts of Namibia.
The concert will take place at the Reformed Church. The programme will combine solo performances with full orchestral works under the direction of Xavier Cloete.
Rannersmann said the first half will focus on young performers, while the second half will feature larger orchestral pieces with visiting musicians.
The programme includes works by Antonio Vivaldi, Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel.
She said the concert aims to show that this music remains relevant.
“Music from composers who are hundreds of years dead, but whose work is still very much alive today,” she said.
The event will also feature Italian flautist Luisa Sello and Namibian flautist Hans-Peter Drobisch, as well as a joint performance with the Bad Vilbeler Chamber Orchestra.
Rannersmann said the concert also aims to introduce more people to live orchestral music.
“Many people don’t even know that we have a full symphony orchestra in Namibia,” she said.
“This is something very special because it is live music and there are no electronic enhancements, no recordings. It is just played live.”
She said Baroque music remains accessible.
“This is music from Vivaldi, Bach and Handel. It is still so beautiful and so alive. I think everybody should come to such a concert at least once in their life,” she said.
The event aims to raise awareness of classical music and encourage young people to take part in the arts.
