Performances at Maru-a-Pula

In the last week the marimba band has gone into "performing mode" here at Maru-a-Pula. We had our first short "show" at assembly on Wednesday morning. It was only two songs, about ten minutes, but it was very interesting! It turns out that some of the students aren't so practiced at performing, and the songs started out quite a bit faster than they normally go...but overall it was a decent performance. I was much more nervous than I expected! I have gotten to the point in the past where I just don't mind performing, but for some reason it was different in front of the MaP community. I think my nerves can be attributed to my first performance in front of some of my very close friends amongst the staff, but still I was more unsettled than I expected.

The students hate performing for their peers, but that is completely understandable. The MaP students are lovely as individuals, but in groups they are a terror! Somehow they lose all respect for authority and for everything else when you put more than ten together in the same place... and in the past groups have been actually boo'd off the stage during assembly (Can you believe that's allowed!?!). So I understand why the marimba students would be shy of performing for this less-than-supportive audience. Luckily, for our show we received exactly the opposite response from the crowd. As soon as the curtain was drawn the students went mad--they were screaming and shouting their friends' names in support. Now, that's not exactly what you'd encourage at a live music show either, but I'm not going to complain! I even heard my name being called out! Turns out it was my Form 1 students :) who are always a bit over-enthusiastic anyway. Some of my other friends confessed that their first reaction to seeing the group was: "who's that white kid? Oh, wait.... that's Sarah!"

Later in the week I went to see the Thornhill Primary School marimba teacher. He is a very nice Zimbabwean man named Roy Nyathi, and it turns out that he was a student of Alport Mhlanga's back when AM taught at the Zimbabwean College of Music! Roy seems like a good resource for my project and I am planning to spend a bit of time there next week viewing lessons and attending a rehearsal of his performing band. I also got to see their band perform for a regional swimming gala at the school on Friday evening. They were an interesting group! All of the songs they perform are full of energy and enthusiasm--to the point that the students get up and dance during the performances sometimes! But more on the Thornhill group another day when I've spent some time at the school.